In December 2018 we had a pre-cruise stay at the Barcelona House Hotel on Carrer Dels Escudellers, opposite which is the La Fonda restaurant which serves Mediterranean food. The restaurant is rated 1701 out of 8847 in Barcelona, and achieves a rating of 4 from reviewers.
Owing to the convenience to the hotel and the inviting interior we decided to dine here. There were three menus to choose from, two of which were special set menus and then the main a la carte.
We decided to go for the “City Menu” Menu Ciutat Vella, which offered a choice of three starters, four mains, three desserts and a 1/4 litre of wine for the bargain price of €20,95!
The extensive, reasonably priced wine list was also very impressive, and we opted for a bottle of local Cava. This was a steal at just €10 for an aged, dry bottle of good quality fizz!
Top Tip – Cava is produced in the ‘traditional method’ which means it is in the same style of Champagne. It also uses some of the same grape varieties (Champagne usually uses a blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir among others). For this reason, when in Spain a good bottle of Cava costing €10-15 can outrank a bottle of Champagne!
We both decided our meal choice for the starter would be the Carpaccio. This must have made it easier for the kitchen as we were shortly presented with a generous portion of cured meat:
The tanginess of the vinaigrette perfectly complemented the tender, thin slices of beef.
The other options for starters on the set menu were Goat’s cheese salad or gaspacho.
For main course we both chose the mixed paella – it’s a requirement that a minimum of two diners must choose paella, which is no surprise when you consider the work that goes in to cooking a fresh paella!
Again, this was another very generous portion, and infact more than we could handle. We were a little worried when it arrived it would be over done, but it wasn’t – the rice was just right and had not gone mushy as it can do when overcooked.
The mix of different shellfish, pork and chicken was just right and there was enough of everything to share between us.
Other main course options on our deal were prawn fideua (which is a paella type dish made with angel hair pasta rather than rice), roast pork loin and a Catalan favourite Cod Sanfaina.
Amazingly, we still had room for dessert, especially as it was included in our deal!
We both again opted for the same dish, a chocolate mousse cake. The other options available were Crema Catalan or yogurt with caramelized fruit.
The chocolate cake was like a slice of heaven and served with a beautiful dark chocolate ice cream!
We had planned not to have such a rich meal prior to cruising and the inevitable food fest that would ensue, but we are really glad we did. The service at La Fonda was very good with incredibly friendly waiting staff.
There’s nothing we could fault about the restaurant, food or the service, so there’s no option than to score La Fonda ten out of ten! Thank you for a wonderful, well priced meal and a memorable time. We will be back if we stay in Barcelona again.
Tim Thorpe Travels 