Martínez's terrace, excellent snacks
Abac (Avda. del Tibidabo, 1; tel. 933 19 66 00) €€€€€
Contemporary kitchen. Avant-garde elaborations and high technical sophistication by the famous Jordi Cruz.
We are facing a luxury restaurant without palliatives and for all purposes, located in a charming hotel in the most posh area of the city. ambient splendor , well (although contemporary), ad hoc service and gastronomy that, however, goes far beyond the very high product (which also) .
Jordi's kitchen bursts with surprisingly aesthetic compositions, refinement and playful provocation. Intensify the subtle and stylize the powerful. See glamorous proposals such as the deconstructed garum, the pine nut carbonara or the sensual palate of tuna.
A restaurant to celebrate both atmospherically and culinary. Secluded garden to lengthen conversations and drinks.
alchemy (Ronda de San Antonio, 39-41; tel. 932 07 61 15) €€€€
Contemporary regional cuisine. Keen worship of the supreme product, flashy stews and refined revisions of the Catalan tradition.
Jordi Vilà is one of the greats of the new cuisine of Barcelona. His way of understanding it oscillates between the respectful treatment of the unique product (he has a team traveling through Spain to get it) and the very author's interpretation of the "usual" Catalan dishes.
Dithyrambs such as the vertical prawn head (liquid) crowned with caviar (the most luxurious shot in the world?), the lobster suquet, the resounding turbot from Getaria...
Jordi proposes two spaces (attached): Alchemy, with the most creative version of him; and the Unplugged space , with reviews of the best dishes of his career.
The premises are on the first floor of the Moritz Factory , so some tapas and some beers come.
Keen cult of supreme product
Bardeni-Caldeni (Valencia, 454; tel. 932 32 58 11) €€€
Signature cuisine. Meat specialty. Tables and bar for a unique creative menu but with a fresh and informal air.
dani lettuce He was born into a family dedicated to the meat sector and, he says, he can know the quality of a piece just by looking at it. The idea here is, however, multiple. Because Dani, who offered a steak bar and a more creative restaurant separately, decided to put them together.
Bar, tables, it doesn't matter. Everything is possible in any seat. From some pateo de plataa hamburgers to some eggs with octopus and parmentier. From a knife tartare to a tuna tataki . And with a lot of class.
It is advisable to try their three chosen meats (Nebraska onglet, charolais and angus) . His burgers, luxury.
cult of meat
Winery 1900 (Tamarit, 91; tel. 933 25 26 59) €€€
Take a look. Tapas. What caps! From preserves and aperitif culture, Albert Adria recreates a sublime, fun and creative bar.
With a format that does not admit prior reservation, the most rogue Adrià world explodes in artisan vermouths (coupage), sausages, cans of relumbrón (those of his brand, La Cala), salted fish, popular dishes driven to exasperation (squid sandwich, mushroom and cheese omelette...)...
Everything is spectacular and urgent here: the smoked amberjack with mullet roe, the jowl-stuffed squid, the mojama, the garlic prawns, the salads, the high-flying cheeses and even the meats (pay attention to the Galician blonde).
You have to try the famous spherified olives . And let yourself be advised by the staff with the tapero menu.
Caelis (Laietana, 49; tel. 935 10 12 05) €€€€€
Contemporary kitchen. Chef Romain Fornell he offers in his menu a cuisine of haute (and jovial) elegance, France and Catalonia playing…
The recent change of hotel has made the restaurant feel splendid. There is a table area, of course. But at the big bar (show cooking in the middle), Romain, without failing to pay tribute to France and its masters (Robuchon, Trama...), let loose lastrey has fun, has fun.
Fun, of course, at the highest level: potato and nori waffle with tuna belly and soy crystals; can of caviar with crab and cauliflower emulsion; egg with truffle implosion and morels, savagery; fried eel with foie gras miso and cherries…) .
Romain proposes in the hotel, in a more informal tone, Plassohla (tapas), the wine bar (with snacks) and the roof, with a fresh and different menu.
