The Roca brothers owners of the second best restaurant in the world open their ice-cream shop in Girona

Girona (ACN).- It is a sweet moment for the Roca brothers, the three people behind a true culinary temple, El Celler de Can Roca, which was recognised last year as the second best restaurant in the world by ‘Restaurant Magazine’. On Friday, the Roca brothers opened their first ice-cream shop, called ‘Rocambolesc’ and located in downtown Girona, in Catalonia. In ‘Rocambolesc’ customers can try ice-creams created at El Celler de Can Roca, which after the closing of Ferran Adrià’s El Bulli has become the flagship for molecular cuisine and the best restaurant in Catalonia. Jordi Roca, the youngest of the three brothers and the chef patissier of the three Michelin star restaurant, is behind the initiative, which is also supported by his brothers. On Friday, Jordi Roca was serving ice-cream to the first children visiting ‘Rocambolesc’, in the presence of his brother Joan Roca, the chef of El Celler de Can Roca. One of the most popular was the ice-cream based on the ‘Milky Dessert’, a famous dish from the restaurant made out of sheep milk from the Catalan Pyrenees combined with cotton candy, guava and ‘dulce de leche’. In fact, Jordi Roca said that he wanted to bring the restaurant’s desserts to the city of Girona, and to do so at an affordable price. Ice-cream can be bought for €2.70. All the different ice-creams are made in the restaurant with the same products used in the desserts. “We really wanted to go out from the restaurant and create a window to El Celler de Can Roca at street level”, Jordi Roca told ACN. Furthermore, two weeks ago in London, William Drew, editor of ‘Restaurant Magazine’ and in charge of the annual gala recognising the 50 best restaurants in the world, told ACN that the Roca brothers will have a “very thrilling year”. Last year, the Catalan restaurant was distinguished as the second best restaurant in the world in the ‘Oscars’ of the world’s cuisine.

When explicitly asked about the possibilities of El Celler de Can Roca becoming the world’s best restaurant, after the Danish Noma, William Drew was elusive: “El Celler de Can Roca has possibilities to become the best restaurant in the world, as all the other restaurants in last year’s list also have possibilities”. “We cannot say that because of being last year’s number two, this year they will reach the top of the list, or the number 50, or they will not  in the list at all. We simply don’t know”, he said to keep the mystery. However, he added “I believe it will be a very thrilling year for El Celler de Can Roca, I’m sure about it, and a very important year for Spanish restaurants”. On April 30^th, the answer will be known and the Roca brothers will find out the exact meaning of Drew’s words.

Three Michelin starred ice-cream

On the first day that the ice-cream parlour opened, many people gathered at ‘Rocambolesc’, located on Santa Clara Street in the Catalan city of Girona. All of the ice-cream offered have been created by Jordi Roca from El Celler de Can Roca, with the advice of his brothers the chef Joan Roca and the sommelier Josep Roca. And they are offered at an affordable price, far from high cuisine restaurant prices. Jordi Roca proudly explains that part of the initiative is to build “a window” of their creations at El Celler de Can Roca to their neighbours in Girona, their home city. All the different ice-creams are made in the restaurant with the same products used in the desserts. “We use ecological products and we even transport the ice-cream from the restaurant to the shop using a bike that has a fridge”, he said.

‘Rocambolesc’ offers 6 basic ice-creams, combined with sauces and toppings to create a wide variety of combinations, always following the advice of Jordi Roca and his team. The 6 basic types of ice-cream are: milky ice-cream, tangerine sorbet, chocolate ice-cream, roasted apple ice-cream, strawberry sorbet and vanilla ice-cream. For instance the ice-cream based on the ‘Milky Dessert’ combines ice-cream made out of milk from sheep from the Catalan Pyrenees with ‘dulce de leche’, guava and cotton candy, made in the same shop. In fact, ‘Rocambolesc’ is decorated like an old ice-cream shop and a candy factory.