A delicious find with a personal note and the possibility to enjoy a delicious cuisine: Restaurant Uma (6. August 2022)

The Restaurant Uma is listed on the Guide Michelin, so I decided to give it a try. They have a standard “tasting menu” (EUR 110.00) which is not explained. You just get what you get. Which is a concept I like quite a bit – the fact that they would not share their menu with you, even after having asked three times, is somewhat annoying to be honest. Also, that they charge an additional EUR 5.00 for their bread service (which is something you are not being asked if you want it or not) seems a bit off – just price it into the menu, that makes much more sense.

Since the explanation of the dishes was in Spanish, I did not grasp everything (and didn’t take notes since I was expecting to get a write-up of the menu after the dinner), but I do remember that the first course, which was a greeting from the kitchen, was absolutely making your taste buds ready for the rest of the evening. Later, I got the menu from the restaurant, and it turns out, it was a “Sam Jan with smoked eel”.

It was served with a small drink, which was refreshing and overall lovely. Specifically, it was a “cider without alcohol”.

Next in line was a combination of fish, foam, and caviar – which was rich and intense in flavour. I especially liked the smoothness of the fish (texture-wise) in combination with the rather salty flavours. It was a “horseradish gazpachuelo, smoked sea bass, caviar and wasabi leaf“.

The next course was a vegetarian (or vegan?) imitation of a typical South American meat dish – and while it was, obviously, vegetarian, it actually tasted like a meat dish – which was amazing. It was a “cabbage, radish and smoked cream anticucho”.

I absolutely liked the simplicity of the next course. A carrot, some spices on the side to provide flavour and colour – and a mole on which it was served. Unfortunately, they only had just added the dish to the menu so the mole was only one week old and, therefore, relatively light in terms of intensity. I can imagine the dish to become even better when the “madre mole” is older and more intense.

The next course was a fish-based dish with a jelly on top. I have no memory of what it was – but it was something truly enjoyable and something which was super interesting in terms of texture and flavour combination. Definitely a must-try! It was a “spider crab Xo with coconut veil and tobico roe“.

The lobster bisque based dish was nice as well – not as memorable as the one before, but definitely enjoyable. It was a “Love soup (prawn, coconut, lime, citronelle and coriander soup served with Norway lobster)”.

For the frequent readers of this blog, you know that I have difficulties finding a delicious scallop ever since I had my absolutely best scallop at O Paparico back in 2014. However, this one was one which really came close or even matched my memory of that scallop. It was smooth, rich, intense, full of flavour – perfect in texture. A true wow! It was a “scallop with Jerusalem artichoke cream, coffee and toasted butter emulsion”.

Next in line was something with bacon – and as we all know, bacon makes everything better, so this was absolutely good. But I also remember it to be rather intense on the bacon side. It was a “Donostiarra with blue fish demi-glass and grilled red mullet“.

The main course was something which was rather intense, rather full of flavour – so I enjoyed it quite a lot. The combination of the different flavours and the smoothness and intensity made it a great dish for me.

What was fascinating was the first dessert. Firstly, because it was served on a ‘solid pillow’ and, secondly because it was a dish with Roquefort ice cream. So damn interesting and, while definitely intense, much better than I had expected for it to work in a dessert. It was “pears in syrup, with blue cheese and thyme ice cream“.

The last course was a typical dessert – sweet, crunchy, crumbles, chocolate elements, something fruity and fresh. But a regular dessert. It was “beetroot Caviar and wild strawberries“.

What I liked about the place is the fact that it only hosts about 7-8 tables, which makes it rather small and personal. This was also shown in the way the service was rendered. There were basically two people taking care of everything and two in the kitchen. The quality of the service was varying massively though between the two individual waiters. While one was absolutely professional, perfect, flawless, the other seemed to be new and had a bit of issues in terms of timing, sides, etc. – not bad, but just not as good as the other one and since the other one was outstanding, it showed quite a lot.

You also get to watch the chef preparing the food – which is something I truly enjoy. All in all, besides the fact that they did not send through the menu after the dinner – I can absolutely recommend the Uma and would highly recommend you to book in advance. And if you need a wine recommendation, you should go for a bottle of “Johannes Reserva, 2015, D.O. Penedès, Juvé & Camps” (EUR 68.00) which was great in terms of price/performance.

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Contact Details:

Restaurant Uma

C/ de Mallorca 275

08008 Barcelona (E)

Tel.: +34 656 99 09 30

E-Mail: info@espaciouma.com

Homepage: http://www.espaciouma.com

About the Author: Sven

I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org. Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City.