Coure (Pasaje de Marimon, 20; tel. 932 00 75 32) €€€
Signature cuisine. The contemporary and classy evolution of what was the "bistronomic" of Barcelona. At the controls, Albert Ventura.
One of the restaurants that, since the emergence of the new batch of Barcelona, has been able to evolve the most, both purely gastronomically and commercially . Place without pretensions, sober but very well placed.
The service is upscale, the cuisine brilliant and the prices very appropriate to the proposal (35 € the menu).
Albert offers a clean kitchen, avoiding clutter on the plate; a kitchen of well-treated products (tuna, pigeon, vegetables...) with just the right touch of accompaniment and harmonies to give it the differential “je ne sais quoi”.
If you don't want a standard meal, the bar at the entrance offers classy snacks and quick tapas.
Enjoy _ (Villarroel, 163; tel. 933 48 68 96) €€€€€_
Signature cuisine. The three former El Bulli chefs at their highest level. A groundbreaking creation of flavours, textures and harmonies.
The restaurant has been the great world phenomenon since its opening. Tyrians and Trojans from all latitudes of the globe have passed through there (several times), to learn, to enjoy, to be amazed.
You could define your kitchen as El Bulli seen from its most playful side and today.
Techniques taken to the last limit, lacerating perfection. The surprising olives, the crunchy yolk, the Idiazábal biscuit, the exasperated pigeon, the peppers… I don't know! **Four tasting menus (classic and seasonal in two versions)**.
One of the dishes that you have to order (although it is not on the chosen menu) is the carbonara macaroni. Great.
two chopsticks _ (Elisabets, 9; tel. 933 04 05 13) €€€€_
Asian international cuisine. Although much more… High avant-garde techniques to extract the last authenticity from Japan, China…
Better, at the bar. Cooking in strict real time. Albert Raurich (ten years as head chef of El Bulli) and his powerful team (Namae, to the wines...) billing a download of subtly exotic and sensually dreamlike flavors, all passed through Bullinian Swiss precision.
A delight… Its nomomo of algae and molluscs, raw prawns (but hot) with tea oil (oh!), grilled Delta oyster with sake, shrimp dumpling, mussels in Thai explosion… An experience of overwhelming sensory pyrotechnics. There are two menus.
It is necessary to call to reserve and get a chair at the large bar that encloses the kitchen. In the one next to the entrance, without reservation.
asian international cuisine
Two Pebrots (Doctor Dou, 19; tel. 938 53 95 98) €€€
regional cuisine. A proposal that shows the history of Catalan cuisine seen from the contemporary.
In the letter, all the information. Years of the recipe, components, origin… Salted and cured and fermented, all made in the same restaurant. Historiography and crafts.
And flavor. Grilled potatoes with garum and aioli; anchovies with one year of curing; cured mackerel; Neapolitan vegetables in sot'olio sauce; the Middle Age salpicón (with meat); one-sided pine nut omelette; muffins with fried bonito; pig's nipples (Ancient Roman delicacies) ; fish fricassee; mead; pink pepper custard; pears in rancid wine… The smackdown
You have to try the alioli, the exact recipe of a fisherman from Cadaqués (where Raurich was born). It's a solid, shiny sphere (and it doesn't feel bad).
The Winch 1769 (Hatters, 7; tel. 937 82 63 30) €€
Asturian/Catalan regional cuisine. Fran Heras proposes a round trip. A Authentic sturias and a tribute to Catalan vermouth.
Version B of his first (and successful) restaurant in Barcelona, after succeeding in Avilés – the Llamber, next to the Born –, this historic building houses its most rogue part. In the Catalan menu, tapas, appetizers, preserves…
In the Asturian area, apart from traditional recipes such as chorizos in cider or an unbeatable selection of cheeses (beware of Cabrales Telledu, the most), fresh fish, arriving daily from Asturias, stand out.
Attention : there are no soft drinks or coffee, but a sugar cube is given away to take in the nearby Llamber (and it does not expire) .
The fabada is different here, modernized. With tender frozen beans, to forget about annoying skins and side effects.
