When Omar Díaz opened his Bar Omar (Amigó, 34) seven years ago, he had an obsession: building a neighborhood. And the neighbors are witnesses that he has been achieving it, little by little, with that growing clientele, and the support of the terrace that was improving, and whose tables at night wear tablecloths. On that first day in early June 2016, a Friday, we walked through the door without knowing that they had only opened a while ago. Then the chef, trained in one of the most welcoming family restaurants in the city, Tram-Tram, and guided by his chef and mentor Isidre Soler, who advised him to continue learning at the Donostiarra Arzak and at El Celler de Can Roca, placed emphasis in which Bar Omar was only a humble dish bar. His idols were great chefs like his own teachers and others who illustrated the covers of some books that he was beginning to show off in the living room.
But Díaz was raising the bar, cooking more and more, varying dishes and consolidating some while encouraging the off-menu section, which in winter includes everything from escudella to pigeon, hare or partridge in pickle or with foie gras, as well as with the rice dishes that become a main dish on Sundays at noon. The chef raised the bar and enjoyed cooking without giving up his commitment to building a neighborhood and at the same time establishing synergies with colleagues of his generation, with whom he has formed a consolidated gang (their faces appear on Polaroid plates on a shelf in the dining room). ). Ideas and actions have emerged from these synergies, such as twinning the bravas served with the same recipe as its colleague at La Bonaigua, based on butifarra de perol, smoked allioli, garlic, parsley and smoked rosemary.
At this point, he recognized it this week when it launched a new seasonal menu, and he dares to say that Bar Omar is a restaurant. And also to affirm that this good acceptance among the clientele and the fact of feeling respect from the profession has helped him to be more responsible. “With all due respect to these great chefs, I feel accepted by professional colleagues whom I had always looked up to with admiration from a distance.”
From those friendships and the countless meetings over long after-dinner meals, a business has been born that complements its offer and enriches it. Another friend of the gang, Víctor García, had to close his business, Plata Bistró, and was having a difficult time personally. They talked about it with the entrepreneur and creative Enric Rebordosa, from Grup Confiteria (great promoters of Barcelona restaurants) and decided to partner so that their friend could cook again. To do this, they have recovered the spirit of the winery with retro Madrid and Andalusian touches. This archaeologist of bars and wineries, Rebordosa, searched under the stones for the props that provide the atmosphere they were looking for. In this case, with the most kitschy objects and photographs (we see well-known Javieres all over the walls) that accompany a simple offering with sandwiches, pickles (the chicken one is succulent), and banderillas. Simple dishes and tapas that García prepares successfully behind the bar or, when he requires it, in the kitchen of Bar Omar. The family has grown and they do not rule out having more children.
