We first visited BCN Taste & Tradition last October as guests of the restaurant. It was during the soft opening, and many media as well as “friends and family” stopped by. It was a fantastic meal, even if the service was a little stiff and self-conscious. The menu prices there are frighteningly high, however, so it took a while before we returned on our own dime.
Last Friday evening we finally did so, and I have two observations: BCN clearly aspires to be to Spanish food in our city what DaMarco is to Italian food. (And it succeeds.) Second, the BCN experience is more like dining in a fine restaurant in Europe that any other Houston restaurant I can name.
BCN – the initials are Barcelona’s airport code – is set in a small 1920s bungalow just a block east of the Richmond Avenue/Montrose intersection. You pull into the driveway, and a valet will park for you in the adjacent carwash (which is closed at night). Enter through the “back door” of the house, which leads into the bar. Service is crisp and slightly formal, and you’ll often notice the team approach to taking care of guests.
When you arrive, several staffers pull out chairs, shake out a napkin into your lap, and bring water and menus. They also deliver olives, some fabulous bread and olive oil and salt. They will fuss over you in a very nice way.
Start with a glass of cava or one of the well-crafted drinks and order the Spanish Fermín Ibérico ham and toasted “pa amb tomaca” (tomato-rubbed bread) for the table. It’s $24, and you will wince at the price for a starter … until the small cutting board of shaved ham arrives. It is dry and slightly sweet and minerally and salty all at once. This ham along with the olives and wine will adjust your perspective, and you will be glad to be alive.
BCN is the dream of chef Luis Roger (photo above), who has a long resume in Spanish restaurants, including a stint at the famed El Bulli working under Ferran Adria. There’s not a lot of experimental cooking here, however. Roger’s menu is grounded in Spanish culinary traditions: fresh anchovies, grilled octopus with potato puree, watermelon and burrata salad, gazpacho, fisherman’s bisque, sous-vide rabbit loin, bomba rice cooked in cuttlefish’s black ink with clams, mussels, scampi, and breaded baby lamb chops served with Majorcan baked vegetables. There’s no getting around the fact that the prices are high. If that’s going to gnaw at your contentment all evening, book a table elsewhere.
GM Paco Calza, who spent 28 years with Robert Del Grande and was part of the opening team at the original Cafe Annie, supports chef Roger in the front of the house. Calza oversees service and also takes care of the wine list and beverage program. The two owner/partners are Ignacio Torras (he settled in Houston years ago via the energy industry) and his brother Jose Maria Torras. Both brothers used to dine at Roger’s restaurant in Spain.
Until recently, BCN was open only for dinner. Last month the management announced that they would serve lunch with a set menu for private parties of 10 or more.
BCN Taste & Tradition, 4210 Roseland just north of Richmond Avenue, 832-834-3411, bcnhouston.com