Can Xapes

The story

Can Xapes, Girona: Contemporary Catalan Dining with a Social Mission

A Second Life for a Girona Institution

Can Xapes is more than a restaurant. Housed in what was once the Cine Rosa (a cinema that opened in 1949), this spot in Cornellà del Terri, just outside Girona, has been a local fixture for decades. It became a bar serving morning forquilla breakfasts, vermouths and tapas, then a full restaurant in 1985 under Quim Vicens. For 25 years it earned a reputation for its commitment to well-made things – “un compromís amb la puresa de les coses ben fetes” – with dishes like àvia Fina’s fish pot and wild sea bass. In 2010, Can Xapes closed.

Today, it has been reborn as an “Espai Gastronòmic” with a dual purpose: to serve excellent contemporary food and to train young people facing social difficulties. Behind the project is Ad’Iniciatives Socials, a non-profit that runs the Tr3s Accions training programme here. Young people learn the trades of hospitality – butchery, pastry, bakery, fishmongering – while working in a real restaurant open to the public.

The Team and the Kitchen

Director General Conxi Martínez leads the project, with chef Lluc Quintana in the kitchen and sommelier Conrad Johera curating the cellar. They describe themselves as “un equip de persones disposades a reinventar l’antic Can Xapes sense perdre l’essència del que havia estat” – a team ready to reinvent the old Can Xapes without losing its essence. The cuisine is contemporary Catalan, rooted in the local pantry and the traditions that made the original restaurant a reference.

Recognition That Matters

In 2026, Michelin awarded Can Xapes a Bib Gourmand, a distinction for good quality, good value cooking. It recognises not just the skill on the plate but the integrity of the entire project: a restaurant where society has the chance to transform itself. As the website puts it, “és un lloc on passen coses” – a place where things happen.

Whether you come for lunch (Tuesday to Saturday) or dinner (Friday and Saturday), you’ll find a kitchen that honours the past while looking firmly forward, all within a warm, welcoming space that is also a school and a future for many.