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Spain
The last time I visited Barcelona I had a great experience with the guys of Barcelona Photocircuits. They run a photography studio and organise photography tours across Barcelona. I spent an afternoon in downtown and they showed me very cool hidden corners and also helped me improve my camera skills. You can ask anything, they give you lots of tips and tricks to make your pictures great and deeply know the city. Very recommended.
This cosy little place next to the Sagrada Familia is the only place I found in the tourist heart of the city that does not try to ruin your wallet. It has an eclectic decor with Banksy prints and about 100 pairs of sunglasses. All the tables are home made, and the food is extraordinary. It ranges from salads and soups, to burritos and nachos and covers tapas in between. The quality is very good and its not expensive at all. They have a terrace overlooking the Sagrada Familia, and if you stay there till night falls like we did it all goes a little bit crazy. How they fit that many people in the place escapes me, but the owners introduced us to about 20 new friends from all over the world. Great food, great company, good times, highly recommended
www.chillbarcelona.com
Provenca 424 (corner with Sicilia) 08025 Barcelona
+34 934762270
Google map: bit.ly/rr3eE4
Take the lift to the roof-top terrace for smashing views over the harbour. Open from 11.00 till 01.30 at the weekends and till midnight during the week you can book a meal or just enjoy a drink and the view. There’s live music and cocktails too. It’s a great place to cool off and chill out.
Passeig Colóm, 12, 08002 Barcelona
+34 93 268 90 90
www.hduquesadecardona.com/
Google map: bit.ly/pwC1kz
On the other side of the Cathedral, down Carrer de Montjuïc del Bisbe, which is to the right of the small square by the cloisters, you’ll find the Plaça Sant Felip Neri, a most beautiful square with trees and a fountain. The pock marks you can see in the stonework of the church were caused by a bomb dropped by the Italian Air force during the Civil War. All the people, mostly children, sheltering in the church crypt were killed by the concussion. The square is mostly made from buildings moved stone by stone when the Vía Laietana was opened. Across the square you’ll see the terrace of the Beautiful Hotel Neri where you can get a bite to eat and a drink from 10.00 till 23.00 and until midnight at weekends. If the square is not too busy, it’s a fine place to sit. Pop inside the hotel and wonder at the proportions of the stonework.
Sant Sever, 5, 08002 Barcelona
+34 93 304 0655
www.hotelneri.com
Google map: bit.ly/okgP2j
If you go up the left hand side of the Cathedral you’ll very soon come to a tiny square opposite the original entrance, which is on the right-hand side. The square is called Sant Iu, as is the Cathedral entrance. To the left of the door you’ll see a relief carving of Catalonia’s first Count-King, Wilfred the Shaggy, killing a dragon with a great bough torn from a tree. However, that’s another story and you can read about it on my website, if you’re interested… High on the Cathedral wall to the left is the door the old Catalan Kings used to enter the Cathedral when their palace was just across the way and joined by a now defunct bridge.
Across the square from the Cathedral is the entrance to the Museu Marès. Inside this wonderful Gothic courtyard, tucked into a far corner among Roman columns and behind the orange trees and fountain is the Summer Café: a delightful spot to sit and restore depleted energies, write that postcard and get outside something long and cool.
Open from ten till ten, April to September.
www.cafedestiu.com
Plaça Sant Iu 5, 08002 Barcelona
+34 93 268 25 98
Google map: bit.ly/roK0zk
Café Flanders is on the corner of a pleasant square at the farther end of Gràcia, a square retaining much more local flavour than the other, more central ones. An ideal spot for relaxation and a quiet drink to regroup after shopping in Gràcia or visiting the nearby Park Güell. A fine selection of beers and wines. You can find them on Facebook.
As a curiosity, there’s a bronze statue of Rovira i Trias, one of Cerdà’s competitors in the tender for designing Barcelona’s Eixample; his plans, based on concentric developments around the old town, lie discarded at his feet.