Enigma _ (Sepúlveda, 38-40; tel. 616 69 63 22) €€€€€_
Signature cuisine. Right now, the world benchmark for avant-garde cuisine. The last confines of Albert Adrià…
Impossible to explain the journey that is actually Enigma. Different seasons; cocktails and snacks; snacks and cocktails, the famous grill, the dining room... A science fiction space for an unparalleled kitchen.
The Bulli of the future is being seen here... Blini and salmon cannelloni; corn couscous tamale and green mole; "porn" mackerel dissection and its interpretations; the shrimp; the abalone; the saffron and parmesan brioche-torrija; baby eels with caviar; tear and marrow peas and ham; asparagus with coffee; crab nem with fermented portobello…
The trick to get a table is to look at their website every day, since there are usually cancellations (advance payment is requested) and then… Click!
wine bar (Marina, 19-21; tel. 932 21 10 00, 934 83 81 08) €€€€€
Signature cuisine. The most sumptuous version of chef Paco Pérez. Dishes from the celebrated Miramar de él (Llançà) and more luxurious proposals.
In a select dining room, with the sea in the background and a very high service, the Miramar chef bills a menu where his meticulous culinary techniques are hybridized with great products and organoleptic opulence.
Two menus with dishes such as the squid, mushroom and summer truffle parmentier; crayfish with citrus hollandaise and algae meatballs with sea and mountain silky, oysters as a ceviche with lulo and small nuances, or pigeon with meatballs, olives and ban.
After the meal, it is very relaxing to linger over a few drinks under Gehry's spectacular fish.
Drinks under Gehry's fish complete the experience
Space Kru (Lérida, 7; tel. 934 23 45 70) €€€
Contemporary kitchen. Actually a level seafood restaurant, interpreted from the world, especially Asia and America.
Raw fish and shellfish with the planet for montera . The idea came from Ferran Adrià, a friend of the Iglesias brothers, who, with chef Ever Cubilla, embarked on the project.
A kitchen of great product and touched with aromas from all over the world . Most cold, although there are also hot dishes.
The success is explained by preparations such as the scallop with sea urchins, the bull carpaccio, the red mullet in ceviche, the oysters (with red fruits, with tiger milk, with ponzu) or the splendid turbot with ras el hanout.
There will be no problem, if so desired, in ordering some of the great seafood from the Rías, the restaurant below.
Estimate (San Antonio de losSombrereros, 3 tel. 932 68 91 97) €€€
Contemporary kitchen. Rafa Zafra presents the great marine taxonomy with a very high culinary level. Seafood and fish without forgiveness.
**Rafa Zafra (chef) and Anna Gotanegra (parlor and fish supplier) ** are in charge of this small restaurant dedicated solely to the sea and with the kitchen in the same dining room, practically interacting with the clients.
Rafa (also chef at the Heart of Ibiza, together with Albert Adrià) has “abandoned” himself to the seas (Mediterranean and Atlantic) and his menu splashes foam with monumental oysters, Bilbao-style clams, mackerel in vinegar, grilled mussels, carpaccio Norway lobster, pickled razor clams, fried baby squid, marinated skate, prawns… sea and sea
It is necessary to be advised with the fish: the staff will choose the best and freshest.
Gaig (Corsica, 200; tel. 934 53 20 20 €€€€
Contemporary kitchen. One of the greats of updated Catalan cuisine (Gaig was a champion of the movement).
We are before a teacher, Carles Gaig , that he knew, despite the difficulties of the moment (the 70s of the 20th century), to break with assumptions and "throw miles" into the future. Thus, he created the foundation for a new cuisine, which continues to evolve in his restaurant (and two others he owns in Singapore).
Inexcusable dishes: cannelloni with truffle (mythical), grilled foie gras, squab... And, well, tartars, shrimp and squid rice, excellent suckling pig. Pure elegance. Their Catalan cream is a must.
Among the less colorful but more celebrated dishes on the menu are the cardinal's macaroni, always a “hotspot”.
Pleasure Tools at Caig
Fracas (Provence, 230; tel. 934 51 61 93) €€€
Signature restaurant. One of the finest architects of the new cuisine of Barcelona, with two formats: dining room and bar.
