Barcelona is home to more than eight thousand restaurants. So how does one decide where to eat? Use this ultimate guide to where to nibble and nosh your way through this delicious city!
Let me share a secret with you. One of my greatest fears in life is ordering the wrong item on a menu. I am plagued by decision fatigue and fraught with impending regret before I have even ordered an appetizer. As I planned our food adventures, I consulted the bible: The Michelin Guide to help me make the best choices whether I was snagging quick croissant and espresso or opting for a full dining experience in one of Barcelona's hottest restaurants. Pro tip: Download the app for convenient reservations! The list below will satisfy your cravings morning, noon, and night:
Mezze Plate at Sumac and Mambo BCN
WanderLunch or dinner?
For the decision rebels: Check out Barcelona's many food markets such as the Santa Caterina food market full of stalls, tapas bars, spice and fish markets. On our first day, Barrett bought a meat cone from a butcher. Yes, a cone of meat. The pure joy radiating from him as he sauntered through the rest of the market nibbling slices of Iberico and tiny blocks of cheese from a paper cone is an image I will always remember.
Grab yourself a meat and cheese cone, peruse a candy bar, stock up on elusive spices from local purveyors, or snag a chair at a tapas bar. Pinxtos anyone?
Answers at your finger tips: Where to eat all day long...
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Breakfast:
Is breakfast truly the most important meal of the day? Who knows? What I do know is that is delicious and not to be missed in Barcelona, even if you sleep in. After all, Barcelona is a city which rarely sleeps. Below are my favorite whether you prefer to break your fast with a nibble or a brunch:
On our first morning, we breakfasted at a bakery called Santa Gloria. They offered pastries and coffees. Croissants are different in Spain. They don’t quite shatter beautifully into buttery flakes as they do in Paris. However, here “chocolate” croissants are either dipped on either end in chocolate or are filled with nutella. Both are delicious, but very sweet. I opted for an apple tart while Barrett ordered cannolis. is your chance to get your reader excited about the guide and appreciate the real value behind reading the post in its entirety.
Our second morning we ate at a vegan cafe called La Papa. After a quick glance at the menu, I realized we were in a vegan restaurant, again. These vegans…they’re relentless in this town, which I respect. This vegetarian rebellion would have to be strong to fight the delicious tide of Iberico on every corner. So Barrett and Pierre ordered Acai bowls, gorgeous in their presentation, topped with sliced strawberries, bananas, and blackberries and sprinkled with chia seeds and coconut shavings. I ordered the overnight oats, drizzled with caramel, pepitas, and a delicate fanning of thinly sliced apples. Bastien, always the risk taker, gambled on gluten free vegan pancakes. While their presentation was impressive, I must confess, their texture was crumbly and somehow, also pasty at the same time. The coffee, on the other hand, was delicious.
If you're looking for an al fresco brunch experience I highly recommend Billy Brunch and Garden. The inside is crowded around a rowdy open kitchen, but the outside gardens are picturesque and includes frequent visits from their resident feline. I highly recommend the Shakshuka or the Acai Bowl.
For those of us who take our toast seriously, do not hesitate to wake and walk to CaféPendiente. This unassuming cafe with a 4.8 rating on google is spacious inside, has an impressive tea spread, delicious coffee bar, and boasts the most impressive Eggs Benedict I have ever beheld. However, I highly recommend loosening your skinny jeans and ordering from their Toast menu. These thick wedges of freshly baked sourdough are toasted and blanketed with any number of spreads, jams, and accoutrement to satisfy your veritable mid morning cravings. Read your camera's Instagramers: they are served on a rustic wooden boards thoughtfully laden with a piece of newspaper printed parchment.
For the true coffee aficionados, visit Roast Club a cafe with a fine selection of espresso and coffee beans and truly delicious breakfast both take away and sit down. Their breakfast was so delightful, I dined there twice.
Lunch: Sandwiches are the perfect midday meal
While my husband was hard at work, I spent my days with a dear friend of mine exploring the city. After we had brunched, we would walk thousands of steps in search of beautiful art and culture. Below are a few places rested for mid day sustenance:
Sandwiches are the perfect food, especially if you find yourself starving and wandering down the Carre de la Princessa. There is a rare gem named Narcisco. Narcisco is the perfect cafe to spend your afternoon nibbling on a charcuterie board, snacking on a perfectly assembled sandwich of freshly sliced salami and cheeses atop freshly baked focaccia.Their logo is a sexy Freddy Mercury in an apron, and the vibe is hipster and chill. At Narcisco, one can eat like a king on a pauper's budget.
If you're in the El Born district, walk through the placa and into a vibrant Peruvian Cafe called Sweet Lima. We ordered a caprese sandwich on focaccia which was then grilled on a panini press until the morsels of mozzarella were steamy and stringy and the pesto creamy. The sweet counter was filled with decadent cakes, fudgy brownies, and large cookies in a variety of flavors. I returned a second time as well to indulge in an afternoon brownie delight.
