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Carrer Provença, 233 (amb Rambla Catalunya), 08008 Barcelona
Carrer Gran de Gràcia, 132 (amb Rambla Prat), 08012 Barcelona
Carrer Balmes, 149, Barcelona
Carrer Mora d’Ebre, 64, 08023 Barcelona
Passeig Mare de Déu del Coll, 146, 08023 Barcelona
I have never been to Txapela for tapas before, but it is definitely an ideal place to have a light breakfast before heading to the airport because it is only 3 mins away from the Passeig de Gracia station for Renfe R2 Nord train to Barcelona El Prat Airport!
For 2.25 you can have a coffee and a pastry or a mini sandwich, which is flauta. There were more choices in terms of both pastries and sandwiches than Boldu. For pastries, you may choose from xuixo, croissant, chocolate croissant, donut, chocolate donut and muffin. For sandwiches, you may choose from ham and cheese, Manchego Cheese, fuet from vic and Spanish tortilla.
Although the sandwich was served cold, the the flauta was very fresh. I tried the one with fuet sausage, which there was a generous amount of fuet pieces inside. I love fuet because it is flavourful but not as salty as other Spanish sausage like chorizo or chistorra. The cheese and ham sandwich was also very tasty. It is served with fresh cheese instead, which has a mild cheese flavour and its texture is a lot like tofu.
Cafe con leche here was not as strong as the ones in boldu, but the milky taste was not very apparent either. Anyway for the price I paid, I was totally satisfied.
Address: Passeig de Gracia, 58, 08007 Barcelona
For the Mains, the steak was the best out of all. It was cooked perfectly, with the centre being nice and pink. The meat was tender and meat flavour was dominating. It was only seasoned with salt which made it tasty enough. The jacket potato was mushy, but it would be even better if the potato skin is a little crispier.
Stew Fish with Potato and Clams had become the favourite of Kevin. There was a generous amount of fish on the dish. I would say it's a little similar to some Chinese style stew fish in a pot. Though to me the sauce was a little too flavourful to have covered the natural sweetness of the seafood.
Despite its inappealling look, the duck casserol had the duck falling off its bones, extremely tender and it worked well with the mushy artichokes. It was a pity the dish was slightly salty.
Swordfish was similar fried fish fillet. The fish itself tasted bear but fresh and sweet on its own. I believe the highlight was the veggie strips in the slight tangy sauce, which helped reducing the greasiness of the dish.
For dessert, we ordered apple cakes and pinaapple kebab.
It turned out that the apple cake was thin layers of sponge with the custard used to make Crema Catalana in between them. It was slightly too sweet and creamy to our liking, or it was just a little out of expectation that we did not fancy it wholeheartedly.
The Pinapple Kebab was simply pinapple pieces on skewer , and served with custard. Although there was not something wow and surprising, it was actually quite refreshing after this huge, satisfying lunch.
One thing to point out that prices on menus are not including VATs. It was around 17-18 euros per person at the end which we believe it was still reasonable given the quality, the portion and the experience in such an ancient artsy place. Worth going!
Website: http://4gats.com/es
Address:
C/ Montsió Nº3
Barcelona 08002
Can Culleretes is one of my favourite restaurant in Barcelona. It is the oldest restaurant here where Gaudi used to come here every year to dine with his friends. That will be his only time dining out in an entire year!
To dine in this place, you must make reservations beforehand to secure a table. The best thing about restaurants in Barcelona is even a tiny bakery cafe in your village could have its own website that you can make reservations easily.
In general, booking for dinner with a small group (2-4) should be done at least one week in advance, while booking for more people should be done at least 2 weeks in advance! In general it is easier to book for lunch, but the chance booking for dinner the day will depend on your luck.
Catalan Suckling Pig is definitely a must try. It is freshly roasted, so it usually takes a bit longer than other dishes to arrive at your table. It is served with a sweet sauce made with a variety of dry fruits which leverage meat flavour of the suckling pig. The skin was so delicate and crisp that it cracked straight away when you lightly poke your knife into to it. Underneath the skin, there was the meat with thin layers of pork fat in between. The meat is usually very tender while the fat simply dissolve in the mouth that it is total heaven! However you never know which part of the pig you will be given. Some parts are meatier and less tender than others so you would have to bet on your luck.
