The video calls. There have probably never been as many as in recent times. Each one in their corner and the screen as the only way to shorten the distance. In one of them, the project of four young people was cooked up, Julià Castelló, Miquel García, Javier Custodio and Pedro Huerta, who for six months has been occupying the ground floor (and the roof) of a hotel in Plaza del Sol and which they decided to call Insolent.
It was the best—or only—way to do it. Julià worked in the kitchen at Paco Pérez’s Tast, in Manchester, and Miquel in El Celler de Can Roca, in Girona, when Pedro found out about a place for rent in the Barcelona neighborhood of Gràcia. He told it to his friend Javier, who quickly told it to his colleague Miquel, and he told it to Julià. None of them were seriously looking to start their own business, but there are trains that only pass once and as soon as they saw the space they were clear: “Yes. That we do it.” And there the video calls began.
In these virtual meetings they came up with the decoration, the concept, the type of cuisine and even the name of the restaurant. The adjective insolent describes someone who acts boldly and rebelliously. And that was the nickname that, according to the four partners, best defined what they wanted to do. They seek to be disruptors. For this reason, in a neighborhood where tapas and beers abound, they have located an elaborate, quality cuisine that fuses what Miquel and Julià learned in great restaurants with their own look at the craft, a look that they are still discovering. All of this complemented by the skill in the room of Pedro and Javier, who also advises the wines, and with that shameless style typical of their personality with which they turn the conventional upside down.
Proof of this are the xuixos that they serve as a snack, which are reminiscent of the version with wild boar at El Celler while paying tribute to the last name of Julià, son of the Can Castelló pastry shop in Girona. From there they send them to them and they fill them with peanut pesto, mascarpone and figs, in one case, and with coll de xai stew and ‘ras de hanout’ mayonnaise, in the other. Two more, please. And with the sea bass esqueixada, soft and fresh, they seek to bring traditional ceviche to the local terrain.
A reduced menu in which they give prominence to grilled meats and fresh, seasonal products (the rice changes every week). Beef sweetbreads in their sauce, grilled monkfish with garlic and chilli sauce and a mar i muntanya: pork and squid meatballs with chili crab sauce, which are almost not included on the menu and we are glad that this was not the case. The happy ending, as they call the desserts, is provided by their version of the snack: bread ice cream, creamy chocolate in tablet form, oil and salt. They complement their proposal with a rooftop where they offer a more informal menu with tapas and vermouth, cocktails at night, and live music.
Now they want to settle, analyze and perfect every last detail. “We took risks, but we believed in the project and we fought to make it a reality,” says Javier, although he speaks for everyone. And being insolent is much more than an act of rebellion: it is daring, getting excited, believing in yourself, fighting, making mistakes and going for more.
