Restaurante de Ana
Restaurante de Ana bills itself as serving the traditional cuisine of Valencia.
A lot of restaurants in Valencia do, of course, but many don’t quite deliver. There’s nothing really wrong with a large pan of paella that might have been cooked an hour ago. However, what you really want is a piping hot pan to come to the table where you can dish up the rice across your guests and dig deep to scrape up that perfect bit of soccarrat from the bottom of the pan.
One good way to tell if the food is good is if the patrons are locals and are they regulars at a restaurant.
When you sit down and look around at other diners it is reassuring with multi-generational families, young and old couples and groups of friends who are clearly out for the lovely relaxed meal that is everything we love about Spain. Sunday afternoons are the perfect time to confirm whether you are in the right place.
With Restaurante de Ana, you are. The restaurant is under the direction of Ana, who is the daughter of Miguel Aparicio, a renowned restauranteur who has been offering the best of Valencian rice traditions for decades.
Since we are in a traditional restaurant it makes sense to start with the Ensalada Valenciana. It does not get much more traditional than this with lettuce, tomato, onion, some tuna, olives and great olive oil. Fresh, traditional and delicious. Bread service is terrific with great crusty baguettes served only slightly toasted.
Continuing on the traditional journey next up is pulpo (of course). This is a really delicious, tender and flavorful octopus served on a bed of rich mashed potatoes and a little bit of lettuce perfectly dressed with vinaigrette.
But you came for the rice, right? And it is good and very good.
The good was the Arroz del Señoret (marico pelado). Delicious perfectly cooked rice, a great soccarrat and seafood including shrimp and scallops. Terrific paella with warm saffron and paprika flavors. It was a touch salty but not a fatal flaw and likely the result of the super fresh seafood and not a heavy hand with the salt by the chef.
The Paella Valenciana is, however, a tour de force of rice cookery. Equally well-cooked rice with all the usual suspects — chicken, rabbit, broad beans and pole beans. This has it all — flavor, texture, tradition, sweet, umami, salty and one of the best paellas in town.