Places to eat in Barcelona

If our taste runs to the less exotic (or down right simple) what are some tapa suggestions...and price range ?

LOL--that describes DH to a "T."

We stopped at a restaurant on Las Ramblas that was having a tapas special. [there were several sidewalk cafe restaurants offering the same deal all along Las Ramblas] We got 6 tapas to share [the chef's choice] and either pizza or paella and a small dessert for 10€ per person. Drinks were extra and that is where they get you. My DH soda was 7€ and my Sangria was 9€ [but was served in a large glass].

We figured with 6 tapas were were bound to like a couple of them. They were all good.

We always enjoy eating a La Crema Canela just off Las Ramblas at the lovely Placa Reial. Reasonably priced and great for people watching.

Have to agree to disagree then ;) This hasn't been my experience and I don't eat in touristy restaurants close to Ramblas, don't eat in Spanish chains and never do organised tours. I can't comment on taxis as we tend to take the local transport.

Recently returned from a week in Barcelona. We do not speak any Spanish. We stayed about thirty minutes from Placa Catalunya so we were among Spanish speaking people and we took public transport everywhere. We had no problem communicating. We only met one lady who did not speak English at all but we still managed to order and pay for ice cream from her (with smiles all around, I should add). Even the cashiers at the local grocery store spoke some English. I think you can manage if you don't expect in depth conversations in English. Be polite and smile a lot. Do your research before you leave home to know where you are going and how to get there. We found the people of Barcelona to be very nice and helpful. Just wanted to add my two cents so people who don't speak Spanish won't be nervous about traveling to Barcelona.

I recently visited Barcelona with my husband and can tip Ciudad Comdal - it seems open for breakfast, lunch, dinner and everything in between! Food was v good!

We also ate at Cachitos up the road from CC and at Baribau which was a gastro tapas bar near to where we stayed at the Mirror hotel.

If you want a really good meal then I can recommend Etapes - we went there for my husband's birthday and had the full tasting menu! Amazing!

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Another vote for Ciudad condal - excellent tapas and sangria - and looking forward to visiting there for the 3rd time in a few weeks! :)

We are arriving 2 days pre-cruise and staying at the Hotel 1898. Will probably do Barcelona Day Tours for a couple of half days.

 

Any recommendations for places to eat outside the hotel? I love the idea of tapas and this would be great for one night.

 

Sue

Sue! So glad you are going to Barcelona. It´s my favorite city and I´m pretty much a Barcelona fanatic. I've researched it a lot because I fell in love with it. Here are my recommendations:

1. Ciudad Condal is a fantastic recommendation. If you walk up the Ramblas through Plaza Catalunya you'll hit eventually Ciudad Condal after two or three blocks as I remember.

2. Orio is a good place too...walk down Las Ramblas and make a left at KFC. Orio is on the right just before the big square. They have menus in English.

3. The restaurant at Le Meridien (across the street from your hotel) serves a delicious lunch meal. It's a few euros more than what you'll find on Las Ramblas, but the quality of the food is superior. They have a daily lunch menu for about 17 euros and the restaurant is really cool and quiet but you can still see all the people walking by on Las Ramblas.

If you want basic tapas that aren't too weird, here's my list from personal experience:

1. Patatas bravas. These are basically the Spanish french fry. They're usually served with an garlic-based sauce and sometimes a mild red sauce.

2. Croquetas. These are usually cheese or chicken mixtures rolled in bread crumbs and fried. They look like kind of like chicken nuggets. They are delicious.

3. Pimientos de padron. These are little green peppers that aren't spicy and are cooked in a little olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt. Delicious!

4. Pan con tomate. This is simply a slice of baguette style bread smeared with fresh tomato, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt.

5. Clara - This is a tasty little summer drink that's a mix of fizzy lemonade and beer. It's more of a local thing that I think you'll enjoy if you like beer. If not, try sangria with cava!

6. Pincho moruno (sometimes spelled pintxo moruno) - These little guys are marinated chunks of pork. So delicious, but people usually don't order them. Think of a thick pork chop diced into squares and seasoned with delicious spices.

7. Crema catalana - This is a classic dessert from Catalonia. It's similar to creme brulee but its different. Sometimes it will have a zesty lemon taste to it and other times it will taste more like vanilla.

I think you'll really enjoy Barcelona. I've done two tours there: one on the Hop-On Hop-Off red bus, which was great for getting an overview of the city and a bike tour at Barcelona Experience, a small company that has great prices and also does walking tours and driving tours. I recommend both of them...the HOHO is more for a general overview, and Barcelona Experience is more for getting an insider's view of the city.

