The restaurant ‘Entrevins’  faces the future by paying homage to the past, in a celebration that brings together press and friends of the house to review the 20 reasons upon which its identity is based.  The management of Gema Roig, the cuisine of Alberto Lozano, and the sommelier services of Sergio Perales support one of the essential establishments of Valencian gastronomy, which has continued to grow year after year. There are restaurants that end up forming part of the collective memory of a city. Places to which one returns for years and where hospitality is sustained by small details: someone remembering what wine the diner had last time, the table at which they like to sit, or that stew they never tire of ordering. Places that, over time, end up forming part of the story of those who inhabit them. ‘Entrevins’ falls into that very unique category.

How can we not celebrate its twenty years of history, now that it faces a new stage, where enthusiasm for the future predominates, but there is also immense respect for the past. Founded in 2006 in the Ruzafa neighbourhood, the restaurant has been building its identity over two decades. In its early years, it became a pilgrimage mecca for those seeking seasonal cuisine, crafted with technique, sensitivity, and care for the product, as well as an exceptional wine cellar. In 2016, Entrevins made the leap to Calle de la Paz, occupying three floors of a modernist building, which placed it in the heart of Valencia. There, the dining room gained in spaciousness and elegance, adding to its characteristic hospitality. Gema Roig continues to lead the project, accompanied for years by Alberto Lozano in the kitchen and Sergio Perales in charge of the dining room and sommelier services, along with a team that, over time, has ended up becoming family. “Turning twenty years old in the hospitality industry is somewhat dizzying, but also very proud of everything that has been built in this time. Suddenly, you look back and realize how many people have passed through and grown alongside the restaurant,” says Gema.

And, coinciding with this anniversary, is also the tenth anniversary of Birlibirloque, the group’s most informal concept, located on the ground floor of the building. A space that was created to transfer part of the Entrevins universe to a more everyday and casual format, while keeping the importance of product, cuisine, and wine intact.  Let’s talk about the gastronomic proposal. We are faced with a cuisine linked to the market and seasonality, where a very well-executed classic technique is practiced, that adapts to the contemporary. There are stocks cooked for hours, escabeches, adobos, salazones, as well as stews, which occupy a central place, both on the menu and in the set menus and daily specials, especially in the colder months. At the head of the kitchen is Alberto Lozano, one of the fundamental pieces of the project for ten years. Born in Casas Bajas (Rincón de Ademuz), he comes from a family linked to agriculture, livestock, and butchery, an origin that marks his way of understanding the product and the respect with which he approaches each ingredient. “We treat the supplier as another part of the mechanism,” he explains: “It is important for us to know where each vegetable, fish, or meat comes from; to know who is behind the raw material and to work it well for its maximum use.” Also for this reason, the cuisine evolves to the rhythm of the season, with respect for crops and nature. Mushrooms in autumn, truffles in winter, or offal, tubers, and the first spring vegetables mark the pulse of a proposal that seeks balance before artifice. Among the most recognizable creations of the house are dishes such as hake kokotxas in pil pil sauce, or veal sweetbreads glazed in Port with cauliflower toffee. All this from a kitchen designed to coexist with wine in perfect harmony. “In some restaurants, wine simply accompanies; here, many times, it is the main protagonist,” says Gema Roig. To which Alberto adds: “We try to make an honest cuisine, that is not too contrasting so that there can be a harmony between the food, the drink, and the diner’s own experience, who should feel at home.”

This line of work has led Entrevins to be part of guides such as Michelin and Repsol, consolidating itself as one of the reference names in Valencian gastronomy. But above all, it has achieved the loyalty of many customers over the years.  It has one of the best wine cellars in Valencia and  with more than 1,000 references treasured over two decades. Its selection is the result of constant visits to winemakers, as well as direct relations with small producers, always starting from curiosity and interest in those who practice viticulture. Under the direction of Sergio Perales, head of the dining room and sommelier, special attention has been paid to wines from the Mediterranean arc and to producers who work on more personal projects and away from the large commercial circuits. “A wine cellar like this is not built overnight. It is twenty years of tasting, traveling, visiting. And, above all, constantly thinking about what wine can excite customers,” he says.

Another distinctive feature of the house is its collection of champagnes, with over a hundred references selected each year, as well as a unique collection of historical wines, incorporated in 2022 and of which they maintain a hundred perfectly preserved classic bottles, especially from the 50s and 60s. “There are wines that have been waiting more than half a century to be consumed. Sharing that moment with the client becomes something unique,” says the sommelier. In addition, it is worth mentioning the space, as the cellar is located in the basement, inside an old Civil War shelter, now converted into one of the most unique places in the restaurant. The dining room maintains intact the importance of the classic codes of hospitality: anticipating, observing and accompanying the client naturally, without making them feel constrained.

In addition, Entrevins has a large main dining room and several private spaces, which allow for intimate meals and group gatherings, always within a serene atmosphere. “Despite being a large space, here you can breathe tranquility. The light, the distance between tables or the rhythm of the room are part of the experience,” they specify. With twenty years of experience, Entrevins is included in that generation of restaurants that have accompanied the gastronomic evolution of València during the last two decades. An emblem of local hospitality, which has seen the city and its gastronomic scene evolve, increasingly broad, changing and competitive, where making a name for yourself —and sustaining it over time— is no easy task. Having endured is a credit to the solidity of the team and the enthusiasm with which they face this new stage, marked by the renewal of their story and the desire to continue growing. “What allows us to move forward is knowing that we are all pulling in the same direction. There are very difficult services, in which you think everything is falling apart, but when we finish and I see that the team has responded, I really understand what we have built together,” says Gema Roig, current owner and leader of the restaurant.

Now, twenty years after its opening, ‘Entrevins’ celebrates this trajectory with a meeting with the press, clients and friends of the house. During the event, held last Thursday, attendees commemorated the 20 pillars of their identity, through a compilation book and an audiovisual piece, where the team itself reviews the evolution of the restaurant. An evening that served to highlight aspects such as seasonal cuisine, the worship of wine, the attachment to the territory, spoon dishes, producers and hospitality. Although if something sustains Entrevins, after these two decades, it is above all the relationship with the diner, to whom they immensely appreciate their support. Several generations of Valencians have passed through the restaurant and return time and time again. Perhaps that is why, for many of them, Entrevins has long ceased to be simply a restaurant, to become one of those homes that you always want to return to.

Report by ’24/7 Valencia’ team

Article copyright ’24/7 Valencia’

‘Entrevins’  photograph by Foko Estudio

MORE ABOUT ENTREVINS Web: https://www.entrevins.es/es/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/entrevins/