Plaça Rovira i Trias, 1 Barcelona, 08024
+34 93 284 3070
Google map: bit.ly/pbXL76
The undisputed classic of the Plaça del Sol, the Café del Sol is a must if you’re in the area. The whole square gets jam-packed with tables and chairs to the point of making hard to tell to which bar is which. It would be a shame to miss it outside peak hours though.
Plaça del Sol 16, 08012 Barcelona
+34 934 155 663
Google map: bit.ly/mXmLRo
Located on the corner of the Plaça de la Virreina, the Bar Virreina has a great terrace with views of a modernist building by Gaudí’s assistant Francesc Berenguer and the church of Sant Joan, burned down during Barcelona’s Tragic Week in 1909. Berenguer who had built it, restored it; it was burned down again in 1936 and restored once more after the Civil War.
Back to business. The Bar Virreina has a good selection of imported beers and does a tasty sandwich.
www.virreinabar.com
Plaça Virreina, 1, 08024 Barcelona
+34932 379 880
Google map: bit.ly/rgsSxb
Exhausted and thirsty after negotiating the crowded Rambles? Tired after traipsing around the shops on Portal del Àngel? Pop into this four-star hotel on the Plaça de Catalunya itself and relax in the shade of the apsis of Romanic Santa Ana Church. (That’s two secrets in one.) Incredible as it may seem, 30 seconds from Plaça de Catalunya is a Romanic church complete with beautiful cloisters; this hotel backs onto it and you can see parts of it from the terrace. Open all day so you can have breakfast, a set lunch and a la carte dinner, as well as drinks. Don’t miss it.
www.oliviahotels.es
Plaça Catalunya 19, 08002 Barcelona
+34 93 316 87 00
A member of the same group as the Granados 83, the Claris offers cocktails and drinks on their rooftop terrace between 18.00 and 01.00. Lunch and dinner are also available. The Hotel Claris is located on the very busy Carrer Pau Claris and is a very handy refuge if you’re nearby and feeling the heat. Along with classic cocktails, El Terrat del Claris makes fine non-alcoholic cocktails for those who prefer them.
www.derbyhotels.com/en/hotel-claris/
Pau Claris, 150, Barcelona 08009. Spain
+34 93 487 62 62
Google map: bit.ly/qBo3Zl
The Hotel Condes de Barcelona occupies two buildings, on both side of Carrer Mallorca on the corner of Passeig de Gràcia. The building on the lower side is home to Alaire, a rooftop terrace serving cocktails, drinks and snacks and open to the public. You get great views over Passeig de Gràcia, Casa Milà (La Pedrera) included, and a glimpse of the Sagrada Familia in the background.
It’s a very pleasant place for a snack during the day, though not cheap, and there is live music on Wednesdays and Sundays in summer.
www.condesdebarcelona.com
Passeig de Gràcia, 73-75. Planta 8ª, 08008 Barcelona
+34 93 445 32 26
Google map: bit.ly/qBo3Zl
This roof-top retreat is a personal favourite. Relax by the small pool and enjoy a quiet restorative or snack. The bar opens from 18.00 till 01.00 during the week and till 02.00 at the weekends.
www.derbyhotels.com/en/hotel-granados-83
Carrer Enric Granados, 83, Barcelona 08008
+34 93 492 96 70
Google map: bit.ly/nbbHUp
This is a modern hotel on Carrer Roselló between Aribau and Enric Granados. To the side of the hotel are gates leading to one of L’Eixample’s interior patios. This little area is known as the Jardins Joan Brossa after the contemporary poet.
Part of the gardens is given over to the hotel restaurant and bar terrace. You can enjoy a meal or drink here in peace and quiet surrounded by greenery and the curious interior architecture of L’Eixample.
If the gates to the jardins happen to be closed –after about eight in the evening– just walk through the hotel and out the back doors onto the terrace.
However, avoid this place at all costs around five in the afternoon in term time. It quickly becomes a hell-hole of screaming brats who, freed from the tyranny of their teachers, burn off their accumulated frustrations and blast your tranquility to jagged bits.
