Updated: I had to add to this post to include (among others) the amazingness that is Bodega 1900 – thanks for the recommendation Shouting Chow!

True to form, my visits to Barcelona have so far featured a lot of sightseeing, but also a lot of seriously tasty food.  If you’ve been reading for a bit, you may have picked up that I’m a massive foodie – I love trying new places and flavours, and I think it’s a great way to learn more about a culture.  Food traditions, styles, and rituals can all give you insights into the priorities and loves of a people.  Plus – delicious food!

Brunch

While brunch might not be the first thing you think of for Catalan food, we had an incredible brunch at federal café near Ciutat Vella.  The veggie and egg breakfast burgers were both amazing… and of course, when on holiday, don’t forget to start with a mimosa!

Stacey and I starting our day with some vitamin C

Fried potato is an ingredient I’m unused to in brunch, but when it’s accompanying this much delicious smoked salmon, as it did at Milk Bar & Bistro Restaurant, I can definitely give it a go!

A close second for most awesome Barcelona brunch was Picnic Restaurant, where I had a crazy combination of Mexican/Spanish breakfast that somehow worked oh so well!

Loved this owl – and can you spot Sagrada Familia peeking out on the left?

To Market, To Market…

La Boqueria is a big food market in central Barcelona, located right on La Rambla, the central pedestrian boulevard.  Both the incredible food displays and the crowds of people reminded me of London’s Borough Market, although there was a lot more delicious jamon here!

The market’s origins date back to the 1200s, and it was originally located by one of the gates to Barcelona’s old city wall.  In the 1820s, it was officially inaugurated as La Boqueria, on the site of the convent of San Josep.  Many of today’s stall-holders are third- or fourth-generation, and there are over 250 stalls. We picked up lots of goodies for our own little tapas session!

Man I love some well-stacked fruit

Tapas

I have a tendency to suffer from food envy, where it seems my dining buddy has made a superior choice, so the sharing ethos of tapas is perfect for me – I get to try everything!  On a recommendation we visited Bodega 1900 – it’s a little bit outside the city centre but well worth the walk for the incredible tapas that awaits.  Bodega 1900 has some incredibly innovative takes on tapas, from exploding olives to Spanish/Korean hot-dogs, as well as classics like the above mussels done incredible well.  This is now one of my favourite restaurants in Barcelona and I will definitely be back for more next time!

Alsur Café (El Born) was another hit, a bit closer to the city centre, where we ordered some more of the less usual dishes – tempura-battered tuna (amazing), and a caprese salad, alongside the more standard patatas bravas, spicy chicken wings, and tomato-soaked crusty bread.  We washed it all down with some icy-cold sangria – perfection!

Most of the time in Barcelona we simply wandered until we were hungry, then found somewhere that looked good.  After bypassing the marina’s expensive and packed restaurants one day we stumbled across La Rumbeta which was much more our style.  I mean, just look at that sangria!

Yep, that is a serving for one…

Sea Shells By the Sea Shore

Oh how I love a beach.  While we didn’t spend much time on it this trip, just getting my toes in the sand and gazing out at that beautiful horizon was fantastic ocean therapy for me.  Barcelona’s main beach area, La Barceloneta, is easy to reach by metro or bus from the city centre and home to many fabulous restaurants – and these beautiful evening views.

When I’m on the coast I always want to try as much seafood as possible, and paella is one of my favourite foods.  This made our choice of Restaurante Salamanca II for dinner perfect – steaming plates of paella and platters of seafood are what they do best!

We had more great paella at another Barceloneta restaurant, Paco Alcalde, where they served it the way I like best – in a great steaming pan at the table, ready for everyone to dive in and pick out their favourite seafood bits!  Of course, I can never resist having a little play with my food…

Pintxos

While pintxos are properly a Basque food, there’s plenty of spots in Barcelona where you can lean against a bar and scoff your fill of these delicious mini-delicacies.  At Irati, I was nearly overwhelmed by the range of choices – they serve up to 50 savoury and sweet varieties!  The idea is that you simply choose what you like the look of, then your toothpicks are counted at the end to work out your bill.  It’s great as you can keep coming back for more, ensuring your eyes don’t get bigger than your stomach!

My favourite was the pepper stuffed with tuna and topped with a tiny pikelet! 

The Cathedral of Barcelona in the afternoon sun

Icy Delights

Barcelona in the summer is HOT, so there’s really only two options for refreshment – liquid or ice!  When exploring the Castell de Montjuïc we grabbed one of these delicious fruit ice-blocks to cool down with, and they were so good we had to go back for seconds.  Mine may or may not be mojito flavoured…!

As I’m lactose-intolerant (although I do occasionally cheat with lactase pills), I was thrilled to discover Gelaaati Di Marco, which not only has an amazing array of normal ice-cream flavours but also a few with no dairy at all, including this velvety coconut “ice-cream”.  Yum!

One of our top dining experiences was La Portería, even though I didn’t take a single photo.  It was an authentic little Catalan restaurant, where we communicated in our very broken Spanish and ended up with fantastic meals.  I highly recommend checking it out!

I know that there are loads of great places in Barcelona so if you’ve visited or you live there, please let me know your recommendations 🙂

Linking up for #TravelTuesday with Bonnie, Sammy, Kaelene and Van – check out their blogs for loads of travel inspiration!