When you are thinking of a bustling Mediterranean city like Barcelona, what comes to your mind? Pristine beaches, inspiring museums and exhibitions, exhilarating nightlife and… tapas!
If you are coming to Barcelona for a visit, we recommend you dive deep into the tapa culture, and enjoy what the neighborhood and their bars have to offer.
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The most famous tapas restaurants in Barcelona – per neighbourhood
Poble Sec
The main street of the Poble Sec neighborhood, Calle Blai, is renowned for its tapas bars and gastronomic legends. Only fifteen minutes away from Plaza Espanya, this narrow street has the biggest concentration of culinary bite-sized savviness in Barcelona.
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For as little as one euro you can get a taste of the culture that the chefs of Blai have to offer. Besides tapas, they also offer pintxos, which are the Basque Country version of the dish.
Close by is the famous “Tickets” cocktail bar where the brothers Ferran and Albert Adrià offer their delicious and flavourful hand-made tapas.
El Raval
The Raval neighborhood is an important area for all the food lovers of Barcelona, locals and tourists alike. It is a popular place amongst people who enjoy having a mid-day "vermut".
While the vermouth as drink is really loved in Catalunya, going for a "vermut" doesn’t necessarily mean having a glass. It’s a term the locals use in order to meet and have a bite during the day, with or without the drink, but definitely with some tapas.
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Gothic Quarters
The Gothic Quarter, with its narrow and winding streets, may seem like a labyrinth for the tourists, but some real treasures await the one who enters it.
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Besides the breathtaking architecture and important landmarks like La Mercé Basilica, the Cathedral of Santa Eulalia and the City Hall, it also houses some of the most famous restaurants in Barcelona including the “Els 4 Gats”, an important place for the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, who had his first exhibition in the restaurant.
Due to the popularity of Gothic Quarter, many bars and restaurants have opened their doors there, filling the streets with aromas that will make you want nothing more than to have another bite of chorizo (traditional pork sausage), olives, or both.
Related article: Where To Try Basque Cuisine in Barcelona
Gràcia
The lively and artistic neighbourhood of Gràcia has developed into a popular destination, not only for tourists but locals as well. With its small squares and the delightful Calle de Verdi, this is a barrio that is best experienced on foot.
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Due to its popularity, every street has a bar or a restaurant where you can sit down, relax and enjoy some cool beverages and mouthful snacks. The area itself is half an hour walk from Plaza Catalunya and it has good connections with public transport.
Due to its distance from downtown, it is also one of the cheapest places to have some tapas. There is nothing better, after a day of exploring the city, than to sit down in Plaza de Sol, get some tapas and enjoy the street artists and bands that frequently perform there.
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Las Ramblas
This busy boulevard stretches from Plaza de Catalunya to the Christopher Columbus statue at Port of Barcelona. This is a popular area, usually full of people, which can be partly explained by the presence of some popular eateries. El Quim is one of such places.
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It is a family owned business that serves traditional Catalan dishes, including the famous tapas. El Quim is a stall in the busiest market of Barcelona The Boqueria. While you are waiting to be served you can follow the bustling and seemingly chaotic life of the market and the Rambla.
What is your favourite tapas bar in Barcelona?
Share with us where you had the best tapas in Spain or Barcelona!
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