In some ways, I was relieved to hear that El Bulli is closing, at least temporarily. It meant that I no longer had to stay up all night hatching plans to score a table at this Barcelona "culinary laboratory," not to mention figure out a way to pay for the trip and the €250 price of a meal. I only know one person who has managed to sample chef Ferran Adrià's "molecular gastronomy"; she keeps a photo album of the meal that she passes around at dinner parties. (El Bulli is open just six months a year, and it gets 1 million reservation requests for about 7,000 slots.)
But I do hope it reopens in two years, as promised. Though I'd be frightened to taste some of its creations, I'm endlessly fascinated to read about the "ravioli made from squid and freeze-dried foie gras," "Parmesan ice cream sandwiches" and "blood orange foam with tomato sorbet" tapas.
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