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| Restaurants |
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Barcelona is awash with Restaurants
ranging from fabulous and great value to complete tourist-aimed
rip-off. We’ve reviewed many below, split
by barrio (neighbourhood). We are as honest as
we can be – when it’s bad we say so and
when it’s great, we gush!
For a full map of the restaurants reviewed here, visit
our Barcelona
Restaurants map page. |
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View restaurant
reviews by area:
Barri Gotic
El Raval
El Born
Barceloneta
Eixample
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View the best
Barcelona restaurants for:
Eating outside
Best value
Traditional Catalan
Traditional Spanish
(tapas) |
Don't forget to check out the Barcelona Update guide
to the areas of Barcelona.
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| Barri
Gotic |
The restaurants in Barri Gotic range from wonderful,
atmospheric little places, through some of the
best value quality food you’ll find in the
city right down to the most over-priced tourist
traps you’re ever likely to come across.
In general, we’d advise you steer clear
of the restaurants and bars directly on La Rambla
– which almost invariably fit into the latter
category – but you don’t have to go
far to find really top notch places.
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Ambos
Mundos
Plaza
Reial, 10, 08001
Open: 11:00 – 23:00 Mon - Sun; closed
January
Tel: 93-317 01 66
Price guide: €
One of a set of tourist-based tapas bars and
restaurants along the permanently sunny side of
Plaza Reial.
Great place to sit and people watch over a few
plates of tapas, but don't expect either the tapas
or the drink to be particularly great. Good value
though, considering its location. |
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Bar
del Pi
Plaça
Sant Josep Oriol 1
Open: Mon-Fri: 9am-11pm; Sat: 9:30am-10:30pm;
Sun: 10am-10pm
Price guide: €€
Bar del Pi is one of the oldest and best known
bars in Barcelona, and is included in every guide
book we've ever come across.
The location is perfect - get an outside table
and look up to see the beautiful gothic Iglesa
del Pi or stare around at the local artists stands
or the local market stalls (weekends in the adjoining
plaza). The tapas is no more than average, no
doubt suffering from the curse
of the guide book, and the service is patchy,
but there are few better places to sit and have
a drink in Gothic Barcelona. |
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Bar
El Tropezon
Carrer
d'en Gignas, 22
Price guide: €
Old style tapas bar,
that seems to have adapted to its central Barcelona
tourist status by providing a numbered menu and
some paper and a pen - just write the numbers
of what you want down and give it to your waiter.
Reasonable tapas, but the place is looking a bit
run down these days. |
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Bunga
Raya
Carrer
dels Assaonadors 7
Open: Tues - Sun: 8pm - 12am. Closed Mon.
Tel: 93-319 31 69
Price guide: €
This Brit-run Malaysian restaurant used to be
a BarcelonaUpdate favourite, but has recently
gone downhill a bit.
The portions are big and hearty and a meal
here won't break the bank - the all-in-one house
plate in particular is good value. Unfortunately
it is now getting very run down - menus falling
apart, needs a coat of paint and, worst of all,
hygiene, particularly the loos, has suffered.
Our advice is to avoid until things are cleaned
up. |
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Café
de L'Academia
Lledo
1, Placa Sant Just
Tel: 93-315 00 26
Price guide: €€
A charming little restaurant in the old town,
Cafe de L'Academia serves good value, Catalan
food to a good mix of locals and tourists.
Set in the beautiful Placa San Just, opposite
the church of the same name, the restaurant has
around 15 tables inside and a set of 6 outside
in the square in summer. The cuisine is described
as "market food" - presumably from one
of the local markets - and it shows in it's freshness.
The a la carte menu is extensive, but for our
money the best bet is the keenly priced lunchtime
menu del dia - a hearty set lunch (no choice here
- one starter, one main and one dessert are on
offer) for just €14. |
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Cirkus
Carrer
d'Avigno 24
www.cirkusgroup.com
Tel: 93-318 38 55
Price guide: €€€
A hybrid Japanese restaurant / shop (yes, really)
in the heart of the Barri Gotic, this place is
definitely aimed at the upmarket end of the scale,
with meals pitching in at Eu 50 + per head, including
wine.
It's not to say the food is not good - our experience
was excellent - but the shop out front (you walk
through it to get to the restaurant) does bring
the overall atmosphere down a notch or two and
the constant stream of shop customers coming in
to stare at the oddity of an upmarket restaurant
where they didn't expect it makes you feel a bit
on display.
If you are looking for upmarket Japanese, we would
recommend heading to Shôko, or if you are
wedded to the idea of staying in the centre, Shunka. |
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Ikkui
Carrer
de la Princesa 5
Open: Who cares?
