Paella is woefully underrepresented on this site, I’m the first to admit it. Meanwhile Chinese – I’ve got about 8 entries. Predictably – no one writes to me asking about Chinese restaurants while paella restaurant requests come thick and fast.
To expedite things – I am asking you – where are your favorite paella restaurants? Where do you take your out of towners?
With that formality out-of-the-way – let me share with you another Chinese restaurant I tried: Gangnam. (Spelled like the song.)
I’ve seen many an enticing photo of dim sum online but when I am handed the menu, I note that it has some Vietnamese and Thai dishes listed.
Ugh.
“What is the focus of your restaurant?” I ask.
“Chinese” the waitress answers.
“What’s all this then?” I gesture to the menu.
“Oh, only a few dishes from other countries but this is Chinese.”
I can only shrug this off as the annoying habit of ethnic restaurants in Barcelona to try to be all things to all people. All people can be the inhabitants of 1-3 blocks that descend on to the streets closest to them for sustenance. As Hugo owner of Tatami room once pointed out “People here don’t cross the avenues from one barrio into another.”
On the blustery Saturday that I am there, quite a few families come in with prams and reservations.
It’s an elegant interior, more like an upmarket oriental spa than a Chinese restaurant. Looks aside, I’m here for the soup dumplings (xialongbao) which I’ve spied on their Instagram account. (Their Instagram is full of handmade dumplings. and was the main reason I came to try Gangnam)
I love that someone in the kitchen has placed two blades of ginger in the dipping sauce. The soup dumplings have a thick pastry and there is little soup within. I try a few more dishes for variety and am not left disappointed.
I particularly enjoy eating out of such beautiful dishes all dark blue in colour. The porcelain soup spoons in particular with fish painted onto their indented belly I want to take home with me.
Gangnam Restaurant
Carrer de Muntaner, 174
www.restaurantegangnam.com
Hello! My name is Suzy. This blog is about discovering Barcelona through its eateries. I take it one restaurant or shop at a time and post on the blog once a week. I vary where I eat to have a have a mix of high and low end places. My goal is to find the special places, the ones worth seeking out and show and tell you all about them. 
Gill O'Donovan says
9th March 2017 at 7:54amI love the paella at La Mar Salada on Joan de Borbo. It defies the theory ( which I dont agree with anyway!) that all the restaurants on this street are terrible.
Suzy says
6th April 2017 at 9:50pmThanks Gill, I will give it a try soon.