Where to eat and visit in Barcelona + Venice June 2013
May 20th, 2013, 10:16 PM
#3
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Eating
*Budget: would like to have some good cheap eats as well as a few fancy places or even late night spots. Would be nice to also have good drinks and wine and coffee.
*Tastes: love all kinds of food, exotic or weird, pork, steak, seafood, escargot, any and all
*Dates: June 20 through 23 in Barcelona, June 24 through 27 in Venice
Destinations--maybe a few popular historical places, love wine tasting, hiking/walking tour, bars
*Budget: would like to have some good cheap eats as well as a few fancy places or even late night spots. Would be nice to also have good drinks and wine and coffee.
*Tastes: love all kinds of food, exotic or weird, pork, steak, seafood, escargot, any and all
*Dates: June 20 through 23 in Barcelona, June 24 through 27 in Venice
Destinations--maybe a few popular historical places, love wine tasting, hiking/walking tour, bars
May 21st, 2013, 02:45 AM
#5
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http://www.7portes.com/angles/libro.php?indice=53
Near the port/aquarium. Super special. Reservations or else be the first one in the line that forms before opening time to see if they can get in.
Near the port/aquarium. Super special. Reservations or else be the first one in the line that forms before opening time to see if they can get in.
May 21st, 2013, 03:35 AM
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I also recommend 7 Portes for top quality traditional Catalan food at reasonable prices (mains at 15-25€, and you should be really hungry to fit in a starter, often people share starters in Spain in general). Set Portes is a Barcelona classic from 1836 with tons of history in the walls. Have been here several times and always great food, atmosphere and service.
I can very much recommend the fish soup, rape (monkfish) a la plancha and the Catalan speciality Arroz Caldoso, somwhere between a paella and a fish soup with rice. Great meat dishes and salads as well. Reservation is always needed.
A couple of weeks ago we had an excellent evening at new and cutting edge Tickets with paradise versions of traditional tapas (too late for reservations in June), but once again 7 Portes came out on top.
7 Portes is very popular with tourists, but it's still a favourite among locals. They usually come in for dinner after 9-9.30. Sunday lunch is also a big thing. http://11870.com/pro/restaurant-7-portes
From the 175 anniversary of 7 Portes in 2011: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujDIsGzDO38
I can very much recommend the fish soup, rape (monkfish) a la plancha and the Catalan speciality Arroz Caldoso, somwhere between a paella and a fish soup with rice. Great meat dishes and salads as well. Reservation is always needed.
A couple of weeks ago we had an excellent evening at new and cutting edge Tickets with paradise versions of traditional tapas (too late for reservations in June), but once again 7 Portes came out on top.
7 Portes is very popular with tourists, but it's still a favourite among locals. They usually come in for dinner after 9-9.30. Sunday lunch is also a big thing. http://11870.com/pro/restaurant-7-portes
From the 175 anniversary of 7 Portes in 2011: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujDIsGzDO38
May 21st, 2013, 04:48 AM
#7
Venice:
A beccafico in Campo San Stefano. Get the seafood risotto.
Zucca near Campo San Giacomo dell'Orio.
All merca and Do Mori for chichetti and spritz around Rialto Market.
There are very many nice restaurants on the Zattere.
I like Paradiso across from the Bienniale Vaporetto stop for lunch. You can sit outside in the beautiful garden.
Thin
A beccafico in Campo San Stefano. Get the seafood risotto.
Zucca near Campo San Giacomo dell'Orio.
All merca and Do Mori for chichetti and spritz around Rialto Market.
There are very many nice restaurants on the Zattere.
I like Paradiso across from the Bienniale Vaporetto stop for lunch. You can sit outside in the beautiful garden.
Thin
May 21st, 2013, 10:30 PM
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@adrienne: I am traveling to Europe because this is likely my last big trip before I try to have kids. I decided on Barcelona because my husband practices jiujitsu and he would love to train there for one session. I have always loved spanish tapas and paellas, so I figured, why not? Spanish wine is always good. Venice because I heard they have excellent coffee and tiramisu. I believe Florence is a train-ride away where I can tour Chianti, whose wine I love. Pictures on the gondola around the canal looks relaxing, amazing, and romantic. So anything else I get to see or try would be a plus. Goal is just to have a good relaxing time eating great food and wine, maybe even meet some cool people. No big shopping plans unless I can get great designer stuff for cheap.
Any other tips on what areas to avoid would be great as well!
Any other tips on what areas to avoid would be great as well!
