Sergi Arola Gastro

First of all, sorry about the delay in getting this post done, I had to gather all my notes and photos from 2 computers and get it all together.

Some of you may remember the name Sergi Arola from a previous post on this blog, he was once the chef of La Broche and left to start his own venture - Gastro - which went from 0 to 2 stars in one review, one of the first restaurants in Europe to achieve this.

The menu at Gastro changes almost completely each month and with several different tasting menus, this represents a huge amount of work, but something that Sergi and his wife Sara are very passionate about. With Sergi running the kitchen and Sara running the front of house, they make a great team and my meal there was a pleasure from start to finish. The staff all spoke very good English and were friendly, informative and knowledgeable about the menu. Another thing worth noting is that Gastro does not have an A La Carte menu, only tasting menus.


The interior is modern and sleek, but at the same time warm and inviting.


After being seated, I was presented with a selection of snacks.

From left to right are: Kalamata Olives, Eggplant pate with small toasts, Cherries marinated in salt and vinegar, mini croquettes, a light aioli and Potato crisps. The potato crisps were completely flat and so thin they were almost transparent and their shattering crunch when I bit them was a great auditory accompaniment to the taste and texture of the perfect potato chip. Dipping them in the smooth and gentle garlic aioli added a new dimension of flavour and my taste buds were starting to wake up and look forward to what was to come. The croquettes were still warm and delicious little nuggets of goodness with a crisp batter and a dense, smooth filling. The cherries were a revelation, soaked in vinegar and salt they were sour, salty and tender, a totally unexpected combination of tastes hat I really enjoyed. The eggplant pate was smooth and well balanced and the kalamata olives were some of the best I have ever had. This was a great way to start the meal and I hadn't even ordered yet.

I decided to go for the full "gastro" menu since who knew when I would ever get another chance to eat here again.

To begin with, I was given an amuse bouche of Mushroom Yogurt.

The white powder on the top was like a freeze-dried yogurt, which disappeared almost as soon as it touched my tongue, leaving nothing in my mouth except the flavour of yogurt, a bizarre and surprising effect which put a smile on my face. The mushroom yogurt underneath was full of mushroom flavour and was smooth and creamy.

The first official dish on the menu was the Cornet: "Gazpacho" with tomato water ice-cream.


A single bite of crisp pastry and frozen gazpacho shaped like a little ice-cream cone, the taste of the tomato developed as it melted and warmed in my mouth.

Next was Cod: Smoked sausage, fennel, horseradish and apple.

Crunchy, crisp, smooth, sweet, smoky with a bite of heat from the horseradish. I wanted more than two bites of this to try to break down all the flavours, but together it was a great combination.

After this came Potatoes: "Bravas" Arola-style.

Arola's take on the common tapas dish is a line of spicy potato cylinders with a creamy garlic mayo.

The dish that followed was one that seemed to combine many of the flavours of Andalusia, Sardines: In olive oil with almond ice-cream, "ecologic" caviar and tomato soup.

Cold almond soup and cold tomato soup (Gazpacho) are traditional dishes from the Andalusian region of Spain and this combination of the two, sandwiching two fillets of fresh sardine with the salty bite of caviar was a great interpretation of these established dishes.

Beetroot: Like a tartar, with mango yolk and goat cheese yogurt.
Made to resemble the french bistro classic of steak tartar, the beetroot was cut into tiny cubes and topped with spherified mango puree. When the "yolk" was broken the puree coated the beetroot like a sauce. A union of the tender root vegetable with the smooth fruity sauce.

After this was another familiar ingredient in Spain, Razor Clams: Sauteed with a veloute and sliced of Iberian ham.
This was my last chance to eat these shellfish and it didn't disappoint. The plate was like a work of art, with the ham sliced extremely thin and shaped almost like a flower, the warm colours added to the inviting appearance of this dish which was enhanced by the aroma of the sauce. The veloute was smooth and buttery, a backdrop for the salty ham and tender shellfish.

Lorito Rao: Semi-pickled, tender garlic terrine, radish and seaweed cream was the next dish.

Parrot fish (sauced after this photo was taken) with vegetables, this was well cooked and while not the most memorable dish of the meal, was still quite good.

The second fish course was one of the absolute highlights of this meal. Black Grouper: With sauteed potatoes and tender onions, coconut soup and vindaloo curry.

A perfectly cooked square of black grouper fillet, sitting on a stack of potatoes and circled by a ring of thick vindaloo curry sauce and the coconut soup poured around it. This was something I could have eaten over and over again, the flaky fish with crispy skin, the sweet coconut soup and the hot sweetness of the curry were sensational and I cleaned the plate dry.

One of the dishes that is a specialty of Arola's is Duck Liver: In our classic "Coca" with roasted vegetables in olive oil.

Alternating cubes of duck liver and roast vegetable stacks sit on a crisp cracker with a topping of chives, the liver was rich and velvety and the vegetables were tender and sweet.

The first dessert course was Apricot: In pastry "kadaif" cake with a soup of green tea.


A lot of thought goes into this palette cleanser/dessert, crisp shredded pastry with delicious ripe apricots sitting in a soup of green tea which clears the mouth in preparation for the rest of the sweets to come.

Watermelon: Pickled with tomato ice-cream and chamomile and hibiscus tea.

Another cold dessert, refreshing and simple, the tea was the star here, floral and aromatic and sweet from the watermelon. I'd love to put this in a mug and drink it on a hot summer day at home.

The last dish on the menu was the Souffle: Of passion fruit with mint ice-cream and "Ocumare" cocoa cream.


Served by the chef himself, this soft, fluffy cloud of passion fruit souffle was placed in front of me and a small scoop of mint ice cream was placed on top and as it started to melt, the cocoa cream was poured over the top. Every element of this dish was strong and each flavour spoke loud and clear, the sweet/sour passion fruit, the herby, bright mint and the warm, base chocolate flavours of the sauce. I didn't have a souffle in Paris, but with this perfect example, I certainly didn't miss out on it.

The petit fours were a delight for the senses.

The madeleines on the left - usually sweet - were olive flavoured, the olives in the middle are actually chocolates, the rocks and pebbles on the right hand side are hard crunchy candies and the green stuff in the jar is an apple jelly. These all had me smiling and almost laughing as I realised that each element was not what it appeared to be, surprising to the last.

All in all, this was certainly one of the best meals of my life, an I would even say it was THE best. Constant surprises and unexpected combinations had me guessing right to the end of the meal and each part of every dish was perfectly executed and thoughtfully prepared. At the conclusion of the meal, I got an opportunity to speak with Sergi Arola himself and he and his wife were extremely courteous hosts and I would really like to take this opportunity to express my thanks for an amazing meal and a fitting conclusion to my European holiday.