La Picantería is about those exotic flavours that jazz up any dish. We didn’t have anything spicy here (so far :)) but everything we tried had plenty of taste and colour.
The menu here takes the best of the culinary cultures of Peru, Japan, Brazil and Mexico and, just like the traditional picanterías of Arequipa, this place is also where food becomes a way of socializing.
La Picantería serves ceviches, tacos, nachos and grill with yakitori or ‘picanha’ beef, as well as causas – Peruvian potato dough with ajiamarillo sauce, to which other ingredients are then added.
We tried the causas topped with shrimps, slices of avocado and splashed with beetroot sauce, and fried yucca to accompany it.
We followed with patacón, a warm salad of octopus and calamari with veggies and fried banana.
As always, this funny thing happens at the time of the dessert, no matter if we are two or ten at the table: all dishes are to share, but the sweets remain an individual matter. Of course we tried one another’s and I can assure you that my chocolate tart was just as delicious as my friend’s cheese cake with maracuya topping.
You can find La Picantería de l’Escribà on C/Marià Aguiló at no. 59. This street runs parallel with Rambla del Poblenou and I always prefer to go here: this narrow street shadowed by orange trees is where some of the best places in Poblenou can be found, and where mainly people from the barrio go.
A Little Extra
Picanterías are traditional lunchtime restaurants of Peru. Born in the countryside, they were initially private homes with a post hung with a red cloth – the sign for food being offered. Clients would enter via the kitchen so they could see what was being cooked and could order. The dining room was rustic, with benches ranged along large tables, and the atmosphere was always lively as the picanterías were also socializing places.
After eating, and following the conversation, liquor was served. Owners would then create the “Picante”, which was olny served in late afternoon and before closing.
Even if in La Picantería de l’Escribà we don’t enter by the kitchen but by the bar, the place has a homy ambiance with plenty of decorations on the walls and tables to share.
You might also like
Umami and Other Tastes of Honest Greens. Translated from Japanese as delicious, umami is actually a taste: the fifth taste, the one besides sweet, sour, salty and bitter. It is present in a vast array of veggies as well as in most fermented foods, and it’s also one of the tasty bowls of Honest Greens.
Rutes de Barcelona 