Goose with Apple was another excellent meat dish. The goose meat was so tender and flavourful. It simple fell off the bones. The apple was cooked perfectly. Soft, but not mushy was its texture, and its sweetness went marvelously with the goose meat. It is a must try along with the suckling pig!
Canelones (Cannelonis) is also a common Catalan cuisine. There are Canelones with mince and liver, and Canelones with cod and Spinach. The traditional one with mince and liver was served with a creamy, cheesy white sauce. The amount of cheesiness was just right and overwhelming as an antipasto. There was tremendous amount of filling inside, meaty and flavourful. The cod and spinach one was also nicely done. The sauce was creamy, with plentiful spinach. The fishy flavour of the cod was not too apparent. In general both canelones were simple and delicious.
Fish soup has a really outstanding fishy flavour, but I would say it is not a soup for everyone. Perhaps for Chinese, we are so used to having the ginger there in fish soup to eliminate the unwanted, sharp fishy taste. The soup was watery, thin and mild tasted which made it not the best for breads to soak if one doesnt fancy soggy, tasteless bread. Surprisingly the 3 pieces of bread slices on top was still crunchy after being soaked. This is seriously the biggest highlight of the soup. Nevertheless as I have not had any other Catalan fish soup elsewhere, I guess I am the most appropriate person to judge how good this soup is.
Paella was pricy and out of expectation. For 17 euros, the size is smaller than the normal size you usually find in most restaurants. There was no doubt that a lot of seafood was put into it, and the rice has absorbed some of the goodness from the seafood. However instead of paella rice from Valencia, long grain rice was used instead which was very soggy, almost in Japanese congee style. The seafood was overcooked that the texture of the shrimps was rather mushy. There were really so many squid pieces in the rice, and luckily they were nice and tender. But since I am not a big fan of squid, i would appreciate more rice than squid pieces. There was also this huge chunk of chicken breast on top which silly us thought it was a piece of fish instead. It was dry and tough and tasteless. What disappointing paella.
Grilled rabbit and Fries was served with alioli. And I would say the rabbit was rather bare on its own, which I understand why they put the alioli there. With this dish, I found out that perhaps I am really not a huge fan of rabbit meat when the meat is not marinated. Surprisingly the (rare) muscles of the rabbit had a chewy texture. The fries were crunchy enough to my liking.
The Ratatouille was rich in the veggie flavour, quite sweet, which was lovely on its own. However the chicken drumstick was dry and there was not much taste to it. Another item to avoid.
For dessert, whisky tart was one of the best we have tried. It is like icecream cake like Viennette but with a light whisky flavour.
Apple sorbet was smooth. It tasted just like one of those apple flavoured sweets. It was rather artificial for someone who doesn’t eat sweets like me.
Irish coffee was quite a disaster, no offense. There is not much coffee to it but the liquor was seriously too overwhelming. We were guessing the proportions of coffee and whisky were not right as the drink was so strong that it really burnt our throats when we were only having sips of it.
Can Cullerestes is definitely worth A visit in your trip to Barcelona. There are also set menus during lunch and dinner. There is one thing to note that this restaurant can have sneaky charges. For example, the bread on the table will cost 1 euro each. If you leave them there on the table and not touching any, they would exclude them on your bills. However sometimes they will take the bread away as you are not eating them, but will still charge you for it. The reasoning they make it "you should have told them you are not eating the bread". If you do not order any drinks, they will charge you 1 euro each for service, which usually it turn out to be wiser and cheaper and wiser to get drinks.
Website: www.culleretes.com/
Address: Carrer d'en Quintana, 5, 08002 Barcelona, España
The first time I tried El Quim de la Boqueria was in the Mercat i Mercat Barcelona food fair, where the tapas bar set up a booth and sold solely Soft Shell Crab Burger. As there was so many cuisines serving soft shell crab in Hong Kong, I did not expect to get a decent Soft Shell Crab Burger in Europe. Nonetheless it really did surprise me as the burger was seriously SO GOOD! The beetroot bun had a tiny hint of sweetness. It was airy and soft, while the soft shell crab was beautifully crunchy on the shell but the interior was JUST COOKED! It was so juicy and flavourful inside... it was not seasoned but tasted natually sweet (OMG this is what I call Heaven...). The only thing worth critising was that the bun was not toasted. But still! It was so good !!!!!
