Raúl Bernal, the chocolatier who breaks the mold at LAPACA
It's a windy day in Huesca. Despite the sun, the cold is biting. At nine in the morning, the terrace is serenely set up in front of LAPACA, Raúl Bernal's glorious pastry shop. More than thirty people form an impeccable queue, and a table of twelve grabs the blankets to sit and have breakfast outside.
On either side of the door, a collection of plaques orients the visitor. Among its accolades are the Relais Desserts award—a distinction held by only about 80 pastry shops worldwide—Best Master Chocolatier in Spain 2023, the Repsol Sun Award, Best Tea Pastry in Aragon and third in Spain (2022), Best Artisan Chocolate in Spain (2023), and Best Master Chocolatier in Spain (2011).
Beyond that glorious threshold, LAPACA remains true to its founder's character, distancing itself from the established formulas one might expect from a pastry shop with all the accolades it boasts. With ample room for camaraderie (its name comes from Paquito the chocolate maker), Raúl's approach is as humble as it is excellent, as humorous as it is rigorous.
Far removed from the jewel-like aesthetic typically championed by pastry shops of this caliber, and detached from the traditional notion of luxury, LAPACA is and would be modern in 2025, as it was in 2019 (when it opened); in a neighborhood of Huesca and in the heart of any capital city. Deliberately without the word "pastry shop" in sight, the establishment transcends boundaries and defies categorization. An open-plan space where coffees, savory and sweet breakfasts, artisanal chocolates, artistic pieces, sumptuous puff pastries, and sweet treats coexist.
One of the waitresses approaches smiling with a tasting to - in her words - "help pass the time", and upon reaching the display case - which is not a display case, but a central table - she gives us a seat.
Excited customers
More than a pastry shop, the service is reminiscent of a restaurant. Diners are seated at their tables, menus are handed out, pastries are served, and savory orders are taken. To the rhythm of Robbie Williams' "Land of 1000 Dances," all audible conversations revolve around the pastries: "I'll take the Swiss bread," comment a couple at a table, who are visiting for the first time; "but this is new, huh?" point out a group of three in front of the counter, looking every bit the weekly regulars; "the raspberry one is delicious, I love the tartness," and at the same table, another couple admits they follow the shop on Instagram and that it's very good.
Around the tables, some 200 safes - prepared to hold chocolates, orders and gifts - give a clue to the story of Raúl Bernal, who hides behind an impeccable puff pastry, an expert chocolatier.
Revolutionizing the world of monas, that heavenly tradition of chocolate sculptures at Easter in Catalonia, Raúl created an iconic style in 2011, when he won the Lluís Santapau trophy for Best Master Chocolatier. At that time, his modular sculptures made from egg molds and hemispheres, which told stories on their own—a frog eating a fly—and played with whimsy—a shark serving sushi—inaugurated a new language that is still trending today.
Delicious suggestions
Far from seeking the limelight, Raúl executes, day after day, a benchmark pastry shop with the tenacity of a master and the passion and humility of an apprentice. This freshness permeates the more than 80 pieces displayed in the showcase: a pain suisse with a stubborn crunch, a napolitana (pain au chocolat) that deserves absolute prominence, a seasonal offering like the torrisant (a French toast-croissant), or a continuation of tributes that fill his offering with humility and approachability: the Ochiai croissant—a nod to the Japanese master established in Barcelona—with white chocolate and matcha cream, yuzu passion fruit and mango jam, and a matcha and sesame topping; Sant Roll, with hazelnut cream and crunchy praline, a piece he learned at home from his friend Albert Roca, pastry chef and Spanish Ice Cream Champion in 2022, and the Abelico, his croissant treated like a monkey bread - Lotus, pistachio or Kinder - named in honor of his friend Abel Bravo, from Glea (Murcian pastry shop) and which they ended up registering together as a brand.
Full of camaraderie, quality and humor, and richly humble, at LAPACA (open from Wednesday to Sunday from 08:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.) there is no room for error because every detail - of the premises, of its product, of the finishes - is thought out from an absolute criterion but without losing the freshness, and with equal parts heart and brain.
