The owners of Carmen and Torito restaurants have opened a new Spanish-themed café and market on Queen West.
Owner and chef Luis Valenzuela jumped at the opportunity when he learned that the space next to his traditional regional Spanish restaurant Carmen was up for sale. Previously operated by Delica’s Kitchen, the location lasted just over a year. Valenzuela and his partner Veronica Laudes stepped in to bring their market concept to life.
“I’ve always wanted to do something like this, to create a meeting place that pre-dates restaurants. A market, a café, a place where people can come in any time of the day and have a snack and a drink.”
He said while touring me through Mercat del Carmen’s quaint space stocked with display windows and a tall pantry of imported España goods (rice, oils, conservas). There’s just enough seating for 20.
Mercat del Carmen is part pantry, part café, part grab-and-go. Valenzuela wanted to stock shelves with day-to-day items that he says his local consumers want. “Instead of buying a carton of eggs and letting them sit in the fridge, you can come in and pick up exactly the number of eggs you want. Or meat, or milk,” he said.
Valenzuela is working with 100km Foods and a number of other purveyors to make sure that all this non-Spanish goods are from the province. Along with the oils and duck eggs, he also stocks the fridge with an assortment of house-made sausages, and smoked meats.
At the hot counter, display cases are stacked with a variety of bocatas (meat sandwiches, $8), pastries, and Spanish tortillas (egg omelettes, $6 a slice). Delica is too small to have its own kitchen, so Valenzuela uses Carmen’s kitchen to produce the café’s daily menu. “This is something that will evolve, you’ll see more as we go into spring.”
There’s also an array of desserts at Mercat del Carmen from single-serving crème Catalan torched with an antique Spanish long-handled salamander to full-sized cakes (Torta de Santiago, Torta de la Abuela. Ranging from $6 a slice to $35 for the full pie).
By spring, Valenzuela hopes to incorporate an evening pintxo menu and drink program with a focus on Spanish sherry and beer.