Afterthat I have always wanted to pay a visit to its Tapas Bar in Mercat de la Boqueria. For 95% of the time it is super crowded.. I did some research on the web, and realise that El Quim de la Boqueria is so famous with its egg dishes. And you know what's lucky being a girl from Hong Kong? El Quim has opened its first restaurant - QUEMO in Wan Chai!!!!!! I am so going soon!!!
(Anyway back to Spain.)
So one day I went with my friend to its tapas kiosk in Boqueria and we ordered a Grilled Baby Squid with Two Fried Eggs, and a portion of Bull Trail to share.
The fresh bread to start with airy and crunchy on the exterior. We tried to save it for wiping of all the sauces of our dishes, but almost half ended up gone before the food arrived.
The Fried Eggs with Baby Squid was serious stuff! The eggs had the edges all nice and extremely crispy, while the yolk stayed runny and rich in that yolky flavour. The squid was sweet, really tender and delectable. They were lightly seasoned with pepper and garlic, and OMG saving the bread was the wisest decision we have made as it was so delicious to eat it with the runny egg!
The bull tail was nothing disappointing neither. The meat was super tender but it didnt fall off the bones like it should. Why is that? Because there was so much gelatine/cologen gluing the meat to the bones! It was gooey and moist, and the potato soaked all the lovely flavour too. How gorgeous!
Can't wait to pay a visit to QUEMO in Wan Chai. Tell me if anyone is going soon I am sticking with you!
Address: Mercado de la Boqueria, La Rambla, 91, 08002 Barcelona
I have never liked Paella very much...
...before I found out about Cheriff!
It's not always easy to find the perfect Paella, with the rice having the right chewy but cooked(!) texture, the sauce being just sufficient, not being too dry or soupy. The hardest thing to find some paella absorbing the sweetness of seafood in rice, but at the same time mixed (or just garnished) by decent fish with flavour!
Well. Cheriff is right place to go. But the warning, this place is seriously pricy.
The bread they serve was nice and fresh. They charge 1-2 euros per person for the bread even if you don't touch it.
In Cheriff, they mainly serve everything from the sea. I guess being located at Barceloneta, the sea is right next door. What's better than getting freshest ingredients from there?
For starter, I personally would recommand the mussels here. For 10 euros, the portion is definitely huge enough for sharing. The mussels here were indeed really juicy, fresh and lucious. The garlic oil at the bottom of the dish is perfect for bread dipping as there was left the goodness of the mussels. YUM.
The Calamaris was pricy though. I mean. Yes. For 18 euors, the portion was also huge. But I would say the Calamaris in Cheriff were slightly dry and over fried. The texture of the squid ring was still nice and soft, but I swear there are much better ones available in the seafood kiosks in Mercat de la Boqueria or Tapa Tapa. Mind you they will not give you any sauces to go with the Calamaris. You can ask for some, an they will give them to you too, but without telling you that the sauces will cost you 3 euros each. Watch out!
Anyhow, the Paella here is a must try! There are many different kinds of paella being served here, with some depending the daily price of the seafod eg. the different kinds of Lobster Paella. As a poor student, I only order the least expensive option - "Cheriff" Paella (16 euros per person, 2 people minimum) and shared it with 2 friends, while two others ordered the Canadian Lobster Paella (20 euros per person, 2 people minimum).
The house paella was honestly so good! It was the paella I had in Barcelona that I appreciate most! (I guess it might be because I have never been to Valencia which is like the birth place of Paella.) The slightly chewy right was soaked in the flavourful seafood sauce, and there were tremendous amount of fresh, decent seafood inside. I mean... there were more seafood than rice! And the portion was so huge that I believe a 2 people portion can be shared between 3 comfortably! There was no sign of Saffron, and it might not be the most traditional Paella, but it was a true beauty!
The Canadian Lobster Paella was also highly impressive. The sauce used to cook the rice was even sweeter. The lobster was fresh from the water. Like how they do it in the seafood restaurants in Sai Kung, they pick a live lobster out of the water and show their customers before it being cooked. It looked absolutely humongous and according to my friends opinions they lobster meat was fleshy, fresh and really tasty.
In general, seafood, drinks, basically everything served in this place were pricy so be prepared. But its quality and its portion size definitely justify the price! Another MUST-TRY in Barcelona!
Address: Ginebra, 15 - 17, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
When talking about my favourite tapa of the night, it has got to be the Avocado Cannelloni filled with Crab Meat. The avocado slices were so soft and it was filled with tremendous amount of crab meat that simply flooded out when I bited into it. GOD That was SO GOOOOOOD!
