Haute cuisine does not usually travel well. Hence, many chefs are lazy when they are asked to cook away from home. And taking the full tasting menu from the restaurant to another place is a topic that is not even raised, of course. That is why Francis Paniego's visit to Barcelona a few days ago was something almost exceptional, because the chef from La Rioja brought all the dishes that currently make up the menu of his restaurant to the CocinaME gastronomic space of the Montagud publishing house. It was like having El Portal de Echaurren in Barcelona for a few hours. Or almost.
"We traveled yesterday with the car loaded to the top, and part of the team had to come by train," explained Francis Paniego while around the kitchen the dishes awaited the first pass. If anyone who has cooked knows that their fires are always the best because they have taken their pulse, in a service of this level dealing with a different kitchen and space than usual is quite a challenge.
So Paniego almost apologized in advance if something didn't go perfectly. And he remembered that the experience he was about to begin did not excuse the diners from visiting Ezcaray. Neither of these two things seemed to be necessary before an audience devoted to the cause. 30 people who sold out in a few hours the places available for this session of "The Magical Nights of Montagud" which also serves to celebrate the 125th anniversary of Echaurren.
A commemoration in which the memory of Marisa Sánchez, cook, restaurant soul and mother of Francis Paniego could not be missing. A beautiful black and white photograph with the hands of mother and son -taken by Mikel Ponce, one of the best gastronomy photographers in the country and a key piece in many of the publisher's books- presided over the evening. From here he watches over the kitchen, Paniego commented.
The parade of the first appetizers begins, which is almost a walk down Calle Laurel in Logroño. The chorizo pepper on crispy corn shines especially. Some joke that a croquette doesn't taste like much, which is always true, although in a menu of 22 passes it sounds crazy. It's not Echaurren, but the closeness and even camaraderie with the kitchen manages to create a special atmosphere in the room.
Things get serious with the thistle with almonds. Humble products and recipes elevated here to their highest level of elegance. This first sequence of dishes -explains the chef- vindicates the territory and tradition, two pillars in the kitchen and history of the house and which, in fact, support the two legs of the project: Echaurren Tradición and also El Portal.
The kitchen and dining room work at a very good pace and soon another notable dish arrives: the panchineta with artichokes and foie, a savory version of the traditional Basque flaky dessert.
“We are so crazy that we came to make a complete tasting menu of offal,” recalled Paniego. Those were years in which each cook was looking for a nickname with his specialty and he played at being the chef of the offal. It doesn't sound very commercial, but the truth is that he touches this product like few others.
The current menu is proof of the evolution of that idea. Now these ingredients have found their space without fanfare, but providing that undeniable character that offal gives to any dish.
The tempura ravioli of lechecillas with fresh cream and caviar or the asadurilla fritter are two good examples. Far from softening the origin of the ingredients as sometimes happens, Paniego explains it in detail. You can't fool the client, he defends himself.
In fact, this ode to offal even reaches the desserts, where the crusts coexist with the ice cream shortbread (Pol Contreras, author of this dessert chosen as the best in the country at Madrid Fusión 2019 was also around), and even some sinews fried with cocoa accompany chocolate and vanilla in one of the last bites.
Dinner runs wrapped and stories. Like the “Marta hake”, a dish that Paniego explains as the result of the unapologetic cooking practiced by his mother. Who would dare to put cooked ham on hake in a high-end restaurant? she wondered.
But it is true - he reflects aloud while he assembles a dish and supervises those that come out - that it is a bland fish. So putting ham and butter, and coating it with flour and egg is brilliant, because the fat from the butter also binds to the collagen from the hake and creates a wonderful texture.
This "Marta hake", named after her sister, is also on the menu of Echaurren who traveled to Barcelona. It is true that it is a refined version in its shapes and plating (soft ham gelé, a non-acid Menier on the hake and Roman balls to remind us of the batter), but it is the story behind what gives soul to a really tasty dish.
So much more interesting than listing the sequence of dishes and wines in detail (and also removing emotion from those who come to Echaurren and do not want many spoilers) is to stop at these small anecdotes accumulated over the 125 years of a house that It began as an inn and today it sports two stars and three Suns.
"Echaurren is in front of a church, so my aunt came up with the idea of selling churros stuffed with anise for the people who were leaving mass," the cook recalled to present one of the desserts on the menu, composed, of course, of churros, cream and anise.
Only the petit fours that end the evening are off the menu this season at Echaurren, because they are from Fátima Gismero, Revelation Pastry Chef 2021 at Madrid Fusión. The star of the latest issue of Pastry Revolution and who has taken advantage of her time in Barcelona not only to sign copies of this issue, but also to give the final sweet touch.