Thankfully, Ikkui is now closed down! |
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La
Fonda
Carrer
dels Excudellers, 10
Open: Every day: 1pm - 3.45pm and 8.30pm - 11.30pm
Tel: 93-301 75 15
Price guide: €
This is where most people head for when the queue
for Les Quinze Nits is too long, although in honesty
the queues can be just as long here.
Same great value food and lovely setting as Les
Quinze Nits, albeit without outside space - see
LQN review below for more details. |
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Les
Quinze Nits
Plaça
Reial, 6
Open: Every day: 1pm - 3.45pm and 8.30pm - 11.30pm
Tel: 93-317 30 75
www.lesquinzenits.com
Price guide: €
A Barcelona institution, Les Quinz Nits is the
jewel in the crown of a huge group of restaurants
across Barcelona that offer decent food, in fab
settings for unbelievably low prices.
Watch out - the fantastic location in Placa Reial
makes this one very popular and, like the others
in the chain, you can't book. So if you
go at a popular time (especially weekend nights)
the queue can be horrific. If you can stave off
the hunger until after 2.30pm, we'd recommend going
there for a late lunch, when you can usually get
a nice table in the sun pretty quickly.
If you can't stand the queue, try one of the others
in the same chain - La Rita, La Fonda (just around
the corner), Market et al - cards are all available
in the foyer.
Try the Black Rice (Arroz Negro) made with squid
ink and a some of the house red - not a vintage,
but for Eu 4.50 a litre a very drinkable bargain!
Some outside tables on Plaza Reial are now open
between lunch and dinner in the summer, serving
a reduced menu and drinks. |
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Vildsvin
Carrer
Ferran 38
Open: Daily: 1pm - 4pm & 8:30pm - 12am
Price guide: €€
To say Vildesvin is a mix of styles is a whopping
understatement - a Scandinavian restaurant that
does Basque tapas and specialises in Oysters and
also has a range of European beers. But, somehow,
and againt all of the odds it does work.
We were not terribly impressed with the menu food,
but if you are a fan the oysters are fresh (they
are opened and prepared at a small counter in
the window) and provide a welcomingly upmarket
pre-dinner aperetif at bargain prices - particularly
if you go for one of the Champagne, Cava or Beer
combo deals that are advertised throughout. And
the Basque style tapas can be mouthwateringly
good.
The service is often somewhere between slow and
non-existant, but we feel its worth putting up
with for the fab oysters. If you can get one,
the tables outside are great for tourist-watching.
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| El
Raval |
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| Until recently
El Raval was at the more honest, hearty end of the restaurant
scale, but over the last couple of years some more upmarket,
and, it has to be said, downright fabulous places have
sprung up putting it right up there with its neighbouring
barrios in terms of restaurants. |
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La
Fragua
Rambla
del Raval, 15
Tel: 93-442 80 97
Open: Tues - Sun 11am - 1am; closed Mon
Price guide: €€
An old, traditional restaurant on the Rambla del Raval,
La Fragua has the feel of a restaurant that's had its
day.
Specialising in grilled meat and fish (the name means
"The forge") we'd recommend that you stick
to just that - the plain meat and fish dishes - as some
of the items on the menu not in that category can be
pretty tired and disappointing.
A great spot for some outside dining, but head just
down the road to La Reina el Raval for higher quality
food for the same price. |
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L'Antic
Forn
Carrer
Pintor Fortuny, 28
Tel: 93-412 02 86
www.lanticforn.com
Open: Mon - Sat: 9am - 5pm and 8pm - midnight; closed
Sun
Price guide: €€
A traditional Catalan restaurant in the heart of Raval,
specialising in grilled fish and traditional calçots
when in season (sort of large spring onions).
Previously, and still functioning as, an old bakery
(as the name suggest, in Catalan) L'Antic Forn is everything
a traditional restaurant should be: Friendly, full of
locals and brimming with traditional, local produce,
bought direct from the market. Open for breakfast (the
baked food here, as you would expect, is a treat), lunch
and dinner, there is both an a la carte menu or a range
of excellent value set menus to choose from. Oh, and
do try the calçots - they are excellent! |
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La
Reina del Raval
Rambla
del Raval, 3
Tel: 93-443 36 55
www.lareinadelraval.com
Open: Fri - Sat: 1.30pm - 4pm and 8.30pm - 12.30am;
Tues - Thurs and Sun: 1.30pm - 3.30pm and 8.30pm - 11pm;
closed Mon
Price guide: €€
A surprisingly high quality restaurant in an area not
renowned for high class places, the Reina Del Raval
offers fresh, Market (Boqueria) bought, food in a lovely
setting, adorned wth local art.