Rosselló, 191, 08036 Barcelona
+34 93 238 63 55
www.eveniahotels.com/hotelrossello
Google map: bit.ly/qN1EpO
A super cool, hip hostel designed especially for skateboarders. I really loved the cleanliness and social atmosphere, and the bed was super comfortable also. They have a little something for everyone: huge common room, outdoor patio, guest kitchen, free internet, organized parties and more. The design of the hostel is oriented around the skateboarding scene of Barcelona and they have a cool display of vintage skateboards and even a real skate ramp. When I arrived, the staff, super nice, international travelers, gave me an explanation of the city map pointing out cool sites to check out in the city. The map was made by the hostel and even had all the best skate spots in Barcelona marked in cool letters. The staff also helped me several times with directions to bars and even how to get to places outside of the city. Great hostel.
www.santjordihostels.com
Carrer Freser, 5 08026 Barcelona, Spain
+34 93 446 05 17
Google map: bit.ly/qlYH5w
Santa Maria del Pi embodies all the strength, solidity and creativity of the Catalan spirit. The huge single nave transmits a sensation of spirituality, space and mass all at once and its sheer width is striking.
Even the chapels between the buttresses contribute to the expanse instead of chopping it up as they do in some other churches.
The rose window, set in its cliff-like wall of stone, is said to be the largest in the world; seen from inside the church when the afternoon sun falls on it from over the buildings, it is spectacular.
Beneath the rose window and above the door is another outstanding feature and evidence of the great vision and skill of the Catalan architects and builders of the middle ages: the shallow stone arch supporting the choir. It spans the entire width of the church and its rise is so little as to make the arch itself seem an impossibility. It looks far too flat to stand, let alone bear the weight of the choir. Yet its shape is so harmonious and effortlessly elegant it leaves you breathless with admiration.
Building began in 1319 and was completed in 1391 meaning the church was one of the many Gothic buildings started during a period of prosperity but completed during the successive ravages of epidemics, plague and violent unrest.
The tower, finished off flat like most Gothic towers in Barcelona, (Why is the one in the Plaça del Rei different? That story is yet to come…) was probably finished around 1461. Designed by master architect Bartomeu Mas, work began in 1376. It is said that the master builder, desperate to find funds to complete the church, made a pact with the Devil. But the Devil only agreed to provide him with the materials required in exchange for the builder’s soul, to be delivered when the 100th step of the tower was laid. “Right-ho”, said the builder and promptly built up to the 99th and then went on to finish the rest of the church. This took so long he died of old age before getting round to laying the 100th step thus cheating the devil of his dues.
C/ Cardenal Casañas, 16, 08002 Barcelona, Spain
+34 933 18 47 43
www.labasilica.es
Google map: bit.ly/kvEPPm
This fine shop selling knives, cutlery and razors of all kinds is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Ramón Roca learned his trade in Germany and France, came back to Barcelona to open his shop in the plaça de Sant Josep Oriol. Ramón was one of the few craftsmen of his day capable of making fine blades and scalpels to the standards demanded by surgeons and he brought a special anvil from Paris to make them on. You can still see it in the shop in la Plaça del Pi, which dates from 1916.
Nowadays Ganiveteria Roca has a range of over 9,000 cutting tools of all kinds.
One of the things I like to buy for my friends who enjoy cooking is one of Roca’s own branded knives. Made of fine, non-stainless steel the knives hold a keen edge and their rounded wooden handles give them a pleasant feel. They look good too. I bought mine in 1978 and providing I continue to keep it clean and sharp it should last for ever.
Personal preferences apart, Roca has fist class knives from the world’s most prestigious manufacturers of Japan, Finland, France, Germany, Switzerland… collectors will always find something of interest and so will yachtsmen and outdoor enthusiasts. The new range of ceramic knives is attracting a lot of attention.
Catalunya’s finest and most well-known chefs are regular customers at Roca.
There are scissors for every conceivable application, even ones with double eye rings for people who work with the disabled, spring-loaded scissors for people suffering from arthritis and an astonishingly wide range of nail cutters.
