In the small village of Vall d’Alba, in the province of Castellón and less than half an hour from the capital, Cal Paradís is an honest, committed and vocational restaurant, faithful to its roots, memories and locally sourced products that identify the territory.
With local produce at the heart of its offering, Cal Paradís is the gastronomic temple where chef Miguel Barrera and his wife and maître d’, Ángela Ribes, serve signature cuisine that achieves culinary excellence.
The chef has an extensive repertoire of traditional recipes that feature local vegetables, mostly from his organic garden, fresh fish from nearby fish markets, local meats and high-quality cured meats that are so characteristic of the region. Ingredients that Miguel Barrera transforms into memories, turning meals into unforgettable moments. A cuisine that blends tradition and innovation and has established Cal Paradís as one of the most recommended restaurants in the province and one of the most renowned in the Valencian Community.
The chef’s creations are even more enjoyable in the cosy dining rooms with their warm and welcoming atmosphere, where different corners are designed to take us on a journey of aromas and flavours, combining local tradition and culinary innovation.
Chef Miguel Barrera's proposal
This experienced chef, born in a family farmhouse in Vall d’Alba, studied teaching, but between exams his imagination flew to the stoves of the family restaurant Paraíso. In 2004, he took over the family business, transforming it into a restaurant where the land and sea shape the dishes that feature on the menu every day. Years of effort and dedication resulted in the well-deserved award of its first Michelin Star in 2013, a milestone made even more remarkable by the fact that it was the first restaurant in the province of Castellón to achieve this. The following awards came last year with the Green Star for its cuisine based on sustainability and locally sourced produce, in which they have also been pioneers in the province, as well as two Repsol Suns.
His cuisine is a tribute to his homeland, its people, local produce and those small producers whose tireless work enables us to enjoy the finest products.
The chef captures the best Mediterranean flavours in his dishes, as well as exporting them to five continents through his live presentations.
Miguel Barrera knows how to recognise the greatness of our surroundings, feeling fortunate to be able to take advantage of everything the land has to offer and to be the catalyst for this raw material, transforming it and infusing it with the necessary feeling, thus delighting his diners.
The bounty of the sea and the mountains shapes a gastronomic offering that shows devotion to local varieties such as the roget bean and the tomaca de penjar; for the meats of the land, such as lamb and Benassal black-eyed rabbit, or for the black truffles and boletus edulis mushrooms from the forests near Penyagolosa and the Maestrazgo mountains.
And when good workmanship and quality products come together, the result is delicious dishes such as vegetable stew, roast rabbit with garlic and oil, seaweed and vegetable broth, the root tartlet with truffle, tear peas with chicken juice à l’ast, the demi-glace of roasted chickpeas cooked in the traditional way, daikon turnip cannelloni stuffed with mushrooms or grilled artichokes with cream and truffles.
Nor can we forget that we are in the Valencian Community, so another of its outstanding dishes is paella, which at Cal Paradís reaches the level of gastronomic excellence. As for desserts, those made with almonds stand out, as well as, of course, the traditional pastissos made with angel hair and sweet potato and rollets d’aiguardent.
The restaurant’s dynamism can be seen in its three menus, which adapt to the rhythm set by nature.
Plana de l’Arc is inspired by the most traditional flavours of the region and also offers a vegetarian option. Gastromercat is a combination of authenticity and modernity, an experience rich in exceptional flavours and textures and finally, Menu Miguel Barrera is an authentic and unique culinary journey that raises the bar for artistry in every dish.
The chef’s next proposal is Territorio y Caza (Territory and Game), a gastronomic journey that celebrates the new game and produce season, which will only be available during the month that the season lasts. Further proof of Cal Paradís’ commitment to locally sourced, seasonal produce.
The wine cellar, with nearly one hundred labels, features both white and red wines, local wines alongside national and international labels, which the sommeliers will expertly recommend to enhance this gastronomic experience.
For all these reasons, Cal Paradís has fully deserved all the accolades it has received since opening: a Michelin Star, a Michelin Green Star, two Repsol Suns, best restaurant in the province of Castellón, the Sustainability Award in the ranking by food critic Santos Ruíz or the Four Radishes from the prestigious We’re Smart Green Guide (one of the most internationally renowned guides), which recognises the best restaurants serving vegetarian and sustainable cuisine. The latter is receiving it for the second consecutive year.
This commitment to respecting the local environment and regional cuisine has earned it two more sustainability awards, one from ASHOTUR (Provincial Association of Hospitality and Tourism Businesses of Castellón) and the one who presents the Guide to the 55 Best Restaurants in the Valencian Community.
Sustainability as a banner
‘A philosophy based on respect for the product and a commitment to our region’ and ‘Working with local, seasonal produce to improve the quality of our dishes and promote the development of the local economy’. These statements by chef Miguel Barrera confirm that his commitment to sustainability is not just for show, but rather a genuine commitment to this way of understanding catering, which is the strongest pillar of his gastronomic philosophy.
These sensitivities involve the entire value chain. From production in its organic garden, which is irrigated with water from the cenia to harvest the best organic produce, supplying 80% of the restaurant’s pantry and using the surplus to make seasonal fruit and vegetable preserves, to recycling oil to avoid environmental impact and using solar panels to reduce its carbon footprint, to partnerships with local producers seeking to ensure that the economic benefits are felt by the neighbouring population and thus help to stabilise the population.
All these actions have resulted in the company obtaining the efficient and sustainable kitchen certificate awarded by Repsol, thus reaffirming its environmental commitment.
Miguel Barrera approaches each new day with a sense of responsibility and enthusiasm, seeking to revalue natural ingredients and apply them to a gastronomic offering that respects the values of the land and the work of the people.
With this philosophy, the chef has achieved creative maturity, maintaining the same enthusiasm with which he began this adventure twenty-two years ago and with the aim of raising the gastronomic level of the province of Castellón, making it a destination that travellers want to visit.
