Restaurante Regadera — Restaurant in Córdoba

Someone told me about this restaurant. I looked it up on Google and when I saw the photos I was a bit apprehensive. They looked too cute and sophisticated. I am leery of restaurants nowadays that try to dazzle technically but are sorely lacking when it comes to how the food actually tastes, which is after all the main reason why we go out to eat. But Regadera did not disappoint. Certainly, there was plenty of technical prowess but it’s mostly used judiciously.

I ordered the sea bass ceviche, the suckling pig, the lemon dessert, and asked the waitress to suggest a red wine. The ceviche came out topped with some foam, which raised my suspicion a bit. Ever since that famous Spanish chef invented this trick, many other chefs have felt obligated to do it. But in fact this technique actually had its use here. The foam was made with mussel and cucumber extracts. It brilliantly evokes the ocean where the sea bass came from. Mussels were obvious to me, but cucumber? Perhaps it tones down the intensity of the mussels and gives the foam a welcome refreshing taste. Quite brilliant. The accompanying carrot gazpacho was also quite clever as were the bits of apples. Altogether a delectable dish, especially as it was 32 degrees C outside.

The suckling pig was what I would call “reconstituted.” The meat was shredded and re-formed into a patty. But the crusty skin was “real.” I am more reserved about this treatment. The taste of the pork was still there and the crunchy, thin skin was certainly delicious, but personally, I would rather eat the meat as it came from the pig, especially since Iberian pork is truly excellent. The dish still tasted quite good in spite of the somewhat unnecessary reconstitution. And the wine recommendation was spot on.

The “All Lemon Dessert” was interesting and quite a success. It’s a rare case where technical prowess was used not in vain but fruitfully. The shell, made of thin crystallized sugar, looked just like a lemon. One breaks it with a spoon and mixes everything up. It’s a combination of textures and temperatures with everything conveying various aspects of a lemon. The endeavor was wholly and tastily successful. And fitting as between here and Granada, it’s citrus country.

I highly recommend...

I recommend this place in Cordoba for it's exquisite menu. We tried several of the interesting, creative seafood dishes to share. The cured butterfish had a texture and flavor combination I've never had, highly enjoyable. The white almond soup had an interesting apple sorbet (but is ok to skip). They had a dish with seaweed scrambled eggs which, again, I've never had anywhere else and which paired amazingly well in terms of texture. Several dishes I wish I had space to try...

The three lemons desert had a cute surprise, and is served on a silicone banana leaf.

You can observe the kitchen and the indoor herb garden from the dining room. They maintain a beautiful, quiet mis-en-prep with focused work like you see in Michelin kitchens.

The one funny experience is that having watched The Menu, I found some similarity in the hostess. The door to the restaurant is kept locked all during service; people ring the doorbell even with reservation. The opens not a minute earlier then 1, even...

We dined twice at Regadera while in Cordoba and found it fabulous on both visits. The staff are friendly, courteous and helpful with menu choices. On our first visit we had the tuna meatball special which was tasty and beautifully presented. We also enjoyed the Butterfish dish and the warm asparagus salad. On our second visit we tried the Almond Mazamorra. It was our first experience with this type of soup and it was divine! A truly inspired paring of flavors between the bites of sardine, roe, almonds, and lime sorbet! My husband ordered the veal meatballs with couscous and the flavors were superb. The leek tart with the duck was perfect and the sauce robust. We shared dessert on both occasions and had the lemon with sponge cake and meringue on our first visit and the apple crumble with meringue and chopped apple inside on our second visit. These are wonderful treats packed with flavor in a beautiful package. This was a...