If you're in the Gothic, wind your way to Savta for one of their incredible sandwiches, and do not miss their hand cut potato chips. They are sublime! And while they are listed under "shareables," you won't want to share them with even your soul mate. Many Vegan options available as well!
Ironically, one of the best sandwiches I ate on my trip was in my hotel cafe. We stayed ten days in the L'Eixample neighborhood in a trendy spot called The Corner Hotel. This club sandwich was a feast for the eyes and stomach. Their hand shaved potato chips were crispy, salty, and delightfully crunchy.
Dinner is The Thing: Pull up a seat and prepare for an experience.
Dinner is so important in Europe, this topic deserves its very own post. My favorite aspect of dining outside of the States is that you are never rushed as the patron. Your server is a loyal guide through the experience, one they are enjoying along with you. There is a sense of community and joy around the table which I desperately miss when I'm back in Orange County. Below is a list of my top five favorite restaurant experiences in Barcelona:
1. Deliri
I found this little slice of paradise in the Michelin Guide, and my dining experience here will always have a special place in my heart and memories. First of all they brew their own Vermut. Bastien ordered a glass over ice, as is customary in Spain as an apertif. I ordered a Negroni, my favorite. And I can honestly declare this Negroni was the best I have ever or will ever consume. The tasting menu that followed was a delightful compilation of both meat and vegetable forward dishes, most of which were so beautiful I hesitated to be the first to dip in my spoon. I highly recommend the burrata and roasted pumpkin and the "potatoes des putas," or the Whore's Potatoes to quote my delightful server. I will never forget this lovely server who would stroke his Dali mustache and kneel down to our table level to discuss the intimate details of each course.
2. Virens
Another Michelin Guide Restaurant nestled in an expansive boutique hotel. Barrett and I ordered the tasting menu called “The Green Experience,” a vegetable forward menu with one small meat course. While Barcelona is known for their Jamon, there is an interesting and sometimes aggressive plant movement spreading through the city like vines creeping slowly and purposefully up a veranda.
The interior of the restaurant was gorgeous. As you walked in through the double doors, there was a staircase leading up to a second floor, but we were ushered to a small table on the first floor. The vaulted ceilings added to the grandeur of the building, the lights were warm, the walls were an inviting deep forest green. The double doors to the kitchen were a crisp stainless steel sliding automatically when a member of the staff approached from either side.
The dining experience was lovely from start to finish: For three hours our joyful waiter guided us through each course beginning with a natural vintage she described as a “happy wine” through eight delicious courses, most such beautiful works of art my fork felt like it was defiling a masterpiece better suited for gazing than eating. At the end of our menu, I was more than sated, I was completely full. We were never rushed through our menu. In fact, our server at the culmination of the meal said, “I hope you enjoyed your experience.” And we certainly did!
3. La Flauta
No reservation, no problem...but do be prepared to wait in line with excited hipsters, their anticipation brimming, as they watch La Flautas sail past on platters and delivered to tables full of happy faces. At La Flauta, I was enchanted by an inexhaustible feast.
Many of the plates were similar to what we ordered at other tapas restuarants, but the quality was unparalleled at La Flauta. There was octopus grilled on a plancha and served lovingly over a silky sweet potato puree, a platter of glistening Iberico, Wild mushroom risotto-a savory kiss on the lips, flauta con chorizo, grilled asparagus, a rectangle of fish covered in thick layer of cheese. Yes, you read that correctly. At first glance, I refused to eat it. But the aroma was undeniably delicious, and once I saw Pierre take a bite and declare me a fool, I dug in, closed my eyes, and gave myself over to the senses. I don’t need to understand how fish covered in cheese is delicious. I gladly surrender to my tastebuds. We dined al fresco among the stars, laughter, and splashes of Priorat tippling into our glasses.
4. Sumac and Mambo
Pierre, Bastien, and Barrett and I dined at a Mediterranean restaurant called Sumac and Mambo in the L'esquerra de l'eixample neighborhood. We ordered Pierre’s favorite Spanish wine, Priorat, a Catalan wine known for it's notes of blackberry, chocolate, and licorice. It quickly became my favorite as well, and we continued to order Priorat at dinner for the duration of the trip. Our meal began with the mezze platter and asked the waiter to keep the naan and Barberi coming until we asked him to stop. Pierre ordered the fish, Bastien and Barrett the lamb chop, and I ordered the Koobideh, my favorite. It was served on a grilled naan, alongside charred baby peppers and ripe, bursting tomatoes grilled on the vine, a cilantro chutney was drizzled lovingly over the top. For dessert we ordered saffron and pistachio ice cream sprinkled with crushed rose petals and a grilled pineapple.
5. L'enric
Unassuming and cozy, L'enric is nestled in a long row of lovely restaurants dotting the L'esquerra de l'Eixample neighborhood. I arrived jet lagged and starving and L'enric welcomed me.
No reservation, just open arms. Barrett and I shared a quick dinner under the stars, a lovely reprieve from the airplane. I, ordered the octopus and he the short rib served with asparagus and sprouted greens.
Bon Appetit!
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