The owners of Bar Puerto Chico in Valladolid display their work with a few pinchos “that always travel”. They start off in Valladolid with a flavour or ingredient but make their way around the world thanks to the knowledge acquired by the chefs in the thematic dinners they host every week.

Isabel González and Teresa Cordero, chefs and owners of Bar Puerto Chico in Valladolid, exemplify the flavour of the capital city of Valladolid. They have been at the helm of this legendary establishment in the city for three years, which belonged to the renowned late Fernando Pérez, president of the Valladolid Hospitality Association who recently passed away; an establishment they have made travel but keeping their feet on the ground.

Every week, González and Cordero offer a menu which travels through a different country of the world, and feed these experiences into their frequently visited bar of pinchos. Therefore, the bar always speaks different languages using local products, with preparations that surprise the taste buds. Some of them, such as “Esencia”, have won awards (in this case, the Gold Pincho prize in the 2018 Official Competition). In particular, it’s a pincho that travels through different countries (Japan with its sisho leaf, Mexico with its chilli, Vietnam with its pickled mango or Ecuador with its onions marinated with salt and lime) coming back to Valladolid to combine with a base of squid and cuttlefish, “a pincho to be eaten in one mouthful that gives a blend of sensations”.

“Our pinchos always include something from Valladolid and something from abroad”, they reiterate, like the tribute they pay to the black chicken of Castilla, indigenous to the area. As it has been documented that Columbus took some chickens to America, the restauranteurs prepare the breasts at a low temperature and accompany them, among other ingredients, with an achiote and corn gel, both ingredients of the new world. A pincho of one thousand and one ingredients (tomato paste, roasted almonds, coconut powder…) “and hints of freshness and enhancing the flavours”. 

In order to finish painting the portrait of their tapas, González and Cordero present the Taj Mahal lamb, a pincho made of unweaned lamb from the region, but it also travels to India using tandoori and spices, which won the competition in 2015.