The baby brother of one of Barceloneta’s classic rice restaurants grows up; El Nou Ramonet gets its own identity with creative new takes on traditional favourites. Review: El Nou Ramonet restaurant, Barceloneta, Barcelona Can Ramonet used to be my go-to Barceloneta restaurant for paella in the late 90s. It was always packed, which is why, in…

UPDATE: The old Caldeni is no more. It is now an expanded Bardeni.  A top-value meat feast for discriminating diners: by far the best restaurant near Barcelona’s la Sagrada Familia. Review: Caldeni restaurant, Barcelona I sometimes complain that there are too many tourist traps and not enough good restaurants around the Sagrada Familia and the…

Under the media radar and off the beaten track, this elegant and accomplished Sarrià restaurant is well worth seeking out.  Review: Tram-Tram restaurant, Barcelona It’s fair to say that Tram-Tram does not rely on passing trade. Located on a narrow street high in the uptown Barcelona neighbourhood of Sarrià, near the end of an old…

For top-quality tapas in Barcelona city centre, this crowded basement bar is still hard to beat. Review: Tapas 24 restaurant, Barcelona The only thing that’s underground about Tapas 24 is its location. The word has been well and truly out about Michelin-starred chef Carles Abellan’s little basement bar near Barcelona’s Passeig de Gràcia ever since it opened…

Not quite vegetarian, not quite vegan, but entirely invigorating; a demonstration of the heights humble produce can reach in the hands of a great chef.    2018 Update: Céleri is now PERMANENTLY CLOSED. Review: Céleri restaurant, Barcelona When a chef whose CV glitters with Michelin stars decides that what he really, really wants to do is cook simple vegetable dishes,…

A recommended beachfront go-to for sea views, seafood and organic paella in Barceloneta. Review: Barraca restaurant, Barcelona As casual beachfront rice shacks go, Barraca has a serious culinary pedigree. It was set up in 2013 by Xavier Pellicer, protegee of the late lamented Santi Santamaria at the three-Michelín-starred Can Fabes, in partnership with Guido Weinberg, whose Tribu Woki…

Elegant modern cooking, cocooned an intimate underground dining room, keeps Coure’s many fans coming back for more. Review: Coure restaurant, Barcelona Passatge Marimon, a tiny oasis of calm just off the traffic armageddon of Avinguda Diagonal, is becoming a beacon for discerning Barcelona diners. As well as the Michelin-starred Hisop, there is Xavier Pellicer’s superb latest…

Bold flavours, good service and a fun, boisterous atmosphere make Llamber a solid choice for creative tapas in El Born. Review: Taverna Gastronómica Llamber Barcelona I reviewed Llamber in 2013 and was impressed with its lunchtime menu, interior design and service. Returning for an evening visit revealed a different side to the restaurant, as it…

Classic Catalan cuisine at its best: a masterful lesson from the old school in how to put hospitality at the heart of the dining experience.   Review: Ca l’Isidre restaurant, Barcelona ‘Classic’ is a much-overused word in restaurant reviewing but if anywhere in Barcelona merits the description then it is surely the Raval restaurant of Isidre…

Local, lyrical, ingredient-led modern cooking of the highest calibre; a sensational city-centre showcase for the best the Catalan countryside can produce.  EDIT 2019: Cinc Sentits has moved to new premises. Read the updated review here. Spoiler: it’s still superb. Review: Cinc Sentits restaurant, Barcelona I was there, sort-of, when Cinc Sentits was born. It’s easy…

Adrift in a sea of Barceloneta tourist trap restaurants that serve reheated rice and iffy fish, La Mar Salada is a welcome island of quality. Review: La Mar Salada restaurant, Barcelona It’s hard to believe now, as you run the gauntlet of touts coercing you in the direction of kizzened paellas and defrosted prawns, but Passeig…

