Charles in Valencia

For those of you who follow me on Instagram you may have seen I recently went on a little trip to Valencia. Alex spoilt me rotten this Christmas with a surprise trip away in between Christmas and New Year for a bit of winter sun.

We arrived mid-morning, dropped our bags at the hotel and ventured out into the city to explore. The weather was gorgeous throughout the whole trip, warm enough for a light jacket, I'd forgotten how much I missed the sunshine! We spent a few hours walking the Antiguo Cauce del Rio Turia which runs through the city. It's made of up of gardens and water features that surround the magnificent buildings like the opera house and museums. The architecture is really something special.

After a little afternoon siesta we headed back out in search of some tapas. We found a lovely little place called El Cauce and enjoyed a meat and cheese platter with bottle of red. Our waiter didn't speak much English so we ended up with a whole Squid rather than Calamari rings, whoops! We tried it all the same and ate the majority of it followed up with some seriously good lemon cheesecake and chocolate brownie. A great way to end our first day!

Over the next couple of days we explored even more of the city visiting the Bioparc and the Oceenographic. Both parks were very well designed for the animals and hosting many endangered species. We also made a trip down to the beach and despite the winds went for a little paddle. Of course we needed more fuel for all our adventuring and no trip would be complete without a visit to the Hard Rock Café.

For our last night, we decided on a bit of splurge and booked in for a tasting menu at a Michelin Star restaurant, Ricard Camerena. Neither of us had ever eaten at a Michelin Star restaurant before so wasn't sure what to expect but what an experience it was! The taxi driver dropped us off at the entrance to a court yard where we were greeted and taken through into the bar for drinks and appetisers. Each bite was explained to us in detail and the order in which we should eat them for maximum enjoyment. We were then taken though to the restaurant for the remainder of the appetisers and to start on the 11 courses, yes you read that right, 11!

Our table was situated right in front of the kitchen so we could see the chefs at work, which was great. For the last appetisers we were invited up to the front for a demonstration and explanation of the dish. Their ethos and creativity behind each dish is very impressive, with combinations of food you wouldn't dream of putting together, but it works! Over the next couple of hours we were brought dish after dish. We didn't pick the ones we wanted, they did that for us, so every one was a surprise.

The service and staff was impeccable, which along with the food made for a 10 out 10 experience. Definitely a night to remember! On leaving we were given the menu we had and I've listed these below so you can take a look:

Prelude
Chicken broth, sherry, lemon leaf
Lettuce Olivier's sea bass salad
Courgette peel, steak tartare, cottage cheese
Turnup, radish, herring eggs
Onion, anchovy butter, black garlic
Beetroot, eels, dill
Cured tuna, toast bread, tuna juice
White sweet potato, duck, black pepper
Goat, leek, herbs
Carrot, coconut, cumin

Main Dishes
'Gelee' consomme with red prawns, fresh cream and caviar
Valencian oyster, avocado, sesame and horchata of galanga
Meuniere lobster cauccino
Roasted aubergine, red bluefin tuna and oxalis emulsion
Elvers, eels, onion and radish flower
Roasted asparagus, yeast and truffle
Turbot, potato and parsley
Squid rice with onions, cabbage and back pepper
Smoked duck, spinach and peanuts

Pre-dessert
Orange, eucalyptus, chervil

Desserts
Ripe mango, cold cury, herbs and seeds
Cold lemon crumbles, rosemary, nougat and black truffle

Petit Fours
Roasted banana, chocolate, spices
Pistachio rock
Carrot cake with vanilla

We didn't fly until late in the evening on our last day so took a little trip outside of the city to a village called El Palmar. We'd been recommended to visit for the best paella by a local waiter in a wine bar we had visited. Legend has it this particular restaurant, El Graner, is where paella originated from and is still run by the Grandchildren. We had a traditional dish of rabbit and chicken and it was worth the journey and the wait. The village is tiny and located in the middle of a natural park so not a huge amount to see but we enjoyed a few beers and some card games before catching the bus back.

We had such a great trip enjoying the sun and all the food! If you're looking for a city break this ones a must!