Had the utmost pleasure and distinct experience of dining at both Disfrutar and El Celler de Can Roca during a recent trip to Spain. Booked Disfrutar a year ago to the date, and El Celler de Can Roca 11 months prior, when reservations first opened for July 2024. A long stretch of anticipation and excitement, especially when the former was named best restaurant in the world two months ago.
I’ll only post the respective menus for each restaurant. All dishes are readily viewable online, besides which, I think it’s more exciting for those who plan on going to go in blind (especially Disfrutar) on what dishes look like and the surprises that await.
Being that it was our first time, we opted for the Classic Menu at Disfrutar along with the wine pairing. At El Celler, the only option was the Festival Menu. We also added the wine pairing as well.
If commentators are interested, I can provide more information as desired, but at a high level we had a fantastic time at both restaurants – the dishes across the board were delicious, the creativity was impactful (particularly at Disfrutar), and the service was top notch. That said, there were some things that I found preferable at Disfrutar and other things that were preferable at El Celler de Can Roca.
DISFRUTAR
Starting with the highlights of Disfrutar, I find it impossible to pick a favorite dish. Nearly each course was not only insanely delicious, but the creativity and thought behind them provided a combination that was immensely impactful. My personal favorites included the Panchino filled with Caviar, the Smoked Butter with Caviar, the Gazpacho Sandwich, the Gilda (especially having been in San Sebastian where we ate plenty of traditional gilda’s), the Flourless Coca Bead with Escalivada and Anchovy, the Multi Spherical Pesto with Pistachios and Eel, the Macaroni alla Carbonara, the Liquid Salad and Tomato Caviaroli, the Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs with Fried Egg of Crustacean, and the Multi Spherical Tatin of Corn and Foie. As you can see, that’s about half the menu, but personally all those dishes were not only some of the best bites I’ve had anywhere, but I found them to be wonderfully creative. Every dish on the menu was great, nothing was a dud or mediocre. I do wish we had the sprout flavor concentration dish though, but I’ll use it as an excuse to go back in the future.
Desserts at Disfrutar were also very good – my favorite was probably the Chocolate Peppers. The Petit Fours were also delicious, my favorite being the Basil Chocolate.
Loved the beverage pairing too. I did like that they added vodka and sake, both of which I enjoyed very much and thought paired very well with their respective dish(s). The Truffle Vodka and caviar dishes were decadent yet still elegant. The Biden 1999 sake paired exceptionally well with the earthy mushroom dishes that followed. Also enjoyed the Fino Seleccion with the Gilda and Flourless Bread, the Bourgogne Hautes-Cotes with the Carbonara, and the Villa de Corullon 2011 with the Golden Egg.
Service at Disfrutar was exceptional. Personable and engaging, although the delivery felt a little mechanical at times. We had a few different servers here and there, but they all introduced themselves so nothing felt awkward. The dining room was very lively and dynamic. I know fine dining can feel stuffy at times, but this was anything but. We sat at the table in the center of the room and it was occasionally a little difficult to hear our servers due to all the conversations going around, but it was nevertheless a fun, vivacious vibe, especially when we sat at the center of it all. Dinner lasted about 4 hours, but the minutes really flew by.
El CELLER DE CAN ROCA
On to El Celler de Can Roca. Likewise an amazing albeit different experience in several ways. First, the dining room was one of the most gorgeous dining rooms I’ve been in. The room was filled with natural light, with the iconic trees in the center that we faced. Tables were segregated out more so than Disfrutar, so the sound around the room was more muted, but the environment never felt stuffy.
As stated above, the only option was the Festival Menu and we also opted for the wine pairing. As you can see from the photo of the menu, there was a ton of food, and personally I thought everything was very good to excellent. Like Disfrutar, there was nothing that was mediocre or a dud. My personal favorites include the Three-sided Consomme, the Summer Truffle Broiche and Sandwich, the Foie Nougat with Cocoa, the Grilled Fish of the Day which was Scorpion Fish, Moray Stew, the Langoustine, and the “Xuixo” of Duck Stew. Additionally, not listed on the menu was Jordi’s tomato bread which may have been one of the best brioches my girlfriend and I have ever had.
Desserts were also outstanding as was expected. The Summer Forest was very fun and tasty. Loved the Apricot dish and Flower Boom too. The Ferris Wheel of desserts was outstanding. Wish I had a list of all those petits. I know the Playroc, which is inspired by the taste of playdough, has been pretty controversial on this subreddit, but honestly I think it was fun, the flavor did remind me of playing with playdough as a boy. The flavor was pretty subtle, which is the point of a palate cleanser anyway.
The wine pairing at El Celler was probably the best wine pairing I’ve ever had. Very generous of them to provide 17 wines, one for each main dish I believe, and each one very well thought out. My favorites included the Gonzalez Byass Palo Cortado 1986 which was paired with the Foie Nougat. The Grans-Fassian 1997 and 2018, Porco Bravo 2022, Pecorino 2015, and the Clos Martinet 2021 and 2014 that went very well with the split duck dish.
Service was also great at El Celler de Can Roca. We had the same server for 95% of the service who was just as pleasant as the servers at Disfrutar. I did feel that the service at El Celler felt less “mechanical” than at Disfrutar. Felt a little more “natural” if that makes sense. Although I will say that towards the end of the meal, our waiter just sort of disappeared and a new, very young server brought out the bill and card reader, which was a little strange. It sort of just ended abruptly, and we never properly said goodbye or thanked our server. We briefly met Josep Roca who seemed quite shy, but very kind and warm. We also saw Jordi roaming around and I made eye contact with him so that was pretty special as well. We also got a brief tour around the kitchen and wine cellar.
I loved both experiences; two of the best restaurants I’ve ever been to, and experiences I’ll remember forever. Personally, I loved the food at Disfrutar more. Nearly every dish, certainly the ones I listed above, was not only exceptionally creative, but some of the most delicious food I’ve had. Disfrutar is truly operating at the level expected of the #1 restaurant in the world. The dishes at El Celler de Can Roca were all amazing, but comparatively not quite as memorable as Disfrutar. Both restaurants offered an amazing amount of food, and both my girlfriend and I felt fairly full by the end of it. Not quite “stuffed”, but certainly content. And after the 11 half-pours at Disfrutar and 17 at El Celler, we were also fairly tipsy by the conclusion of the meal. However, while I did really enjoy the wine pairing at Disfrutar, El Celler’s wine pairing is simply in a league of its own. Service at both were outstanding. I loved the lively atmosphere and unique design of the dining room at Disfrutar, while the dining room at El Celler was so distinct and gorgeous and probably one of the best designed dining rooms I’ve been in.
by NYnosher