May 22nd, 2013, 01:44 AM
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Unless you are planning to rent a car in Florence or hire a driver, you can't visit the Chianti hills. Just so you know.
Venice indeed has beautiful coffee. My particular favorite is Florian's, and if you drink it standing up at the bar, it won't cost a lot. Venice sometimes claims to have invented tiramisu (I think it may have been Treviso in reality). But true foodies go to Padova for its morning market and other food excitement. Venice gets so many tourists, it is hard for restaurants to maintain standards. Almost all menus are seafood oriented, so be prepared for that. Eating good food in restaurants is expensive in Venice, so if you are serious about only wanting good food, you need to do a lot research reading food oriented guidebooks and websites. If you would prefer informal and inexpensive tapas-like snacking, do google searches for "chicchetti" in Venice.
Barcelona is an international destination for food tourism, with loads of opinions about which are the best tapas bars and restaurants, many of them requiring reservations months in advance. The strike zone in Barcelona is wider when it comes to getting enjoyable food at a fair price, but around the tourist spots, food can be pretty awful, with a lot of microwaved paella being dished up to tourists, so again, it pays to do some serious research if you mean it that you "travel4food." (Asking on Fodor's is not serious research. This website is primarily about seeing famous tourist stuff.)
Venice indeed has beautiful coffee. My particular favorite is Florian's, and if you drink it standing up at the bar, it won't cost a lot. Venice sometimes claims to have invented tiramisu (I think it may have been Treviso in reality). But true foodies go to Padova for its morning market and other food excitement. Venice gets so many tourists, it is hard for restaurants to maintain standards. Almost all menus are seafood oriented, so be prepared for that. Eating good food in restaurants is expensive in Venice, so if you are serious about only wanting good food, you need to do a lot research reading food oriented guidebooks and websites. If you would prefer informal and inexpensive tapas-like snacking, do google searches for "chicchetti" in Venice.
Barcelona is an international destination for food tourism, with loads of opinions about which are the best tapas bars and restaurants, many of them requiring reservations months in advance. The strike zone in Barcelona is wider when it comes to getting enjoyable food at a fair price, but around the tourist spots, food can be pretty awful, with a lot of microwaved paella being dished up to tourists, so again, it pays to do some serious research if you mean it that you "travel4food." (Asking on Fodor's is not serious research. This website is primarily about seeing famous tourist stuff.)
May 22nd, 2013, 02:11 AM
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Both cities will be expensive. I've just returned from my first Barcelona trip and was amazed at the food prices - a lot more than I had anticipated. Definitely get away from tourist sights to have the best food at the most reasonable prices - this is true of any city. The wine is indeed good and inexpensive. The best dish I ate was the lamb shank at 4 Gats. Had it twice as it's difficult to get good lamb any place and I love lamb. And there was amazing at this hole in the wall called La Perla de Oro, off the Ramblas. Have as much gelato as you can manage.
In Barcelona go to Parc Guell during the week when there are apt to be fewer people. Go to the Gaudi sights on weekends to avoid the school groups who are only interested in texting and flirting and add to the crowds without being interesting in where they are. A lovely and romantic spot is the Pedralbas Monastery. If you go during the week there will be almost no one there. The monastery is interesting and the cloister is lovely. Palau de la Musica is an amazing venue.
Venice - the charm and romance start when you get away from St. Mark's Square. Few tourists and you can aimlessly wander the streets and admire the canals, shops, architecture. Go to Torcello which most tourists do not visit.
In Barcelona go to Parc Guell during the week when there are apt to be fewer people. Go to the Gaudi sights on weekends to avoid the school groups who are only interested in texting and flirting and add to the crowds without being interesting in where they are. A lovely and romantic spot is the Pedralbas Monastery. If you go during the week there will be almost no one there. The monastery is interesting and the cloister is lovely. Palau de la Musica is an amazing venue.
Venice - the charm and romance start when you get away from St. Mark's Square. Few tourists and you can aimlessly wander the streets and admire the canals, shops, architecture. Go to Torcello which most tourists do not visit.
May 23rd, 2013, 06:35 AM
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For your Barcelona Tapas experience try Quimet&Quimet as well as PacoMeralgo (http://www.restaurantpacomeralgo.com/). The first one may close fairly early, also make sure to have a reservation for the latter, it's always crowded, but darn good.
May 23rd, 2013, 10:50 AM
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Travel4food: This is a great post for me because I am going to Venice for a week on Sept. 24 and then flying to Barcelona for a week. Hope you report back after your trip!! (am then going on to Madrid and Seville for two more weeks. It's nice to be retired!)
