Restaurant Normal — Restaurant in Girona

My wife and I are touring through France and Spain for several weeks to celebrate a big birthday and our 10yr wedding anniversary. I tried months in advance to get a reservation for our anniversary at El Cellar de Can Roca with no success so I thought Normal, a sister restaurant of sorts would be an acceptable alternative. I was wrong, the food was wildly inconsistent, the dining room was bland, and our server was awful. We began with the mussels, they were both interesting and delicious. Our starters were a beet salad and grilled eggplant. While there was nothing wrong with the beat salad it was heavy on greens and had little flavor. The eggplant was pretty tasty. The Mains: I had read the Beef Wellington was excellent and it was! My wife’s lobster pasta was off the scales salty though. She was putting on a brave face while nibbling at it and picking out the meat. I love a good dose of salt so I was taken back by how overpowering it was. Surrounding the experience was our slightly creepy robotic server who was clearly rushing us. We were at a window table / bus station when he first appeared between us and the window, no how ya doing, no specials, no introduction, he just asked if we were ready to order. Well ok then, how about we start with a couple cocktails and the mussels? Once he returned with the mussels he asked us again to order, a couple minutes later when asked again we finally ordered. When our meals arrived they were quickly dropped on the table, as the server turned away I asked for the wine menu to order a glass on wine. My cocktail had already been empty for 10-15 minutes, he didn’t reappear for a while. I was disappointed not to have a glass of red to go with the beef. My wife finally got his attention, when he came over he simply said “tell me” in what I took as an annoyed tone. That was the tipping point for me. We finished the mains, well I finished mine and my wife left most of the pasta. At this point I wanted out of there, the faster the better. I declined dessert and coffee without looking at the server, when the bill arrived he asked if the meal was good, I responded no, it was just OK. He turned away and we walked out and found some delicious bubble tea for dessert. Final note on the dining room, my wife found the constant disruption of sitting within arms reach of the wine station off putting. That is on top of the fact I was seated closer to the man at the table next to us than I was my wife, I get it it’s a small place, but it...

Finding good, delicious food is normal throughout Spain. Normal, in my single experience was Abnormal. We made a reservation at Normal weeks in advance of our culinary trip to Spain with great expectations for Normal. It’s beautifully sited on a corner and its simple yet sophisticated design is right on cue. Good taste however is not necessarily an ingredient of pedigree. We ordered three dishes: seared scallops, egg omelet with raw baby shrimp and slow cooked piglet. We received an “appetizer” on-the-house. It was a roasted sweet potato morsel that should have been desert, not appetizer. That was a clue. The seared scallops came with an acceptable beurre blanc sauce. The scallops were seared and about 5 seconds from being overcooked. The sauce that accompanied them, we were warned, was spicy. It was just a sweet orange sauce with no heat at all. Clue number two. The omelet was eggs with small (+/- 3cm) raw butterflied shrimp on top, drowned at the bottom of a brown soup. The stars of the dish, raw shrimp, could hardly be tasted.s The slow roasted piglet serving was about the size of the palm of my hand. The skin was delightfully crunchy and the sweet chutney was delicious. Finally, sweet where it belonged. Beneath the crispy skin was a layer of fat, below that was a paper thin layer of what must have been meat with the taste burnt out of it. The flavor of the skin reminded me of the chicharrones available at any bus station in Mexico. If you like chicharrones this dish is for you—not for me. My wife had indigestion for the next 24 hours. I did not. I was brought up to respect the food being offered to me. I did not want to make a scene in the restaurant so I paid the bill and wrote this review instead: In my humble opinion, you can skip this one for...

Recommend it? Dios Mio! OMG, YES! (Our BEST meal in our 5-week stay in Barcelona)

Return again? DEFINITELY (A MUST HOMAGE whenever in Spain!)

Overall: 5+ out of 5 in EVERY ASPECT

Taste: 5+/5 Out of this world (if you are into “fine dining” at a NORMAL Average Joe approach/price by the owners of one of the World’s Best/3-Michelin “Celler de Can Roca” then you’ve come to the right place)

Quality: 5+/5 Spectacularly fresh, local in every way, including the regional Empordas wines!

Service: 5+/5 The young lady was nice and explained in English very elaborately on dishes that we inquired about.

Value: 5+/5 If you know, you know. This kind of Michelin-like approach and quality at around $50-80 per head with wine and a shared dessert is UNBELIEVABLY AFFORDABLE and of the HIGHEST VALUE!

X-factor: 5+/5 Only a 40-45 min high speed train ride from Barcelona’s Estacio Sants metro/train hub to Girona. Day trip in the Medieval town of Girona is excellent. Plenty to see, eat and enjoy. BONUS: Just minutes away, go see the GOT (Game of Thrones) Season 6 filming locations for Braavos such as the cathedral and the Arab Bath, plus a few more!

Note: Be sure to book a reservation at restaurant and for your high speed from Barcelona ahead! I booked 1 week in advance for a...