ZiryBlog: Culinary Inspirations

Barcelona Hookah Bar: Experience the Great Merging of Arab and Spanish

Spain’s heritage remains influential in many of its former colonies, as well as in other European countries. Its history has also crossed paths with other influential civilizations, like Middle Eastern. Similarly, Arabian influence is evident in Spain, especially when it comes to cuisine. The spanish-food.org staff further delves into this matter.
Continue reading “Barcelona Hookah Bar: Experience the Great Merging of Arab and Spanish”

Barcelona Shisha Bar: A Perfect Place to Unwind in the Catalan Capital

How do you make the most of your trip to Barcelona? With his dedication in exploring and featuring Spain in his writings, travel expert Damian Corrigan shares some must-visit places in the Catalan capital in an article for About.com: Continue reading “Barcelona Shisha Bar: A Perfect Place to Unwind in the Catalan Capital”

Enjoy Barcelona Hookah Sessions with Friends—Minus Your Smartphone

So you’ve finished your tour of the activity-packed sprawl of Barcelona. After soaking in the sights and sounds for almost an entire day, however, you find yourself a bit tired and ready to relax. A consensus was reached among your group, and you all decided to wind down at a popular shisha bar in Barcelona like Ziryab.

It’s not bad to Instagram and Tweet everything you’ve experienced while enjoying a nice, traditional hookah in Barcelona with your friends. Still, you’re missing the big point of what the gathering is all about—actual personal conversation, and not having your friends look at you for hours while you indulge yourself on your smartphone. Continue reading “Enjoy Barcelona Hookah Sessions with Friends—Minus Your Smartphone”

The Middle Eastern Hookah Finds its Way to a Barcelona Shisha Bar

Ever wondered what the Caterpillar from the animated film “Alice in Wonderland” smokes? Although the first thing that might cross your mind is a bong, it’s not entirely accurate. In the novel, Lewis Carroll specifically identified the creature as the “Hookah-Smoking Caterpillar”. But what exactly is a hookah and where did it come from?

Leif Harum, who identifies himself as “The Runaway Guide” in his blog, shares what he found out about the history of hookah smoking:
Continue reading “The Middle Eastern Hookah Finds its Way to a Barcelona Shisha Bar”

Warmth at Ziryab: The Fifth String of Autumn

Autumn has fallen hard, fervent, magnanimous and grey over the city of Barcelona. The warm summer wind has lost it’s strength, falling amongst the cobblestones in cool puddles of rain. The dogs bark differently this time of year.
The warm light of the restaurant becomes a part of this autumn landscape. A golden light like warmest bread. The red of the wine deepens with passion as it fills the glass. The very wood in the walls competes with the timeless history of the room itself.

Suddenly a bang. The light from the “correfocs” washes over the streets. “Are those fireworks?” The people run outside to see. The stairwell is deserted, and from the empty loft of the restaurant, life feels like a celebration. Do you really think it matters that no one else seems to be listening?

The rockets fade away, leaving behind a trail of smoke that slowly lifts as time begins again, revealing smiling faces. It’s time to eat. Some have a bite, others have more than a bite. Everything is fresh, the aromas sit nicely alongside the candles. Take a look inside. Take your time. Everyone seems content. A cold wind rattles against the door, and no one notices. Silence.

What happened here one hundred years ago? This place would make a fabulous apartment. Why do I like it here so much?

The charm. There’s no other way to explain it. Maybe that’s why they call it that in the first place, because a magical charm has been placed upon us, and all those who lived inside these walls, and wandered through the autumn nights, and heard the silent lute of Ziryab.

Come and see.

(poem based on the musician Ziryab, who legend has it – among other things – invented the 5th string of the lute)

Secrets of the Old Town

“À la Z” Episode 8 – Secrets of the Old Town
Welcome to Ziryab’s miniseries, a video blog by Ziryab about different topics every month!
Subtitles available in 3 languages if you click on the “cc”. 

In tIn this last episode, owners Kate and Emlyn take you on a little tour to share with you the secrets, legends, and hidden gems in the Born neighbourhood of old Barcelona, where Ziryab is located!

 

The Magic Language at Ziryab

“À la Z” Episode 7 – The Magical Language at Ziryab
Welcome to Ziryab’s miniseries, a video blog by Ziryab about different topics every month!
Subtitles available in 3 languages if you click on the “cc”. 

In this penultimate episode of our mini-series “A la Z”, Verena and Federica from the Lounge, explain to you the different challenges of being Deaf and attending to hearing clients…. they share the special moments and we also interview customers who share their experiences of interacting with a fully Deaf team… awesome episode 🙂

Life is a Voyage: Multicultural Teams

“À la Z” Episode 6 – Life is a Voyage: Multicultural Teams
Welcome to Ziryab’s miniseries, a video blog by Ziryab about different topics every month!
Subtitles available in 3 languages if you click on the “cc”. 

In this episode of our mini-series “A la Z”, Stanislava presents to us the voyage undertaken by Ziryab in his day to get to al-Andalus, and in parallel explains the richness of having a multicultural team that has had life experiences like Ziryab must have done.

 

 

 

Making a Shisha with Love!

“À la Z” Episode 5 – Making a Shisha with Love!
Welcome to Ziryab’s miniseries, a video blog by Ziryab about different topics every month!
Subtitles available in 3 languages if you click on the “cc”. 

The team at Ziryab shisha lounge share their secrets to help you prepare the perfect shisha! They also tell a little about the different brands of tobacco they have at the Lounge (al-Fakher, Starbuzz, Fumari) and the more than 30 flavors you can choose from to best enjoy your Shisha Experience…

Winespirations – selecting wines at Ziryab

“À la Z” Episode 4 – Winespirations, selecting wines at Ziryab
Welcome to Ziryab’s miniseries, a video blog by Ziryab about different topics every month!
Subtitles available in 3 languages if you click on the “cc”. 

This episode is about our wines! And how we select them. We change our wines every few months, selecting wines by small family-run bodegas with a story. We love the passion behind wine-making and look for wines that use local lesser-known varieties, and use wine-making methods that are unusual – like making wines the way the Romans did, using clay amphoras for fermentation and ageing, or ageing wines underground…. natural wines, ecologic wines, biodynamic wines. All our wines are organic and have a story, come try a copa! Cheers!