The story
At Can Roca, the Roca brothers’ three-Michelin-starred El Celler de Can Roca delivers an experience that one creator described as “unparalleled,” with “every dish a surprise” and a wine pairing so perfect it left them “devastated, drunk, but incredibly happy” at 1 AM. The tasting menu is a masterclass in avant-garde surprise—a dream realized for the family’s chefs.
Just outside Girona’s center, the brothers’ mother runs her own restaurant, serving what the same creator calls “very traditional, super simple, super good food.” A full lunch here runs about 20 euros, offering a humble, high-quality counterpoint to her sons’ molecular mastery. Together, these two sides of Can Roca capture both the family’s artistry and its heritage.
Synthesised by AI from every creator’s review. First reviewed 2023.
Most-loved dishes
AI summary of what 28 dish mentions say about the food
Can Roca’s Pollo arrosto earns unanimous praise as a masterclass in simplicity, delivering impossibly juicy, crisp-skinned chicken. The overall vibe is one of warm, unpretentious excellence, where humble ingredients shine through expert technique.
“This is their version of roast chicken — and it's exactly roast chicken. Sorry if I always mention my grandmother when I go to Michelin-starred restaurants, but for me the emotions I feel at starred places are on the same level as those provoked by only two other women in the kitchen: my wife when she makes fish, and my grandmother when she cooks anything. So far we've had 16 courses and these are all before the 12-course menu starts. I think we'll go home with hands and feet full — and it'll be a very long night, which couldn't make us happier. I'd stay here until tomorrow morning.”
What creators say
2 creators have covered Can Roca. Most active: Where The Foodies Go
The restaurant of the Roca brothers' mother, where you can eat very traditional, super simple, super good food for about 20 euros for a full lunch; it's a bit outside the centre.
- Where The Foodies GoLoved
Best of The Best - Cena a El Celler de Can Roca, 3 stelle Michelin ⭐⭐⭐ - Viaggio in Spagna - Ep. 1 · @ 1:45
El Celler de Can Roca is a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in Girona, Spain, run by the three Roca brothers — Joan (chef), Joseph (sommelier), and Jordi (pastry chef) — and it's a dream come true for us; the experience was unparalleled, with every dish being a surprise and the wine pairing perfect, and we left at 1 AM devastated, drunk, but incredibly happy.
Dishes mentioned
Escudella i Carn d'Olla
This is a version of escudella, a Catalan winter soup with meat and vegetables. They serve it as a concentrated broth in a little glass, with a spuma of red wine on one side and an aspic with black truffle on the other. It's delicious — a real concentrate of broth flavor, with the truffle elevating everything. The way they serve it is a ritual, separating the broth from the solids.
Bikini de Trufa Negra
This is a 'bikini' — in Catalonia that means a classic Catalan sandwich. Here they reinterpret it with a meringue and black truffle ice cream on top, and on the bottom part a cream of egg yolk with a black truffle breading and a crunchy wafer. In the middle of the table there's also a steamed brioche filled with a black truffle emulsion. It's like biting into a truffle — there's a sweet note that makes it very delicate. Delicious. You can taste all the classic carbonara flavors but actually it's the texture that's different. This is a 'wow' — almost better than the real thing. Tonight I understood what a dog feels when it finds a truffle — that same brain excitement.
Cannelloni di Carne e Pularda
This is a tribute to the Roca brothers' mother — a cannelloni stuffed with meat and pularda (a fattened hen) and Parmigiano Reggiano. It's incredibly tender and the pularda inside is amazing. Alessia would say 'quite rocky' — delicious. It's a dish that honors the mother, and the concept of sustainability that's so trendy now is actually what grandmothers always did: don't waste food.
Brandada di Baccalà con Cialda di Funghi Porcini
This is a crunchy version of porcini mushrooms with a very delicate baccalà (salt cod). I think the wafer or something else I missed is sweet — guys, Jordi Roca is in the kitchen, so they put sweet everywhere because he's the best pastry chef in the world. These mushrooms are taken to the nth power — my salivation goes through the roof. There's a bit of sweetness from the pastry with the fondo. Amazing.
Cetriolo con Plancton, Aghi Marine e Funghi
First you taste the sea, then the cucumber comes and cleans your mouth. It's a bite of sea with mushroom — a bite of earth with this — a bite of hand. I'm very curious about the last one.
