I have been to this restaurant a couple of times, and it hides a most pleasant surprise. Unfortunately, in none of the two occasions did I have a camera with me. But I plan to try dinner there, so next time I will be more prepared for a fuller report.
This restaurant is out of the way of the city centre of Girona. It is near a main street Santa Eugènia, almost to Salt. It is unassuming and I just wandered to lunch there. However, for those who want to visit the Hortes de Santa Eugènia, this would be a good place to stop for midday meal.
The Hortes are pieces of land which residents can rent to grow whatever they want, tomatoes, cabbages, lettuce, etc. It offers a fantastic place for cycling and walking. A part of it is preserved as Wetlands Park, which keeps the humidity for the city. There are benches and tables in the park area for picnic. Once inside the Horta, one can breathe freely the clean air and enjoy a quiet walk along the canals and fields.
For lunch, La Columna offer a set menu with drinks for 10 euros. For appetizers, we were served a green salad with a sunflower seeds dressing. It was fresh and tasty. Then there were several dishes to choose from. I have tried onion soup and noodles for the first, both were good. For second, I had fish, dorada, which was nicely done in a simple way.
I have seen a group ordering paella, but it has to be reserved beforehand. At dinner, they offer more choices and the fire would be lit for grilling, a la brasa. Now is the calçots season and they have calçotada. Calçot is a type of onion and eating it is a ritual. Very often in each neighbourhood they have an event every year to gather together to eat calçots. You grill them directly on fire without cleaning them, usually they come with a lot of earth. Then you put some in a piece of newspaper for each person. What you do is to pull from the top while holding the bottom of a calçot and get the most tender part out and eat it starting from the bottom holding it with your fingers. It is dressed with a sauce called romesco, the preparation of which is a very serious business. Families are proud of their traditional recipes.
This dish is available in some restaurants throughout Catalonia, and usually they announce it at the door. It is definitely worth trying, since eating it is a whole experience. Once I had calçot a la romana instead, which is calçot fried with a light batter. It was delicious and less messy to deal with. The deep fried dishes in that restaurant are very well prepared. It is in Barcelona and I will write about it another day.
Back to La Columna. For dessert I had pineapple in carpaccio dressed with kirsch and vanilla ice-cream. It tasted fresh but the alcohol was a bit overwhelming for me, which turned the pineapple a bit too bitter.
The house wine went well with the dishes, and it was included in the menu. For 10 euros it is more than a good bargain. Service is fast and friendly. Certainly if ever they decide to dress up the restaurant a little bit, it will have a lot of potential. As it is now, it is an excellent place for neighbours and casual wanderers.
No comments:
Post a Comment