Rafa Peña is among the greats and time is running in his favor . With a kitchen that shows reflection and talent and forms between surprise and academicism, its progression is unstoppable. A choice between two tasting menus (short and long) and a brilliant lunch menu (one of the best in the city) where, for just over €20, Peña seduces with simplicity but a lot of intention.
A simple anchovy with soy and dill, the lacquered aubergine, its famous egg soufflé, the tripe, the spectacular pigeon…
At the bar, for six people, not to be missed are the stuffed pig's feet and the spectacular high-voltage bikini.
Saint leaf _ (Avda. Mistral, 54; tel. 933 48 21 92; €€€€) _
Mexican international cuisine. But if we understand that Albert Adrià is behind it, the fantasy and technique of the menu will be understood.
Paco Mendez, Mexican, runs the kitchen of this restaurant unlike any other because, beyond the authenticity of flavors and aromas, lies the elusive fantasy of Albert Adrià, also a great connoisseur of that gastronomy. Hoja Santa is, then, two trips in one.
Lamb cheek barbecue jícara, cloud of tequila and blood orange, plantain empanada with beans, black truffle quesadilla, black garlic mole with avocado, pickled nopales, Veracruz prawn pepitoria, pigeon moronga, cocoa ecosystem…
It does not hurt, before sitting down at the table, make a leisurely stop at the Niño Viejo bar and indulge in cocktails.
Indochine Ly Leap _ (Muntaner, 82; tel. 934 51 17 96) €€€_
International cuisine from Southeast Asia. A brilliant display of traditions and fusions.
More than a restaurant, an exotic experience in the center of the city. Ly Leap, Cambodian (although he speaks seven languages), is a cultured guy who knows the cuisines of Southeast Asia perfectly, which is what he puts on the tables of this unlikely place: fountains, precious woods imported from the East, orchids to say the least...
And all bathed by an artificial pond and small streams. Spectacular central cabin, brought from Thailand, piece by piece. The cuisine, exquisite, delicate, dreamy.
No doubt: the best tables are those that are located on the artificial pond , Asian immersion feeling.
Kao Dim Sum (Bishop Sivilla, 48; tel. 934 17 30 64) €€
Chinese international cuisine. Specializing in artisan, traditional and Chinese-Spanish fusion dumplings.
The two daughters of the great Josep María Kao (Shanghai restaurant, right next door) , Meylan and Nayan , are the leaders of this place that bet almost exclusively on dim sum (Chinese tapas), from empanadas or dumplings, with all kinds of fillings and finishes.
Informal but comfortable place, always full and snacks as capricious as crispy wontons (prawns, Vietnamese nem, meat and prawns, spring...), boiled (foie gras, veal, sea and mountain...) or steamed (prawn, bacon …) . And all with their own sauce.
Apart from all those dishes, Salads and dishes such as marinated egg or fried duck with hoisin sauce are excellent.
koy shunka _(Coupons, 7; tel. 934 12 79 39; €€€€€) _
Japanese international cuisine. Hideki Matsuhisa (one of the best Japanese chefs in Europe) fuses Japan and the Mediterranean.
Elegant space, gloomy, harmonious in the refined minimalism of it. And the Haideki Burst, a cook who is all joviality, laughter, party. And absolute control of the soul of the ingredients. Because this is what the restaurant offers: essence of flavors touched only with a slight mystery perfume.
Thus, the wonderful oyster and bull tartare with caviar, the wonderful niguiris, the lobster, the prawn (in tartar and whole), the spider crab and the sake, the sashimis... And, of course, the real wagyu, which is tasted in two preparations.
It's difficult, but if you want to fully enjoy Hideki's cooking bar is preferable. Reservation essential.
Carles Abellán's bar (Paseo Juan de Borbón, 19; tel. 937 60 51 29) €€€€
Contemporary kitchen. The sea in all its maps and culinary possibilities exposed by Abellán in a deluxe bar.
Designed by Lázaro Rosa Violán, the two perimeter bars go from the back to the terrace itself, crossing the windows that overlook the promenade and the port. All kitchens show.
