Like everywhere else, you get bread at
la Llonja. But, unlike most places, it’s not alioli that you get to go with it. Instead, there’s a perfectly ripe tomato, ideal for squishing onto the bread. And tapenade instead of the usual olives.
Squid rings “a la Romana” were pretty much a prefect example. Just a light dredge in flour before being quickly fried. Now I know it's not traditional but I wouldn’t have mined a bit of alioli toi dunk them in.
Prawns “from the bay” had also been given a light fry. With not a hint of overcooking, they were delicious. Such a simple thing that demonstrates that less really can be more.
It might have been possible for someone with a better palate than we have to determine which three fish made up the mixed plate. All I can say, is that all three were perfectly cooked – the fish just breaking into flakes, with no mushiness. All tasted good. There was a fennel sauce which packed a real punch from the herb. Absolutely nothing wishy washy about this plate of food. It comes with mixed vegetable – carrot, courgette, mushroom and runner bean. And a few roast (or, more likely, deep fried) potatoes.
There was another bang-on bit of cookery with a pork fillet. Just about cooked through but still soft and most. It came with a cream and sweet wine sauce which just about stayed on the right side of not being too sweet. There were also some of the same potatoes and mixed veg on the plate.
Desserts weren’t that brill – a reminder why we don’t order them often. Home made vanilla ice cream needed much more vanilla. It came with what was advertised as a hot chocolate sauce . However, was actually a cold sauce – still nicely bitter but would have made a better contribution if it had been hot.
Slices of strawberry had been warmed through to the stage where they only just about held their shape. They came with a mascarpone mousse which lacked any real richness. And a rectangle of folded, and baked, filo pastry, which didn’t serve any useful purpose whatsoever. Nothing actively unpleasant here, just a really broing end to dinner.