The food is mostly local Catalan and Spanish, including
some sumptuous rice and fish dishes, with a hint of
Italian influence thrown in for good measure and the
fact that it is locally bought shows through in its
freshness. Portions are hearty and, in the main, good
value and the service bucks the trend for the area,
being understated, but attentive.
A rare diamond! |
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| El
Born |
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| Up until a few
years ago, the restaurants in El Born were nothing much
to write home about (El Xampanyet aside), but this has
all changed with the arrival of so many up market new
restaurants along the Carrer del Commerc area. Check prices
carefully before adventuring in around here - they vary
from cheap and cheerful to break the bank, almost in the
space of a few metres of the same street. |
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El
Xampanyet
Carrer
Montcada, 22
Tel: 93-319 70 03
Open:Mon - Sat midday - 4pm and 7pm - 11.30pm; Sun midday
- 3.30pm
Price guide: €€
Lovely old-style tapas and cava bar on the same street
as the Picasso Museum.
Be warned - its good, so its popular! If you go any
time after about 8.30pm at night, it will be standing
room only - if you want a table you will have to hover
and perch your glass of house cava on the bar or a nearby
shelf until one comes free or the friendly owner is
able to bag one for you. Or you could choose to just
eat standing up, as many locals do.
If you can get to eat here, the tapas really is good
stuff - not the cheapest in the centre, but the most
authentic we have come across. |
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The
White Bar
Carrer
de la Princesa, 50
Tel:93-295 46 52
www.chicandbasic.com/eng/whitebar_born_barcelona/
Open: Tues - Sat 130pm - 4pm and 8.30pm - 11pm; closed
Sun, Mon
Price guide: €€€
Trendy restaurant which as the name suggests, is stylised
all white, although this can change with coloured lighting
depending on the mood the management are trying to put
across. Linked to the Chic & Basic hotel upstairs,
this place screams "posh London".
It's all about cool and funky here. The music, the lighting
and the setting are all geared to making the experience
as groovy as possible and to a large extent it succeeds.
The food is bistro, mediterranean style and in the large
part very good, although there is a fairly high price
tag on it, with a meal plus wine often upwards of €50
a head.
Cool experience if you have deep pockets. |
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| Barceloneta
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| It's all about
seafood in Barceloneta and it is well worth wandering
the winding streets in search of a hidden local gem -
if you're not worried about the look of the place, the
usually the more downtrodden the better the food, as only
the locals will eat there! |
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Bar
Restaurant Peru
Passeig
de Joan de Borbo
Open: Daily, midday - 11pm
Price guide: €
We've chosen Bar Restaurant Peru, but we could equally
well have chosen any of the string of tourist-oriented
seafood restraurants along this strip - we struggle
to find too much difference between them. The street
gets sunshine all day and it can be bliss to sit in
the sun for an afternoon and tuck into a cut price paella
or fideua.
For the best value go for a set lunch (menu del dia)
which will get you three courses and a drink for around
€12. The food does tend to be mass produced, but
is still generally pretty good value - if you prefer
something a bit more upmarket head over the road to
La Gavina or one of the others in that set - but you'll
pay at least twice as much. |
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Bestial
Carrer
de Ramon Trias Fargas 2-4
Tel: 93-224 04 07
Open: Mon - Fri: 1pm-3.45pm and 8pm - 11.30pm (12.30am
Fri); Sat: 1pm - 4.30pm and 8pm to 12.30am; Sun: 1pm
- 4.30pm and 8pm - 11.30pm
www.bestialdeltragaluz.com
Price guide: €€€
The fabulous beachside terrace along with the Italian
fusion food really sets Bestial apart from others in
this area.
This isn't going to be the cheapest meal you have in
Barcelona, but for us it is worth the extra for the
relaxed, stylish atmosphere, great service and excellent
food. The lunchtime menu del dia, taken under a cooling
umbrella on the terrace, of course, is one of the best
value delights of Barcelona.
At night the bar is open for drinks if you prefer to
just soak up the atmosphere without splashing out on
the food. Reservations are recommended for busy lunchtimes
and evenings. |
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La
Gavina
Plaza
Pau Vila, 1
Tel: 93-221 20 41
www.lagavina-rte.com
Price guide: €€€
One of four more upmarket seafood restaurants in a
row overlooking the harbour, La Gavina delivers good
food, excellent service and a lovely view - but will
set you back a few extra Euros.
