Fismuler Barcelona

Nino Redruello and Patxi Zumárraga forever changed Madrid’s dining scene in 2016 with a new restaurant the likes of which the capital had never seen. Fismuler surprised the public with its novel aesthetic, natural foods, and unrestrained ingenuity in innovative dishes with simple presentations and rich flavors. Featuring house-made spirits, wines by the glass, pots of coffee, pitchers to share, and communal tables, this spot became known in Madrid almost instantly as the place to have a good time and eat healthy, rich food. It now makes its debut in Barcelona at Hotel REC, with a special nod to the neighborhood’s unique vibe, particularly the vestiges of the ancient Rec Comtal, the aqueduct that supplied Barcelona with fresh water for almost a millennium, from the very site on which the restaurant sits. Respect and honesty, simplicity and escape, nature and democracy are just some of Fismuler’s guiding principles. For this project, Nino and Patxi collaborated with chef Jaime Santienes, who became a good friend and colleague when they all worked together at El Bulli in 2002.

Fismuler Barcelona has taken up residence on the main floor of the Hotel Rec, near the Arco de Triunfo. In an open space spanning over 300 square meters, the restaurant provides a cozy but spare ambiance, without walls, in a unique design that brings staff and diners face-to-face and into dialogue. The menu is short, with simple creations made with a lot of technique and behind-the-scenes reflection, and it changes daily depending on what looks good at the market. All dishes are based around natural, organic, local products. You won’t find deep-fryers here, just pure rich flavors and total respect for the ingredients themselves. Staff makes a visit to the market every morning to search out fresh products to incorporate into the day’s menu. But even in this dynamic context, there’s still room for classic favorites, like salted chickpeas with veal and prawns, Cajun-spiced steak tartare, or the already-famous cheesecake, made with three different varieties of cheese.

The menu is accompanied by live music fit to liven up any meal, and a series of improvised dinners where cooks let loose, yielding to their creativity and ingenuity. The décor is wonderfully provided by Arquitectura Invisible and Estudio Sireé, and the overall aesthetic is one of refreshing simplicity, boasting clean lines and fine raw materials like plaster, steel, marble, unpolished marble, and lots of upcycled wood.