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    Home » World Travel

    El Poblet Valencia Spain -2 Michelin Stars

    Published: Dec 29, 2022 by Jennifer Che

    El Poblet is the original name of Quique Dacosta's (now 3-Michelin star) eponymous restaurant in Dénia. Chef Luís Valls, who worked side by side with Quique Dacosta for years, is now the executive chef at this "new" El Poblet, located in Valencia, which boasts two Michelin stars.

    We dined here as a party of four, including three people who were in town doing lots of business dinners. In fact, one person had just come to the same restaurant the night before. The restaurant was very accommodating and flexible, designing for him a separate tasting menu so he wouldn't have to eat the same food twice.

    Original Vermouth

    Vermouth original recipe - only 3 people know
    Vermouth original recipe - only 3 people know
    Vermouth original recipe - only 3 people know
    Vermouth original recipe - only 3 people know

    We began by trying an "antica formula", the original Vermouth recipe developed by Antonio Benedetto Carpano in 1786 that has been kept secret for hundreds of years. Only three people in the world know this heavily guarded secret. Vermouth lovers praise its complex flavors. On the rocks, I personally found it way too sweet. It's almost like a syrup. Perhaps it would be quite good in certain cocktails.

    Bread + Amuse Bouche

    liquid filled mushroom beignet 
chase it with mushroom lapchong tea

    Our first bite was a liquid-filled mushroom beignet, which we "chased" with an intensely flavorful mushroom lapchong tea. Such a surprising but stunning pairing!

    Delicious bread with fragrant extra virgin olive oil.

    Albufera Crabs
    amazing crab + uni? "cappuccino" soooo good

    Next was "Albufera Crabs", a delicate "sandwich" made with paper thin crackers and a crab flavored creamy sauce in the center. We also sipped on a mind-blowing savory crab + uni "cappuccino" that was ingenious and insanely delicious.

    Termanthia 2012: Fantastic Spanish wine from the Toro region. Wine Spectator 95 points.

    Vegetables

    Fig Tree, Asparagus, Miso

    Our next course was white asparagus with miso noisette butter.

    miso
noisette butter
white asparagus 
salted 24 hours and with sea lettuce

    The asparagus was salted for 24 hours with sea lettuce (shown above).

    kumquat, grapefruit-like fruit,  pumpkin, oyster, surprisingly tart,
    Les Perles (oysters), pickled pumpkin, kumquat, grapefruit

    "Les Perles" (oysters) came served with pickled pumpkin, kumquat, and grapefruit. The dish was surprisingly tart.

    kumquat, grapefruit-like fruit,  pumpkin, oyster, surprisingly tart,

    Kumquats graced the table as we ate our course which included kumquats.

    These beautiful, ultra thin layers of potato are certainly a work of art.

    Seafood: Fish + Eel + Cuttlefish

    A perfectly seared piece of fish with the ultimate crispy skin.

    This next course, called Reed and Mud, involved cooking eel inside clay!

    The server brought over the clay covered eel, and tapped on it with a spoon, breaking open the clay shell table-side.

    Reeds and Mud (eel cooked in clay and smashed open)
    Wow!
    Cuttlefish and Charred Bomba Rice

    Cuttlefish and Charred Bomba Rice (similar to arborio rice) was next, topped with some shaved koji (see below).

    Koji

    Koji is rice that has been inoculated with some sort of fermentation culture. The resultant rice has quite a bit of umami and flavor. Here, they took a whole block of koji and grated its powder on top of our dish.

    Meat Course: Duck

    Llimonea Blue Duck
    "Llimonea" Blue Duck

    Served with "crackers".

    "Dessert"

    pepper & sheep’s milk ice cream, spicy

    Our first "dessert" was actually more savory: a pepper and sheep’s milk ice cream that was surprisingly spicy!

    Carob, Coffee, Whiskey

    Our second dessert, "Carob, Coffee, Whiskey."

    Pinetrees and Pine Cones (choclate, not actual pine cones!)

    A super cute dessert: Pinetrees and Pine Cones (made out of chocolate, not actual pine cones!).

    What a treat as a way to end. 1969 Old Pulteney single Highland scotch whiskey.

    Tasting Menus

    There are three types of tasting menus. We went with the Territori Tasting Menu.

    Territori Tasting Menu
    135 EURO (10% VAT included)
    wine pairing: 75 EURO

    Ciutat Vella Tasting Menu
    160 EURO (10% VAT included)
    The Territori plus an additional cured meats course, extra meat course, and extra dessert course
    wine pairing: 95 EURO

    Bespoke Menu
    98 EURO (10% VAT included)
    Snacks, 2 courses, dessert, petit fours
    (only available Tues &Thurs Lunch + dinner; Friday lunch)
     

    General Thoughts: El Poblet Valencia

    The meal at El Poblet was excellent, and frankly, an amazing value for the price (generally true of Spain!). The service was friendly and professional. I really enjoyed the many creative expressions, and there were certainly many "wow" dishes, such as the crab + uni cappuccino and the mushroom lapchong tea + beignet combo. All in all, a wonderful meal in a quiet, relaxing space.

    El Poblet Valencia
    to make a reservation

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    Jennifer Che Tiny Urban Kitchen
    Jennifer Che Tiny Urban Kitchen

    Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am an expat who moved from Boston to Hong Kong 5 years ago. Born and raised in Ohio to Taiwanese immigrant parents, I am a chemistry nerd, patent attorney by day, blogger by night, church musician on weekends, and food enthusiast always. Feel free to explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!

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