Hotel Esperit Roca

There are a mere 45 seats and a long waiting list at one of the world’s most famous restaurants, El Celler de Can Roca, and the intimate dining experience is part of its appeal. It’s only logical that the enterprising owners — Joan, Josep, and Jordi Roca, respectively a chef, sommelier, and patissier — were open to expansion. Their new project, housed in a restored 19th-century fortress on a mountaintop outside Girona, features a second restaurant, as well as a stylish boutique hotel, the Hotel Esperit Roca.

Here the Roca brothers’ aesthetic is on full display; the interiors are modern and light-filled, outfitted in natural materials and oriented to the outdoors, the décor refined but stripped back. There are 360-degree views over the Empordà from its wide terraces, L-shaped swimming pool, and spacious suites. All have hardwood flooring, cork ceilings, expansive picture windows, raffia rugs, and linen-upholstered furnishings. Bathrooms are generously sized with freestanding soaking tubs facing postcard-like landscape views. One features a private garden, and the duplex suite has a quiet balcony off the upper-level sleeping area.

The first-rate breakfast buffet is a treat, and later in the day, a dessert-centric tasting menu is a refreshing departure from the standard. The Roca-branded distillery, wine cellar, and exhibition space are easy to visit, located just downhill from the hotel on the way into town.