The marinated fried fish was no bad too. It was marinated in Indian style with spices. It was flavoursome, crispy outside but far from greasy. The only thing was I found the flavour of the spices slightly overwhelming that you could hardly taste the sweetness of the fish itself.
Jamon Canario a la Gallega was prepared the same way as the famous Pulpo a la Gallega from Galicia. The potato was soft and mushy. It was not too surprising though as for me it is just potato and ham. I guess it is something very traditional for the Spanish.
The Mollete with Double Chin was simple yet very tasty. It was made with a light little bun filled wth grilled belly pork slice. The pork itself was scumpious and juicy which really made this little sandwich so delicious but free from any complexity.
For desserts, we had Passion Fruit Marshmallow and Black Sesame White Chocolate. I must say for both the sweets, the presentation was way more exciting than the taste itself. The Marshmallow worms were fluffy and light, while the chocolate was smooth but melted easily on the hands.
In short, it was a fascinating experience dining in Tickets (it's not too filling though so like Kevin said don't go there starving.) The food quality was excellent. Worth trying!
Website: es.bcn50.org/
Reservation Contact: reservas@ticketsbar.es
Address: Avinguda Paral·lel 164, 08015 Barcelona, España
Ciudad Condal is one of my favourite tapas bar which was recommanded by my exchange friends Kevin and Sophia. They serve excellent tapas and there are daily off-menu specials made with the freshest ingredients of the day. Whether or not you find the stuff I recommand will depend on your luck, but trust me there is no way towards disappointment for definite.
For items that are always available, you must never miss out the Salmon Montadito. All montadito at the bar except the ones with Spanish Jamon, 5 Cheese and anchovies are 1.45 euros each. The Salmon one is usually the all-time-favourite for every one if you like smoked salmon to start with because it is so thick and moist and soft and not overly salty hmmmm it really delicious even though yes it is only salmon!
Fried cheese is pretty good you are nut for cheeses. It is like brie on skewer, coated with nuts and served with a sweet cranberry sauce. Once itifried, the cheese inside is so gooey and creamy. YUM.
Veal Sirloin is not bad but sometimes it is a little chewy. There are usually daily special steak on skewer at the bar and my experience with those are better. Ones we had this skewer of steak with apple and foie gras. It was only 3.95 euros each but it was seriously finger-licking good. You would have to rely on your luck for that!
There are also a variety of salad available everyday including the classic ones in most tapas bar like Russian, seafood, etc. This Califonia Salad was the most appealing to me as it was avocado-covered! Apart from avocado, there was farfalle pasta, york ham, cheese, and it was served with two slices of fresh pa amb tomaquet. I just love the soft avocado in oil! And a portion of salad is so filling. Better share it with someone!
There is Spanish tortilla everywhere you go, and you can buy one easily from the supermarket. You can buy one, stick it into the microwave and TaDaaa here you are.
But if you are talking about a quality tortilla, Ciudad Condal is one of the best place to enjoy it. It is only made with egg and potato like the traditional ones, but the tortilla here had the potato soft and mushy, while the egg was delectably fluffy, smooth and lucious inside. It was only just shaped! What an amazing tortilla.
Baked pepper stuffed with cod is another classic at tapas places. The sweet peppers was stuffed with an overflowing amount of shedded yet juicy cod pieces and they were topped with baked with some emmental. Worth the wait.
In general I would not recommand anyone to try their grill seafood here because they quite expensive, and sometimes seafood are served overcooked or cold. Though their grill prawns are pretty good. The prawns are really plump and succulent. Without any flavourings the prawns on its own are sweet on its own.
This off-menu baked cod is also a must try if you see it. The salted cod was topped and baked with brie, and it was served with a sweet tomato jam. Scumpiously fabulous.
Ciudad Condal will be a great place to enjoy tapas in Barcelona, and the prices are reasonable too. It is really close to Pl. Catalunya along Rambla de Catalunya. Queuing is a must but if you don't mind, you can go reserve a table at the reception, but at the same time wait behind the bar for any available seats. At the bar, each individual have his/her own bill. You may also enjoy stand-up tapas, grab a glass of wine, a plate of food and just chill!
Address: Rambla de Catalunya, 18
Gran Via de les Cots Catalanes, 603
08007 Barcelona, Spain
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