He was missed since at the end of last year he stopped serving at the emblematic bar Pinotxo de la Boqueria, which his mother, Catalina Pérez, had founded. But, in a way, it made up for it to imagine him at home, with his well-deserved retirement after eight decades serving those customers convinced that if they visited the best market in the city, they had to stop by his most cosmopolitan bar. They would be served there by that small man with a huge smile and a wide-eyed look in a waistcoat and bow tie who got up at 4 in the morning to raise the curtain at 6 o’clock. Stewed chickpeas, beans with squid, cap and potao simply a coffee from the machine in the corner where Juanito holed up until they convinced him it was time to rest.
In that tiny space was where Juan Bayén Pérez (Barcelona, 1934) worked, Juanito, or Pinotxo, as he was also called, which was the name he gave to his little dog when he was a child and at the age of 7 he was fascinated when they took him to see Pinocchio at the cinema. And so it would end up being called his mother’s bar at stop 465 of the Boqueria, and even he himself would adopt this nickname that has accompanied it.
Juanito Bayén served with the same smile whether the customer was from the neighborhood and visited him every morning or if he came from Hollywood. From the personalities he served he learned something he liked to remember: “The more important, the simpler they tend to be.” The flesh-and-blood Pinocchio was enthusiastic about practicing his trade as a waiter with the hospitality and friendliness that made him a beloved character throughout the gastronomy sector and market lovers.
That is why it is not surprising that yesterday, when the news of his death soon became known, the activity at the Boqueria did not begin with the expected joy of a Tuesday after Holy Week. In the midst of litigation over the continuity of the business and with the families at odds, Juanito left a mess in terms of his succession, but also left an example of professionalism. He was happy caring for others with sympathy and respect.