Can a bar be pure softness? Yes, Abellán has done it. But, the best, the menu: sea urchins with scrambled egg and black truffle; grilled pickled mackerel; skewered sardine, open; lemon fish tiradito; skate with chickpeas and tripe sauce (tribute to Tryphoon); suquet de escórpora (memory of El Bulli); Great Wall mullet, whole and boneless…
It is essential to try the strawberries with vanilla cream and sheep's milk ice cream.
lasarte _(Mallorca, 259; tel. 934 45 32 42; €€€€€) _
Signature cuisine. Martín Berasategui runs this great restaurant with his strictly avant-garde Basque cuisine. Very high level.
It should be said that the stars of Lasarte are the first trio in the city. A marvel of space (Óscar Tusquets), a marvel of service (Joan Carles Ibáñez) and a marvel of cuisine (the very fine Paolo Casagrande executing Martín's imaginary).
There are plenty of comments: lightly pickled warm oyster with watercress granita, parsnip and sea mist; liquid burrata and tomato ravioli, shrimp, avocado, celery and apple; truffle with fermented mushrooms and cabbage; warm red prawn on a seabed, fennel and its coral emulsion…
The highlight is the chef's table, for eight people and located on a mezzanine above the kitchen, with direct views of it.
Crispy Lasarte appetizer
High back (Aragón, 283-285; tel. 935 19 30 00) €€€€
Contemporary kitchen. Specializing in unique long-aged meats. Two formats, one informal and one large.
At the entrance, a butcher shop. Next to it, a huge display case with an ox carcass maturing for more than a year. Back there, the grills, different heights and temperatures... Glory to the meats . Upstairs, in the main dining room, the pieces tempering and the tables with marble gueridon and infrared lamp.
The service, Russian style. Meats from Lyo, El Capricho and Iruki. Starters (cow sausages) ; meats: 500 grams per person raw. Maturation to choose: from 35 days to infinity.
If hunger is not XL or if you are in a hurry, in the lower part -Lomo Bajo- They offer a selection of the same product, hamburgers and rolls to rave about.
High tide (Shipyards, 6-8, Colón Building; 24th floor; tel. 936 31 35 90) €€€€
Contemporary kitchen. Sailor. Great seafood and fish. Grilled cooking. Flashy stews. amazing sea…
He is the chef from Madrid, although he has been living in Barcelona for years, Henry Valenti, who has dared with this ocean liner. Because it's not bad at all to put a restaurant on the 24th floor of the dramatic Colón building, facing the city's port.
Furthermore, he has done it with exquisite taste, without concessions to kitsch. Formidable crockery, thunderous views of the sea and the city, 360º . The kitchen? Great product without hesitation.
Rampant shellfish, epiphanic fish. And dishes as suggestive as marinated skate or sea urchins with parmentier and sabayon.
For drinks –with a reduced menu based on tapas–, the floor below – Low Tide –, with the same views as above.
Enrique Valentí's restaurant is positioned as one of the best in Barcelona
Martinez _(Ctra. de Miramar, 38; tel. 931 06 60 52; €€€) _
Catalan regional cuisine. Sailor. Everything imaginable, in outrageous aesthetics, to expand lovingly in front of the sea, down there.
Privileged location, in the middle of Montjuic mountain. Dining rooms and terraces on the same port. Playful atmosphere. And a high gastronomic level for a cuisine that seeks only flavor without mix-ups.
The letter is not wasted : Albert Adri preserves a; pica pica (Russian salad Bar El Manolo, bravas, fried anchovies, Galician fine clams marinara style…) ; prawns direct from the fish market ; lobster and monkfish casserole (two services); fish soup; fried foods; charcoal fish; carpaccios; tartars…
You have to seek reserve the tables by the glass wall to enjoy the views. These, without a doubt, are the best accompaniment to rice.
Martínez's terrace, excellent snacks
Mount Bar (Deputation, 220 tel. 933 23 95 90) €€€
Contemporary kitchen. Based on tapas and complex and succulent dishes, Iván Castro has redefined the “bar a vins” generating a trend.