We stayed at the Hotel 1898 in June and ate at Bar Lobo for tapas. It is located directly behind the hotel. Exit the main door of the hotel (not the one on La Rambla) and turn left. Short walk around the corner. We all loved it and the food was excellent.

Here are a few photos:

Are the prices shown in Euros? I'm thinking a snack and a beer is going to cost around $150 for 2 people!

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

Are the prices shown in Euros? I'm thinking a snack and a beer is going to cost around $150 for 2 people!

 

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

Where did you get those figures from? What do you call 'a snack'?

For $150 (nearly €60 a head) you could get a first class, three course meal with wine almost anywhere in Barcelona

Yikes, my currency converter was incorrect - thank you for clarifying this for me! Normally when we go out for drinks and a snack, it involves a beer or cocktail each and wings, ribs, veggies and dip. Each dish will cost in the neighbourhood of $12 and will feed 3 people, so I anticipate it will be about the same price in Barcelona for tapas. I'm really looking forward to trying some of the local specialties!

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

Sue! So glad you are going to Barcelona. It´s my favorite city and I´m pretty much a Barcelona fanatic. I've researched it a lot because I fell in love with it. Here are my recommendations:

 

1. Ciudad Condal is a fantastic recommendation. If you walk up the Ramblas through Plaza Catalunya you'll hit eventually Ciudad Condal after two or three blocks as I remember.

 

2. Orio is a good place too...walk down Las Ramblas and make a left at KFC. Orio is on the right just before the big square. They have menus in English.

 

3. The restaurant at Le Meridien (across the street from your hotel) serves a delicious lunch meal. It's a few euros more than what you'll find on Las Ramblas, but the quality of the food is superior. They have a daily lunch menu for about 17 euros and the restaurant is really cool and quiet but you can still see all the people walking by on Las Ramblas.

 

If you want basic tapas that aren't too weird, here's my list from personal experience:

 

1. Patatas bravas. These are basically the Spanish french fry. They're usually served with an garlic-based sauce and sometimes a mild red sauce.

 

2. Croquetas. These are usually cheese or chicken mixtures rolled in bread crumbs and fried. They look like kind of like chicken nuggets. They are delicious.

 

3. Pimientos de padron. These are little green peppers that aren't spicy and are cooked in a little olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt. Delicious!

 

4. Pan con tomate. This is simply a slice of baguette style bread smeared with fresh tomato, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt.

 

5. Clara - This is a tasty little summer drink that's a mix of fizzy lemonade and beer. It's more of a local thing that I think you'll enjoy if you like beer. If not, try sangria with cava!

 

6. Pincho moruno (sometimes spelled pintxo moruno) - These little guys are marinated chunks of pork. So delicious, but people usually don't order them. Think of a thick pork chop diced into squares and seasoned with delicious spices.

 

7. Crema catalana - This is a classic dessert from Catalonia. It's similar to creme brulee but its different. Sometimes it will have a zesty lemon taste to it and other times it will taste more like vanilla.

 

 

I think you'll really enjoy Barcelona. I've done two tours there: one on the Hop-On Hop-Off red bus, which was great for getting an overview of the city and a bike tour at Barcelona Experience, a small company that has great prices and also does walking tours and driving tours. I recommend both of them...the HOHO is more for a general overview, and Barcelona Experience is more for getting an insider's view of the city.

Thank you for sharing this list. These all sound amazing and I am adding them to my list of things to look for when dining pre-cruise in Barcelona.

We will be staying at Hotel Continental on Las Rambles in June. Any specific suggestions in walking distance ointme hotel?

We are looking for a restaurant recommendation for a night before cruise dinner, perhaps 8 people? We are all staying along Las Ramblas so somewhere along or near there would be good. Or at the port, and easy for taxi access would work too. Tapas or other Spanish food preferred.

Thanks!

We always enjoy eating a La Crema Catalana just off Las Ramblas at the lovely Placa Reial. Reasonably priced and great for people watching.

DW doing just that! :)

We have changed our hotel to Universal Barcelona which I think is a little farther from Las Ramblas but still walking distance. Only 73 days until we leave and getting excited about it.

Thanks for all the great recommendations. I will definitely print out the examples from SunshineandWine with the definitions. Thanks! My travel partner is a picky eater so knowing what she is ordering in advance will be a big help.

Sue

Another vote for Ciudad Condal - very tasty.