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Friday, April 17, 2015

Tête à Tête with BelleBarcelone #12: young entrepreneur Rafael Soldevila of La Fermata!

Some would say he has it all, he was born with a silver spoon in mouth...But the success behind the best pizza in town at La Fermata isn't only that. He comes from a family who has been for years in the hospitality business with prestigious hotels such as the emblematic Majestic. But I can tell if he wasn't a hard worker, knowing exactly what he wanted La Fermata wouldn't be what it is today. I present you Rafael Soldevila, co-owner of La Fermata: Pizza al corte. La Fermata: Av Major de Sarrià 2-4. La Fermata de Provença C/Provença 243.

I had met him few times and his youth, his discreetness and his love for his job captivated me. So here we are, at Passage, the best accessories store in town owned by his mom and his sisters. His sister, Elena, co-owner of La Fermata, and his mom are also there in the beautiful terrace they have behind the store. So here we start our chat on a sunny day. 
BelleBarcelone: So tell me how did it all start?
Rafael Soldevila: My father and his family own the Majestic group hotel. So the hospitality industry has been in me since always. After my studies I worked at the Hotel Arts the at the Bvlgari Hotel In Milan. There my sister and I used to quite often go to a bakery named Princi. It was a bakery with all sort of stuff as well as pizza al taglio. That's how it started. I came back to Barcelona after my internship and was thinking a lot about opening a place that would serve pizzas. I didn't want a pizzeria and I didn't want the usual take away pizza. I then went to Rome for more than a month where I learned all about the secrets in making a good pizza. And here I was, with the help of my family I opened La Fermata; designed by a close friend. 
BB: What si the secret behind your pizza? 
RS: Our base is made with a bio flour from Italy. We mix this bio flour with a wholemeal bio flour and here we have the flour. We leave it to ferment for 48h and use 80% of water in our base. That's why it's light, spongy and crunchy all at once. 
BB: What kind of clientele do you have?
RS: Here in Sarria we have the neighbours that come from all ages, children who come for a slice of Nutella Pizza or grandmas that come once a week for their slice. In our C/Provenca location it is more tourists and people who work around during lunch time. 
BB: How do both places work?
RS: Each place has their own oven and kneader. We make the batter everyday. On Wednesday we double the quantity in prevision for the weekend when everyone want a slice of pizza. 
BB: What are your future plans: 
RS: I would like to open a couple more in Barcelona and then why not Valencia or Ibiza? Let's see. For the moment we are working on a loyalty card for regular customers as well as home delivery from our Provenza Fermata. No plans of franchising La Fermata at least not in Spain. In the future I would love to open a boutique hotel.
BB: What are your favorite travelling plans?
RS: I have 2 pending trips to Argentina and Brazil. I would love to go there. I loved my trip to India, few years back. I had gone to Calcutta to help in the Madre de Teresa. 
BB: What's your favorite cuisine?
RS: I love to eat! Everything... I love sushi, lebanese food and more. 
BB: What are your favorite restaurants in town. 
RS: El Vivanda without doubts, I love el Xiringuito Escribà and Petit Comité by Nandu Jubany. 
La Fermata Pizza al Corte. 


Accessories!

With Rafael and Elena Soldevila. 



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