Release Date: April 16, 2012

Chef José Andrés Creates Garden Café Catalonia in Honor of Joan Miró: The Ladder of Escape at the National Gallery of Art

Washington, DC—Inspired by Joan Miró: The Ladder of Escape, on view in the East Building from May 6 through August 12, 2012, award-winning Washington-based Chef José Andrés is transforming the menu in the Garden Café with signature Catalan dishes beginning May 1. Andrés—just named to the 2012 TIME 100, the magazine's annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world—spent his formative years in and around Barcelona, and is chef and owner of ThinkFoodGroup restaurants in Washington, DC, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Miami. His restaurants include Jaleo, Zaytinya, Oyamel, minibar by josé andrés, and The Bazaar by José Andrés. Andrés is also the host and executive producer of the PBS culinary series Made in Spain. The Garden Café Catalonia menu is presented in partnership with Restaurant Associates and Executive Chef David Rogers at the National Gallery of Art.

Garden Café Catalonia

The sense of Catalan identity evident throughout the exhibition is also reflected in the Garden Café Catalonia. Andrés' pride in his native Spain and in the distinctive culinary traditions of the northeast province of Catalonia is highlighted in the Garden Café menu. He incorporates traditional Catalan flavors, combining sweet fruits and nuts with savory meats and vegetables, and features classic dishes such as escalivada catalana, the roasted vegetable dish which takes its name from the Catalan verb escalivar, to cook slowly near embers of a fire.

À la carte selections inspired by the exhibition include empedrat de mongetes amb bacallà (white bean salad with vegetables and Catalan salt cod, $12.00), canelons de Sant Esteve (pork and chicken "canelons" with béchamel sauce, $14.50), and escalivada catalana (salad of roasted red pepper, eggplant, and onion, $14.50). Rounding out the meal is peres al vi amb gelat de vainilla (pears poached in red wine with vanilla ice cream, $8.00).

Chef Andrés' buffet ($20.25) incorporates a variety of traditional Catalan fare, including rustic bread, empedrat de mongetes (white bean salad with vegetables, black olives, and tomato), sopa freda de cireres de Santa Coloma de Cervelló (cold cherry and tomato soup), samfaina (Catalan vegetable stew), xatonada (salad of frisée, preserved tuna, and romesco sauce), formatges amb anous i codony (Catalan cheese with Marcona almonds and quince marmalade), escalivada catalana (salad of roasted red pepper, eggplant, and onion), pollastre a la catalana (Catalan chicken stew with dried fruits and nuts), fricandó de galtes de vedella amb bolets (Catalan stew of beef cheeks and mushrooms), and for dessert crema catalana (caramelized Catalan custard). Recipe cards for selected dishes are offered to guests free of charge.

White, red, and sparkling Catalan and Spanish wines have been carefully selected to complement the menu, along with beer (Estrella Damm, Barcelona, Spain) and specialty drinks, including red wine sangria, calimocho (ludovicus, cola, bitters), and clara (Estrella Damm, house-made lemonade, orange bitters). Juice, soda, and still or sparkling bottled water are available, as are coffee, espresso, and tea.

Garden Café Catalonia is open Monday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 4:00 p.m. A preconcert menu of light fare, desserts, and beverages is offered from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. on Sundays to accommodate visitors who attend the free Sunday evening concerts in the West Garden Court. One of the most distinctive dining spots in the nation's capital, the Garden Café features a 19th-century French marble sculpture after Jacopo Sansovino, Bacchus and a Faun, and a fountain with Herbert Adams' bronze Girl with Water Lilies (model 1928).

The Garden Café is located in the West Building near the entrance at 6th Street and Constitution Avenue NW. To make reservations for groups of eight or more, please contact the café manager at (202) 712-7454. For more information about the Gallery and its restaurants, visit www.nga.gov/dining

Chef José Andrés

Named Outstanding Chef by the James Beard Foundation in 2011, José Andrés is an internationally recognized culinary innovator, passionate advocate for food and hunger issues, author, educator, television personality and chef/owner of ThinkFoodGroup. He and his ThinkFoodGroup, with partner Rob Wilder, are the team responsible for Washington's renowned dining concepts minibar by josé andrés, Jaleo, Zaytinya, Oyamel, America Eats Tavern, and Pepe the food truck. Dining concepts in Los Angeles and Las Vegas include the celebrated Bazaar by José Andrés at the SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills, Jaleo, China Poblano, and é by José Andrés at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Scheduled to open in 2012 are The Bazaar by José Andrés at the SLS South Beach Miami and a dining destination at the new Dorado Beach, Ritz Carlton Reserve in Puerto Rico. Andrés can be seen on PBS as host and executive producer of Made in Spain. His cookbooks include Tapas: A Taste of Spain in America. For his efforts to promote his native country, Spain's Ministry of Culture recognized Andrés with the prestigious Order of Arts and Letter medallion, making him the first chef to receive this award presented by the Government of Spain. Andrés also teaches science and cooking at Harvard University.

Joan Miró: The Ladder of Escape
May 6–August 12, 2012

Celebrated as one of the greatest modern artists, Miró (1893–1983) developed a visual language that reflected his vision and energy in a variety of styles across many media. Through some 120 works of art, this exhibition reveals the politically engaged side of Miró's work, including his passionate response to one of the most turbulent periods in European history as well as his sense of Spanish—specifically Catalan—identity.

The exhibition was organized by Tate Modern, London, in collaboration with Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona, and in association with the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

The exhibition is made possible through the generous support of the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation.

Additional support is provided by Buffy and William Cafritz.

The Institut Ramon Llull is an exhibition sponsor in Washington and London.

The exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

In-kind promotional support has been provided by Chef José Andrés of Jaléo and ThinkFoodGroup.