Alkimia

Chef and alchemist Jordi Vilà runs the kitchen at this Michelin one-starred restaurant in the Sagrada Familia district of Barcelona. At Alkimia, which is named after the Arabic word “al-kimia” (the art), Vilà creates deconstructed Catalan dishes inspired by chef Ferran Adrià, the molecular gastronomy pioneer who shuttered his flagship restaurant in 2011. Dinner at Alkimia provides a look into the future of post-El Bulli cuisine. Playful preparations include red mullet with seawater (a soup of blue fish and herbs) and cuttlefish with squid ink and ginger. The formal setting includes a starkly contrasting black and white palette, billowing fabrics, and crystal chandeliers.