Mediterranean wood-fire cooking in the heart of El Born. Market fish, local produce, oak and vine embers, and exactly the time each cut needs.
Open today from 13:00 to 16:00 and 20:00 to 23:30
We cook the way people have always cooked on the shores of the Mediterranean: over a wood fire, with whatever the fish market brings in that morning, and with the patience to wait until the embers are just right. No gas, no shortcuts. What comes off our grill tastes of oak, of the sea and of the garden, and you can't fake that.
Pau Serra
Chef and founder of Ascua
Fish from the Barcelona and Arenys de Mar fish markets, vegetables from Maresme farms and beef we dry-age in house. If it's not in season, it's not on the menu.
Every day we light the grill with holm oak from Osona and vine cuttings from the Penedès. Each cut has its own wood, its own height above the fire and its own timing.
Small producers from Catalonia and all around the Mediterranean, plus 40 wines by the glass so every dish finds its match.
The menu changes with the market, but these six dishes are our most requested and the ones that best explain who we are.
See the Full Menu
Our signature dish
Rubia Gallega beef, dry-aged in our own aging room, seared over a roaring oak fire and rested beside the embers. It reaches the table cooked just right, with flaky salt and Padrón peppers.
€68/kg
The best of this week's Maresme harvest, roasted right on the vine embers, with house-made romesco and Arbequina olive oil.
Premium clams opened on the grill, with a black garlic and parsley emulsion and a hint of lemon.
A toasted stock made from carabinero heads, Bomba rice from the Ebro Delta and a whole carabinero seared on the embers. Minimum of two guests.
Ebro Delta oyster with a delicate blood orange, lime and pink peppercorn escabeche.
Figs caramelized over the last embers of the night, with goat cheese ice cream and rosemary honey.
“Embers make you stay present. You can't program them or leave them alone: you watch them, you listen and you decide. That's why nothing here leaves the kitchen in a rush.”
Pau grew up three streets from here, between the Santa Caterina market and the fish market. After twelve years in kitchens in San Sebastián, Lyon and Tokyo, he came back to El Born in 2016 to open the place he'd always imagined: one grill, good wood and produce he knows by name.
Meet the Team
Our sommelier, Laia Puig, has gathered wines from small producers: Garnachas from the Priorat, Xarel·los from the Penedès, whites from Mallorca and the odd treat from farther afield. And we open plenty of bottles by the glass, so you can switch wines with every course.
By the glass this week
“We shared the rib steak and the carabinero rice, and we're still talking about them. We let them pick the wine and they nailed it. Super attentive service without ever hovering.”
“Fire is the boss here, and you can tell. The grilled vegetables had more flavor than plenty of meat dishes I've had in Barcelona. Lovely lighting and honest prices.”
“We held our company lunch in the private room: a custom menu, wine pairings and a long, lazy afternoon that ran into the evening. Pau came out to say hello at our table.”
A private room with a view of the grill, or the whole restaurant to yourselves for larger groups. We design the menu with you, choose the wines together and take care of every detail, so all you have to do is enjoy your guests.
We'll get back to you within 24 hours with a detailed, fixed-price proposal.
We'll confirm instantly by email. For groups of more than 8 or any special requests, call us at 93 315 42 80.