The traditional cut-throat razor and its accessories are still one of the best sellers.
Roca is in the building that housed the shopkeepers guild and was probably the first to be decorated in the sgraffito style. The façade bears the date 1613.
Plaça del Pi 3, 08002 Barcelona
+39 933021241
www.ganiveteriaroca.cat/
Google map: bit.ly/lO9zmv
In other words, the street market for artisan food producers. There’s something for everybody here:
- Honey- a great variety of honeys, my current favourite is the orange blossom honey with its subtle citrus tang and fine nose. In winter when its cold and wet, I like to settle down of an evening with a glass of hot milk liberally dosed with thyme honey and brandy – great before bed when you have a touch of cold, or even if you don’t.
- Handmade honeycomb candles and moulded beeswax
- Marmalades and jams made from fresh local fruits
- Dried wild and cultivated mushrooms and truffles from the foothills of the Pyrenees. Monbolet specialises in wild and cultivated mushrooms and also prepares pre-mixed, ready-to-cook rice and pasta dishes flavoured with several kinds of wild mushrooms. If you fancy trying your hand at making a Catalan fricandó –a braised steak stew– buy some moixernons, tiny button mushrooms.
- Goat and cow’s milk cheeses. Cheese lovers are spoiled for choice. I’ve tried lots of these and every one has been first class, some are drier and stronger, some more softer and smoother, but all first-rate. My all-time favourite is the creamy goats’ cheese called Formatge mantegós de cabra.
- Wines. Ecologically produced wines and sparkling wines from the Tenes valley.
- Pastries and biscuits. Typically Catalan pastries and biscuits all made using ecologically produced flour: deliciously crunchy and crumbly carquinyolis, made with eggs, sugar and almonds; chocolate, orange and almond biscuits; savoury cookies made with olive oil, eggs, herbs and spices; wholemeal and fibre rich biscuits…
- Dairy produce. Fresh cottage cheese, yoghurts, kefir, honey, marmalades, crème caramel from Can Corder, pioneer in high-quality, kilometre 0 dairy production.
- Herbs. Single herbs and mixtures to alleviate all conditions. Galangal to stimulate appetite, camomile to help digestion, herb mixtures for calming burns, easing pain; artichoke and bitter herbs for detoxing your liver, thyme for clearing your chest.
Fira d’ Artisans
Plaça del Pi
The first and third Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays of each month.
11.00 – 14.30 and 17.00 – 21.30
Google map: bit.ly/j3LF4b
Jover is a haberdasher’s shop established in 1897. The shop is very popular with young people looking for interesting items to personalise their wardrobe. French ladies in particular also flock into Jover, delighting in the colours, textures and design of the ribbons, tapes, braids and other materials on display. The shop itself is very pretty and the assistants seem to know exactly which drawer or box to open to satisfy each request. Worth a peek at least.
Cardenal Cassanyes 14, 08002 Barcelona
+39 933 178 993
Google map: bit.ly/l7mAga
The first stop for vegetarians and others overwhelmed by an excess of Iberian ham, fuet –cured Catalan sausage– and all the other delicious local food that can be a little resource-intensive is Juicy Jones: great for Vegan salads and a variety of juices. Service is good, prices are too, and most people I know who’ve been there are keen to go back. The guacamole is very popular and the noodles and veg done in the wok are a great favourite. Try calling before going if you want a sit-down lunch, the place is quite small.
Cardenal Cassanyes 7, 08002 Barcelona
+39 93 302 43 30
Google map: bit.ly/jXp88r
One of Barcelona’s several traditional candle shops and located at number 5 since 1826. There are the traditional votary candles, fancy ones for baptisms and communions, candles you have personalised with your loved-ones names, anti-mosquito candles and modern designs to tempt the traveller. Gallisa also sells religious figurines and the traditional Christmas statuettes.
Cardenal Casañas, 5, 08002, Barcelona
+39(0)93 302 69 87
www.gallissa.com/
+39 93 302 69 87
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