The Unlawyer

Before I begin this entry about this cerveceria and tapas bar (in Catalan, Ciutat Comtal), let me say that don’t make the mistake of confusing the FGC [Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya - Ed.] Gracia station on Via Augusta for the Barcelona Metro Passeig de Gràcia station as I did, an error that cost me a 1.75 km. walk to this popular restaurant at the corner of Rambla de Catalunya and Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes. If I had not programmed this restaurant’s coordinates into my GPS receiver, I would have been hopelessly lost.

As it turned out, the walk only whetted my appetite for the meal that was to come in the company of M. and J., Mrs. Unlawyer’s friends.

More pictures below the fold.

This was the first time I was introduced to that Spanish culinary custom of tapas, dishes that are descibed as

“… appetizers that usually accompany sherry or other aperitifs and cocktails. They can also form an entire meal and range from simple items such as olives or cubes of ham and cheese to more elaborate preparations like room temperature omelets, garlic shrimp and little meatballs.”

How did this tradition commence? Legend has it that

“… due to an illness, the Spanish king Alfonso the 10th, the Wise, had to take small bites of food with some wine between meals. Once recovered from the disease, the wise king decreed that no wine was to be served in any of the inns in the land of Castile, unless accompanied by something to eat. This was a wise precaution to counteract the adverse effects of alcohol on those people who, through lack of money to buy a nourishing meal, drank alcohol on an empty stomach.”

My hosts selected a variety of tapas, more than enough to qualify as a full dinner, accompanied by Barcelona’s Estrella Damm beer. We took portions of jamon serrano, patatas bravas, croquetas, beef, squid, shrimp, mushrooms, and what not. It was delicious indeed and the small portions were perfect to take in between pauses in our conversation. By the time we left close to midnight, I was quite sated.

Ciudad Condal is popular enough that diners who don’t come early enough, as early as 8:30 PM when it opens for dinner, risk suffering a lengthy wait for a table. M. and J. opted for us to sit outside, right in the middle of Rambla de Catalunya, where it was cooler and we could see the street scene pass by.

Many of the reviews about this Barcelona restaurant can’t compliment it enough about its excellent service, and I know the reason why: Filipino waiters. Yes, that’s right: I was very much surprised at the Filipino-like appearance of the waiter that took our order that I couldn’t help myself and blurted out in Tagalog if he was one. He replied in the affirmative, and was proud to say that most, if not all, of Ciudad Condal’s wait staff and kitchen staff were Filipinos like himself. He also introduced me to his brother, a fellow waiter too, to boot, who mistook me for a Chinese and who could not believe that I was a Pinoy like himself until I spoke to him in rapid-fire Tagalog.

Despite my attempts to pay my share of the bill, M. and J. graciously did so, so I don’t have a first-hand knowledge of how much a typical meal at Ciudad Condal costs, but the reviews I read say that the average price per person comes out to about EUR 15.

Ciudad Condal is located at Rambla de Catalunya, 18, Barcelona; phone +34 93 318 1997. For those temporarily staying on the outskirts of Barcelona and have to take the FGC suburban train to take them downtown, the nearest stop is the Plaça de Catalunya and the restaurant is just a five-minute, one-and-a-half block walk to the northwest.

Thanks, M. and J., for an excellent time.