For something more basic but better value, head around
the corner to one of the miriad of eateries along the
Passeig de Joan de Borbo. |
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| Eixample
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The choice of
most locals for eating out, Eixample is typically head
and shoulders above the more tourist oriented old town
areas.
From great local tapas to steak and Japanese, Eixample
has everything you will ever need and usually at better
value and quality. |
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La
Bodegueta
Rambla
de Catalunya, 100 (at Provenca)
Tel: 93-215 48 94
Open: Mon-Sat 7am-1:30am; Sun 7pm-1am
Price guide: €€
An old style Bodega (wine cellar) and Tapas bar on
the partly pedestrianised Rambla de Catalunya, this
is another guide book favourite and has again suffered
for it.
The atmosphere inside can't be faulted - it can be difficult
to remember that you are on a main shopping street in
Barcelona when you are inside - and the wine from the
barrell is good and cheap. But the tapas is more expensive
than most and, unfortunately, often not up to scratch.
We say: go for the atmosphere, not the food - there's
better and cheaper elsewhere. |
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Cerveceria
Catalana
Mallorca
236 (between Rambla de Catalunya and Balmes)
Tel: 93-216 03 68
Open: Daily: 7.30am - 1.30am
Price guide: €€
A much vaunted tapas bar with constant queues of both
locals and tourists at main times.
This is a cerveceria (beer house) so there's a good
range of beers, and this is matched by the tapas, which
is available from the menu or the bar.
The quality of the food is good, without reaching any
sort of stellar peaks. In fairness, we would have to
say that this is probably the best of the set of good
value tapas places around here (but not by much!).
Our advice: come here if it is outside of normal eating
hours (13:00 - 16:00 & 19:00 - 23:00). Otherwise
avoid the queues and try Ciudad Comdal or La Tramoia
down the road. |
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Ciudad
Condal
Rambla
de Catalunya, 18 (at Grand Via)
Tel: 93-318 19 97
Open: Mon - Fri 7am - 1.30am; Sat - Sun 9am - 1.30am
Price guide: €€
A well renowned tapas bar, within reach of both Barri
Gotic and Eixample, Ciudad Condal serves good tapas
in slightly more classy than average surroundings.
A good range of beers go with the better than average
tapas and the service is surprisingly good, even when
it gets busy. Try to get an outdoor table on the largely
pedestrianised Rambla de Catalunya (the classier brother
of La Rambla on the other side of Placa Catalunya) if
you can - watch out though: it does get busy at main
lunch and dinner times and you may find yourself waiting
for tables both inside and out.
Same group as Cerveceria Catalana and it shows in both
menu and popularity. |
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Flamant
Enric
Granados, 23 (between Consell de Cent & Arago)
Tel: 93-323 16 35
Open: Daily 1pm - 3.45pm and 9pm - 12am
www.flamantrestaurant.com
Price guide: €
Situated just outside the old town at the bottom of
Calle Enric Granados, Flamant offers high quality food
at great prices.
Spreading inwards from the unassuming small front,
the inside is cavernous, which can sometimes make the
service a little slow and cumbersome. But if you can
get past this, the menu is extensive and full of surprises
- check out the Kangaroo steak, which is as tasty as
beef, but immensely tender (and low fat to boot).
Or, if you fancy something a bit lighter, check out
the Flamant Cafe next door (same opening hours). |
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Ginza
Carrer
de Provenca, 205 (between Balmes and Enrique Granados)
Tel: 93-451 71 93
Open: Mon-Sun 1.30-4pm and 8.30-11.30pm
Price guide: €€
One of two great value and pretty high quality Japanese
restaurants in the same block (see Hanagin below).
Ginza's deal goes like this: 5 dishes for around 17
Euros and every dish beyond that for 1 Euro each. And
while the dishes aren't huge, 5 is generally enough
for most people. The menu is extensive, including sushi,
sashimi and maki, as well as salads and a host of pichos
and all made on site, making it fresh and tasty.
In truth there is little difference between Ginza and
Hanagin: if you really want to gorge yourself then the
Hanagin deal is probably a better one but Ginza has
the warmer, more welcoming feel to it. |
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Hanagin
Carrer
de Provenca, 201 (between Balmes and Enrique Granados)
Tel: 93-454 65 95
Open: Mon-Sun 1.30-4pm and 8.30-11.30pm
Price guide: €€
The other half of the Japanese duo on the block, offering,
if it's possible, an even better deal than it's neighbour
Ginza.
Hanagin's offer is slightly different: 18 Euros for
as many dishes as you want! That's right - just keep
asking for the menu and ordering until you burst. The
food is just as good a Ginza (see above) and the menu
just as extensive.
