Esquina’s new head chef Carlo Montobbio reveals his favourite Barcelona restaurants and travel shopping habits

SINGAPORE — The tapas wave in Singapore may have started five years ago, but its undiminished popularity is no surprise to the new head chef of Esquina, Carlos Montobbio.

“Tapas are similar to dim sum — small plates for sharing; and there’s a big Chinese population in Singapore,” shared the Catalan who shot to prominence here with his Asian-inspired tapas at Fairmont Singapore’s Anti:dote. “When I first tried dim sum in Barcelona, I thought, ‘Hey, Asian tapas!’”

But at Esquina — where he launched a new menu last week — the focus remains very much Spanish with delish dishes such as the grilled octopus (the pulpo is imported from Galicia, no less) and items even inspired by his childhood like the palette cleanser of chocolate ganache with olive oil on toasties.

“In Barcelona, children are exposed to good produce and food early,” he explained. “Food is like a religion there — if a place is not as good as before, it will close shop soon.”

Sounds like a familiar phenomenon, doesn’t it?

Q: What’s the biggest difference between cooking at a hotel bar such as Anti:dote and a specialised tapas bar like Esquina?

A: At Esquina, the guests already know about the food. There are many regulars. At a hotel bar, customers go there more for the drinks. They’re usually surprised by the food as they have lower expectations about it. I won’t say there’s a big difference in how I see them — I treat every guest the same.

Q: Esquina is already a familiar name in the food scene; how will you put your stamp on the food?

A: I’ll keep my style which is modern tapas, using modern techniques. There also is a little bit of Asian influence such as the use of ponzu and in Japanese produce such as sea urchin or sardines. For dishes such as the bacalao brandade (salt cod) with roasted peppers, the ingredients are common Spanish ones and the flavours are Spanish, but I presented them nigiri style.

Q: Now that you’ve worked in Singapore for two years, what do you notice about Singaporean diner?

A: The people here are very open-minded compared to diners in Spain. In Spain, customers want their favourite dish with their favourite wine at their favourite table. It’s the opposite here. Customers want to know what’s new on the menu which is good for chefs as we get to change the menus often. People here are also very curious about food — you can see them checking on their phones about dishes and ingredients.

Q; Since you’re from Barcelona, what are some of your favourite eating places there?

A: Bar Mut is where I go for the langoustines. The langoustines are cooked simply over charcoal with parsley and garnish but very good. I also like Pinotxo at Boqueria Market for breakfast or lunch. The menu changes every day depending on what’s available at the market. The chef there will tell you he’s the menu. For fine dining, try Restaurante Pakta. It’s a mix of Peruvian and Japanese food. And if you like creative food, Disfrutar is very nice. It’s opened by the ex head chef of El Bulli. For modern Catalunyan cuisine, there’s Cinc Sentis which means five senses. I used to work there!

Q: What are some of your favourite things to bring back when you travel?

A: I brought back knives from Tokyo’s Kappabashi Street. I bought them from Kamata Hakensha’s knife shop.I also came home with pickled yuzu, seaweed and even plates.

Q: Was there a travel discovery you were amazed by?

A: Tom yum paste from Bangkok, which I only discovered three years ago. I had never tried it before. It was so good. Serene Lim