Area : Eixample Esquerre. MAP IT
Tel. : 93 453 63 83
Open : De martes a sábado de 8-14:30h y de 17-21h. Domingo de 8-15:30h.
Closed : Lunes. Domingo tarde.
web site
TripAdvisor 4.5/5 26 reviews
It almost pains me to share this little secret with the cyber folks but then I wouldn’t be doing my job in sharing all the wonderful places that make Barcelona special and so close to my heart. So here it goes…
This little café is unique because it is the only authentically Japanese pastry shop that exists in Barcelona. It’s master pastry king is Takashi who came to Catalunya in 1980 after studying in both Belgium and London as a pastry chef. Here, in his own little café he offers traditional Japanese sweets and chocolates along with some modern twists that better suit the Spanish palatte (like green tea magdalenas…mmm…). Ochiai is also the only place that I have successfully encountered green tea ice cream that you can buy in pints and take home. Their café offers many different types of pastries and some American coffee favorites like cappuchino with whipped cream that generally in Barcelona, is very hard to find outside of Starbucks. The last time that I went to Ochiai, there weren’t that many people either so the atmosphere was really tranquil and clean. Check it out if you happen to be in the Eixample area. It is hands down one of my favorite places in Barcelona.
Fundada hace unos veinte años por el famoso repostero japonés Takashi Ochiai, en esta pastelería encontraremos los más variados postres tradicionales japoneses. Cabe destacar también su carta de bombones artesanos de diferentes tipos de chocolate y con gustos orientales.
Eat That Yellow Snow
Long before we heard of Sadaharu Aoki ( best Japanese pastry and chocolate shop in Paris - Michel ), there was a Japanese Pastry Chef in Barcelona, doing his thing and establishing himself as one of the best pastry destinations in the city. Takashi WHO? Takashi Ochiai and his Patisseria Ochiai.
He was a pastry chef in Japan, but left for Europe to seek knowledge and experience, as is always the case. His travels brought him to Belgium and London, where he worked for a few years and picked up French and English. Chatting with him was great as we could communicate freely!
Eventually, he ended up in Spain, learning their traditional pastries and decided to set up shop in Barcelona in 1983. Besides specializing in Japanese pastry, he is also an astute businessman and imports Japanese products for distribution (Yann Duytsche is one of his customers) as well as produces ice creams and chocolates for wholesale.
This place may not be as vogue and fashionable as Sadaharu Aoki, but I thoroughly enjoyed every morsel and second I was there. Besides making my top 3 list of best pastry in Barcelona (There is no personal order of preference in that list!), Chef Ochiai is one of the nicest chefs I have ever met and he was so open with his knowledge and warm hearted that I might want to do a stage there if I can afford living expenses in Barcelona.
Thank you Chef Ochiai, for one of the more memorable pastry experiences in my life. I will visit you again one day soon!
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