Oh, and there's also a set lunch menu for around 10
Euros.
If we had a gripe about Hanagin, it would be the slightly
cafeteria feel atmosphere, but in a world of generally
over-priced Japanese food, it is amazing value. Booking
is required after 9pm. |
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Le
Relais de Venice
Carrer
de Pau Claris, 142 (between C/ Valencia and Arago)
Tel: 93-467 21 62
Open: Daily: 1pm-4pm and 8.30p, - 12.30am (12am Sun)
www.relaisdevenise.com/contact.htm
Price guide: €€€
Mmmmm - steak. And that's all they do here - no menu,
just steak! But they do do it well.
For your €22 you get a Waldorf style salad followed
by steak and chips cooked as you choose, sliced and
drizzled with their special sauce. As you might expect,
the steaks are fab. Not huge but don't worry when they
first bring you your plate - its not that small, they've
just kept half of it warm on hotplates and they bring
you it when you have finished, along with more fresh
chips. Deserts are a little uninspiring, but that's
not why you come here.
Servers are dressed in those French maid style outfits
which would be sexy on someone 20 years younger. As
is often the case here, the service can be a little
brusque - steaks can often be served before you have
finished the salad - but they're generally very helpful
and cheerful. |
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La
Rita
Carrer
Arago 279 (at Valencia)
Tel: 93-487 23 76
Open: Daily: 1pm-3.45pm and 8.30pm - 11.30pm
www.laritarestaurant.com
Price guide: €
Part of the Les Quinze Nits chain that follows the
usual formula - decent food at remarkably low prices
in a stylish setting.
As always, there is no reservation system - push your
way to the front desk and put your name down - you'll
be told how long the wait is.
As with the others in the chain, the menu is a variety
of local classics and international dishes. It's good
quality - if anything more so than the likes of Les
Quinze Nits and La Fonda in the Centre - but retains
the startlingly good value.
Highly recommended for top class bistro style food without
breaking the bank. |
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Miu
Valencia
249 (between Passeig de Gracia and Rambla de Catalunya)
Tel: 93-193 23 00
Open: Daily 1pm - 3.45pm and 8.30pm - 11.30pm
www.miurestaurant.com
Price guide: €
The latest addition to the low price-high quality Andilana-managed
restaurants (see Les
Quince Nits, La
Fonda and La Rita) is a Japanese,
hidden away in a huge downstairs dining room just off
the fashionable Passeig de Gracia.
As with the rest of the chain, Miu offers high quality
fare at astonishing good value. The sushi in particular
rivals some of the more expensive Japanese restaurants
in the town.
Try the fantastic lunchtime Menu del Dia for only €10.95
for four courses (Mon-Fri only). |
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Tapa
Tapa
Passeig
de Gracia, 44 (at Consell de Cent)
Tel: 93-488 33 69
Open: Mon - Fri 7.45am - 1.30am (Fri 2am); Sat 8.45am
- 2am; Sun 10.45am - 1am
www.angrup.com
Price guide: €€
Tapa Tapa is one of the oldest restaurants on Passeig
de Gracia, although you wouldn't know it from the modern
exterior.
No prizes for guessing what they serve here. This is
tapas for the beginner and the tourist, but don't let
that put you off - its actually pretty good quality.
The menu is on your placemat and includes helpful, if
difficult to make out pictures of each dish, so if your
Catalan isn't quite up to scratch you can just choose
and point.
Grab a table in the cavernous interior, people watch
at a table on Passeig de Gracia or, to kid yourself
that you're in a real tapas bar, sit at the bar where
you can point at and choose the actual food and the
specials. |
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La
Tramoia
Rambla
de Catalunya, 15 (at Gran Via)
Tel: 93-412 36 34
Open: Daily: 7am - 1.30am
www.grupcacheiro.com
Price guide: €€
Just off Plaza Catalunya, La Tramoia is a slightly
lesser known tapas restaurant that, if anything, is
slightly better than its nearby competitors. The restaurant
actually splits into two, the upstairs a full a la carte
and downstairs and outside serving tapas.
The tapas is at the top end of the quality scale and,
although you might find some cheaper, is not unreasonably
priced. Some specialities, like the morcilla sausage
are fabulous (for those of you who like black pudding
especially) and not to be found elsewhere.
Unlike its competitors further up Rambla de Catalunya,
La Tramoia is seldom to be seen with queues outside
and opens later than most of the others, too. |
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| Our
guide to the Bars and Cafés of Barcelona |
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