You would be hard pressed to find a Barcelona resident who thinks that Xemei is not the best Italian restaurant that this city has to offer. But what we are talking about here is an Italian restaurant that does not serve lasagna, putanesca, carbonara, or bolognese. It’s also not a pizzeria. We are talking about Venetian contemporary cuisine where the only meat served is goat from Lleida and steak tartar from Holland because, as chef Max Colombo says, “in Spain high quality beef no longer exists, and nobody will tell you any different.” The vegetables, depending on the season, are acquired from the horticulture of Prat and Maresme, and are served cold or with different sauces, just as the traditional Venetian “frutti de mare” would be, made with a base of poached onion cooked for hours and served with anchovies. When you get a table in Xemei, you realize that it is original and transcends any type of title. We are sure that there are at least three restaurants in Barcelona that make excellent home made pastas, sauces, and pizzas. But in Xemei you have more than that – you have the luck of trying lesser known recipes from a specific region of Italy, prepared with a clear taste and regard for the clientele that still dreams of great food.
Xemei
Paseo de la Exposición 85, Barcelona.
Mon-Fri 13:30 – 24:00
Sat-Sun 14:00-24:00
935 53 51 40
Price: 40€
Text: JW
Photos: Cecilia Díaz Betz
Translation: Brett Piron