A traditional seafood restaurant trawls deeper creative waters for a borderless bounty of contemporary – and mainly uncooked – dishes.  Review: espai Kru by Rías de Galicia restaurant I’ve long known about Rías de Galicia, probably Barcelona’s premier money-no-object marisquería. It’s the sort of place where bodyguards lurk outside with fingers pressed to their earpieces and…

Sky high in both location and quality, this is cooking with deep roots that reaches for the heavens. Review: Dos Cielos restaurant, Melia Sky Hotel, Barcelona The elevator ride from the lobby of the Melia Sky Hotel to the restaurant of twin brothers Sergio and Javier Torres on the 24th floor has a similar trajectory…

The lunch menu at the Roca brothers’ Barcelona restaurant is a worthwhile lighter option for business people or eager shoppers. 2018 Update: Roca Moo is now PERMANENTLY CLOSED. Review: Roca Moo restaurant, Hotel Omm. To get to Roca Moo you must first pass through the ground floor of the five-star Hotel Omm and skirt Roca Bar,…

Tickets Bar takes diners on a slightly chaotic, creatively charged tapas funride through a world of miniature marvels. Review: Tickets Bar, Barcelona It’s hard to know where to start with a write-up of Tickets. It’s all been said before: the big-top circus theme, elBulli, Ferran Adrià, the more publicity-shy Albert Adrià stepping out of his brother’s shadow,…

Star chef Jordi Cruz’s ‘second’ Barcelona restaurant is a delight, and better in some ways than his flagship ABaC. Review: Angle restaurant, Hotel Cram, Barcelona Note: I prefer to review restaurants on their own merits and not in relation to other establishments but when you visit two in a week that are run by the…

Haute cuisine but lacking heart? Some exquisite dishes let down by directionless menu with disappointing desserts at one of the city’s finest restaurants.  Review: ABaC restaurant, Barcelona I really wanted to love ABaC. Its chef, Jordi Cruz, is someone I’ve admired for a long time. I’ve watched him rise from Barcelona’s ranks of talented young cooks to become a…

Like mama used to make – but better. Top-quality traditional Catalan food at affordable prices, served in style .  UPDATE 2018: Freixa Tradició has now CLOSED due to the retirement of Josep Maria and Dori. Thanks for the memories! Review: Freixa Tradició restaurant The Freixa family knows how to cook. Josep Maria Freixa won a…

  UPDATE FEB ’17: Espai Sucre is closed and will reopen in a completely different format later in 2017. It seems that the new concept will be a single shared table for a limited number of diners. Surprise and delight in equal measures in an original menu that creatively combines both sweet and savoury. Review:…

A Barceloneta seafood institution that remains unspoiled by the tourism boom. Review: Can Solé restaurant, Barcelona La Barceloneta isn’t what it once was. Like the rest of Barcelona’s ciutat vella (old town), it has seen its character diluted and damaged by the tidal wave of tourism that has swept up from the airport and cruise ship…

Hard to find, harder still to know what you’re spending, but also hard to beat for seafood. Review: El Passadís del Pep restauraunt, Barcelona Does this look like the entrance to an iconic restaurant? At El Passadís del Pep (‘Pep’s corridor’), there’s no sign outside; no name on the buzzer. Even forearmed with the correct address, you’ll…

The perfect blend of old-school service and first-class modern cooking; a great choice for romantic dinners and special occasions. Review: Via Veneto restaurant, Barcelona Is Via Veneto Barcelona’s most overlooked restaurant? In some ways, that’s an absurd question; after all, it has a Michelin star, and – after nearly 50 years as a fine dining…

A fun-filled masterclass in modern technique and good taste. Disfrutar lives up to the hype and delivers a very special experience. Review: Disfrutar restaurant, Barcelona El Bulli, El Bulli, El Bulli … The ghost of Ferran Adrià’s famous restaurant, closed in 2011, is more of an active, pan-chucking poltergeist haunting the Barcelona food scene than…