The first event of the year for members in Madrid remembered our Catalan friends by staging an urban calçotada at Restaurante Paradís Madrid. Calçotada is the Catalan onion “craze”, a gastronomic phenomenon being one of the most renowned traditions in the region surrounding Barcelona.

Paradís was founded almost 40 years ago in Barcelona and today they also have restaurants in Madrid and Valencia, being a benchmark for Catalan cuisine. The Restaurante Paradís Madrid was one of the first restaurants to offer the calçotada experience in the capital and with so much history and experience behind it, it became the perfect place to get 2019 off to a great start for the local Bailliage.

After the reception Bailli Délégué Rosa Román gave a brief speech thanking everyone for their participation especially those from other cities and countries.

The dinner started with a selection of Catalan sausages (black botifarra, white bull, fuet) served with bread and tomato. Also escalivada with tuna as well as croquettes of sobrassada (a raw, cured sausage from the Balearic Islands made with ground pork and paprika) and ham. A magnificent start!

Then came the calçots which the Restaurante Paradís Madrid normally offers only tempura-style but we could also enjoy them cooked in the traditional way, i.e. on the grill. Both styles were delicious, the traditional being sweet and tender, the tempura really amazing.

Grilled meats, all cooked to juicy and tasty perfection, formed the main course. We enjoyed country sausage, chicken, lamb chops and bacon accompanied by escarole salad, ganxet beans and aioli.

Catalan cream and crème brûlée made for a delicious sweet conclusion to the menu.

All the dishes were served for us to share as if we were celebrating a calçotada with friends in the countryside but this time in the city - an urban calçotada!

We drank cava at the start and end of the evening. Eguren Ugarte Rioja was a perfect red wine partner to the dishes.

Bailli Délégué Rosa Román and Argentier Gerardo Oter presented certificates of appreciation to Chef Domingo Arco Collado and the kitchen brigade as well as to Maître D Pablo Cano Gómez and the front of house team for their dedication making the meal simply perfect.

It was a very special event where members and their guests - hopefully future members of the Chaîne - came not only from Madrid but from other cities in Spain as well as from Hungary and China.

As a souvenir, all the attendees received a sparkling wine bottle closure embellished with the Chaîne logo.

Vive la Chaîne!

César González

Photos courtesy of Mónica Sanz and César González