Apparently a simple illustrated wine bar; in the short deal, a restaurant that Although it boasts of being informal, it turns out to be very serious. or (in the culinary) but hilarious. Tradition mixed with cutting-edge techniques; impudence; altitude intrinsic quality; passion; emotion. A winner.
pibil oyster , pickled carrot sardines, tuna tartare, eel and scallop nigiri, scallop ceviche, tuna with pine nuts, carbonara espardeñas (great success), spherified payoyo ravioli, Palamós prawns. A merciless festival.
next door – Half sleeve –, is the last of Ivan. A Mont Bar vision of easier and more traditional preparations.
oaxaca _(Plaza del Palau, 19; tel. 933 19 00 64; €€€) _
Mexican international cuisine . Dishes of absolute (and high) authenticity (always a Mexican product) in a very artistic setting.
Every week the product arrives in containers from Mexico to Joan Bagur (the chef, who lives halfway between Catalonia and DF). The freshest he grows in his own milpa (land dedicated to corn), near Barcelona.
And with all this (including, from time to time, the best insects) he recreates Mexico in the heart of Ciudad Condal.
Aguachiles, ceviches, tostadas, tacos, quesadillas (the tortillas are nixtamalized on the premises), escamoles with Norway lobsters, prawns with mezcal, cochinita pibil… The guacamole with gueridón is brutal. And the sauces. And everything… Perfect illusion.
Do not miss the opportunity to try, in the bar at the back, chromatic Huichol works, the best mezcal, tequilas and sotoles.
** Pakta ** (Lérida, 5; tel. 936 24 01 77_) €€€€_
International Peruvian cuisine Nikkei. Once again, Albert Adrià glossing the world, this time Peru and its enormous wealth.
Jorge Muñoz in charge of this small (and always full) restaurant that is one more of Albert's dreams.
Nikkei cuisine with dishes such as the squid niguiri with botarga, the air of aged soy sauce with monkfish liver and rocoto tiger's milk jelly, the bouchot mussel tiradito with codium and smoked coconut, cold king crab and enoki soup , the sea bass ceviche with tiger milk of sachatomate and banana chips, the wagyu tataki with chifero ponzu, the cause of jowls, the nettle tempura, the lobster and dashi wanton…
In addition to the gastronomic glories, exquisite cocktails are offered. Advisable at the entrance and in the middle.
** Roca Moo ** (Roussillon, 265; tel. 934 45 40 00) €€€€
Contemporary kitchen. With the possibility of three spaces (and offers), the Roca brothers in their most informal and open version.
The Omm hotel has spent years with the family's gastronomic project, together with the great Rosa Maria Esteva . With a Michelin star, it offers creative Catalan cuisine under the direction of chef Rafa Panatieri, with the support of the Roca family. It has three menus : the Moo; The Classics and the tasting, created by Joan, the latter two with or without pairing.
The house menu, the simplest, includes dishes such as mackerel with botarga, rice with espardeña and Iberian pork, or old cow steak. Signed: the famous brothers. Almost nothing.
The drinks bar, before the gastronomic areas, is a good place to meet, be seen and start the party.
Here the dishes are pure art
tickets (Parallel Avenue, 164) €€€€€
Contemporary kitchen. Impossible to define in a few words this restaurant, a worldwide phenomenon and a brilliant benchmark in the Adrià universe.
Ferran said, when he considered Tickets, that he wanted neither minimalism nor modernity . And this wonderful circus was made, this oneiric universe that populates with his genius Albert Adrià. A feast for all the senses. Gastronomic madness…
Examples: artichoke sunflower with ginger caviar, frozen salt prawn, tuna belly confit in ham fat, oyster with ketchup, octopus with kimchi, Galician blonde “airbaguette”, almond popsicle, Nordic landscape, one-sided lobster, king crab with smoked butter…
You have to save your strength for the desserts, which are taken in an adjoining space and round off the wonder.
€ Less than €10
€€ Up to €20
€€€ Up to €50
€€€€ More than 50 €
*You can find the 2018 Gastronomic and Wine Guide in a digital version for your devices, at Manzana , Zinium Y google play .
Octopus with crispy kimchi from Tickets