Rafa Penya may have trained at elBulli, but he prefers well-priced innovative cooking over gastronomic theater. (Okay, you may be moved to applaud when you break through the shell of his soufflé and find a whole, just-cooked yolk inside.) Diners with more taste than money come here to enjoy Penya's penchant for tickling the palate with novel combinations, such as tuna tartare graced with white garlic flowers or lichi and apple pie with blue cheese. Other dishes seem to have been created from Penya's memories of his grandmother's cooking: veal tongue with sage, pig's feet with mushrooms, and braised beef cheeks. Barcelonans call a restaurant like this “bistronomic.” We call it a bargain worth seeking out.