The province of Girona, with the Costa Brava, the Empordà and the Garrotxa, has one of Catalonia's richest culinary traditions and one of Spain's highest concentrations of Michelin-starred restaurants.
Traditional cooking
- Mar i muntanya, "sea and mountain", combining fish or shellfish with meat in the same dish, such as chicken with langoustines or meatballs with cuttlefish.
- Suquet de peix, the Costa Brava fishermen's fish and potato stew, and arròs negre, black rice with squid ink.
- L'Escala anchovies, salted and cured by an ancient tradition (see L'Escala and Empúries).
- Palamós red prawns, among the most prized in the Mediterranean.
- Produce from the Garrotxa and Pyrenees: goat's cheeses, botifarra sausage, mushrooms, Santa Pau beans and cuina volcànica, the cooking of the volcanic Olot area.
- Romesco and allioli sauces, pa amb tomàquet and winter calçots.
The xuixo
Girona's signature sweet is the xuixo: a cylinder of yeasted dough, fried, filled with custard and rolled in sugar. It is eaten for breakfast or as a snack in the pastry shops of the centre, such as Rocambolesc and the historic bakeries on the Rambla and Carrer de l'Argenteria.
The Roca brothers
El Celler de Can Roca, opened in 1986 by brothers Joan, Josep and Jordi Roca next to their parents' restaurant in the Taialà district, has three Michelin stars and has twice been named the world's best restaurant. Joan is the chef, Josep the sommelier and Jordi the pastry chef. Booking is very hard, months ahead; for a more accessible taste there is the Rocambolesc ice-cream shop in the centre, with Jordi Roca's creative ice creams, and other family venues. See Spanish cuisine.
Wines
DO Empordà produces garnacha and cariñena reds, whites and above all garnatxa de l'Empordà, a natural sweet wine. Wineries lie between Figueres, Peralada and Cap de Creus (see Spanish wines).
Where to eat
The Mercat del Lleó, the city's covered market, is the best place for fresh produce. In the centre, around Plaça de la Independència, on the Rambla and in the Barri Vell, there are Catalan restaurants and tapas bars, and many offer a lunchtime menú del día. See also Girona's festivals.