140 Best Restaurants in Barcelona, Spain

Chef Rafa Zafra’s elegant hodgepodge of a menu features contemporary Catalan fare, French classics like sole meuniere, and dishes inspired by his alma mater, El Bulli. The prices are as jaw-dropping as the dining room, which features soaring ceilings, towering marble columns, ornate chandeliers, and gilded accents galore.

This spot just around the corner from the Liceu opera house is one of Barcelona's best tapas restaurants, with a long bar overlooking the burners and part of the kitchen that leads down to the 20-seat communal tasting table at the end of the room. Specialists in Ibérico products, they serve obscure cuts of Ibérico pork, such as pluma ibérica and secreto ibérico (nuggets of meat found on the inside of the shoulder blade and much-prized by Ibérico fanatics), though the real highlight of the menu is the market-fresh seafood that ranges from oysters to grilled baby scallops and house special dishes like the baby squid (chipirones) with white Santa Pau beans.

Specializing in Catalan bar food and local, organic, biodynamic, and natural wine, this sometimes-rowdy bar may not look like much from the outside but the hordes of people waiting to be seated give it away. Top choices include the mushroom carpaccio with wasabi vinaigrette and strawberries, the black squid-ink croquettes and the spicy patatas bravas.

If gorging yourself on fresh, seasonal shellfish without paying an arm and a leg sounds like your idea of a good time, then Batea is the place for you. Led by two young chefs, one from Catalonia, the other from Galicia, this is the more laid-back sister restaurant of nearby Besta. The menu is made up almost entirely of different takes on spiny sea creatures---from oysters to mussels, razor clams and white shrimp---sourced fresh from either the Atlantic or the Mediterranean. Seafood-loving locals can't get enough of this place, and neither can overseas visitors, so book well in advance to avoid disappointment.

Named for the car-mechanic shop that once stood here, Benzina blends industrial-chic elements with splashes of color and excellent music (on vinyl, naturally) to create a hip but cozy Italian restaurant. The food, however, is center stage: the freshly made pasta is among the best in the city, while next-door Doppietta, by the same owners, is home to one of the hottest brunch buffets in town.

One of the first things you'll notice here is the scent of freshly baked bread, then you'll take in the open kitchen, head-nodding playlist, and cozy interior, with oversized windows facing the street. The chef's modern spin on Catalan cuisine features Peruvian and Asian influences, and the dishes are made almost exclusively using locally sourced organic products.

The atmosphere is relaxed but sophisticated in this invariably fully booked (for good reason!) restaurant with a constantly changing menu that blends the very best seasonal produce from the Spanish regions of Catalonia and Galicia. Freshly caught fish and seafood---think Galician cockles and dry-aged beef, or red shrimp from the Med---take pride of place, as do the seasonal vegetables.

Just down the road from the Picasso Museum, Bodega La Puntual might look like a tourist trap, but it's a classic, specializing in hearty portions of Catalan fare, made from seasonal, locally sourced produce. Top menu choices include the fresh marinated anchovies, the plate of premium hand-cut Iberian jamón, and trinxat: a traditional Catalan dish made with potatoes, cabbage, and pork meat, served with a fried egg.

This restaurant takes contemporary decor and fine-dining style and adds the pizzazz of open-kitchen cooking. It's known for its decadent tasting menus, and the star dish is a rich mar i muntanya macaroni with lobster, foie gras, and artichoke. The contemporary decor combines gleaming traditional copper with retro-cool mid-century modern furniture. Wine selections can be added at a surcharge per person. 

It's been in a permanent feeding frenzy for more than 30 years, intensified by hordes of tourists, but this loud, hectic bar manages to keep delivering the very highest quality tapas, year-in and year-out. Be prepared to wait up to an hour for a place at the counter; reservations for the tables in the tiny back room and on the outdoor terrace are accepted, but the counter is where the action is.

You’ll mainly hear Catalan conversations in this 10-table establishment that feels like eating at a Spanish relative’s house, with food as locally sourced as its clientele. Rice dishes are the main event, particularly the squid-ink variety and, if you're lucky, the seasonal special topped with perfectly cooked steak.

A favorite with visiting gourmands, this often overcrowded little counter serves some of the best beer and tapas in town. The house-brewed artisanal draft beer—named after the Fort family who owns and runs the bar—is drawn and served with loving care by veteran, epauletted waiters who have it down to a fine art.

Once you find this spot, tucked inside the boutique Wittmore Hotel at the end of a tiny alley, you’ll be rewarded with a wonderfully creative menu of small plates and hearty baked pastas. Dishes are served in the lounge-like dining room or out on the courtyard patio with its twinkling lights and impressive vertical garden.

With a "short" 10-course tasting menu priced at just €58 (the longer one is €82 for 14 courses) Cruix is the fine-dining restaurant for people who don't want to spend hundreds of euros on a meal. Everything here is laid-back and unpretentious, including the exposed-brick interior, but the quality speaks to the Chef Miquel Pardo's pedigree: he worked under Spanish superstar chefs like Albert Adrià and Jordi Cruz before opening Cruix in 2017. 

Three former head chefs from the legendary former best restaurant in the world El Bulli combined their considerable talents to create this roller-coaster ride of culinary fun (the word "disfrutar" is Spanish for "to enjoy") spotlighting tasting menus of dazzling inventiveness and good taste. Bowls are swirled to reveal beetroot meringues emerging from sesame-seed "earth" (the seeds are made to look like soil), and jellied truffle-and-egg tempura hit the bull's-eye of pure pleasure; desserts are otherworldly. No wonder, then, that the three chefs now hold their own spot close to the top of the World's 50 Best Restaurants list.

A long list of seasonal Mediterranean small plates, ranging from coal-grilled octopus to calamari with green-curry mayo to traditional Catalan sausage stew, is chalked up on the boards each day. Inside, it's casually hip, with exposed brick walls and vintage furniture; there’s a small back patio for alfresco dining as well as tables out front on the Rambla del Poblenou for excellent people-watching.

Chef Andreas Christodoulides' intent here is to recreate the dishes he grew up eating as a kid in Athens but don't expect a setting of clichéd blue and white Greek Island decor. Instead, the setting is bright and casual, allowing the classic food to speak for itself.

The sleek white-on-white dining room inside the Hotel Arts sets the tone for chef Pérez's contemporary take on Mediterranean cuisine. Tasting menus present around a dozen courses, most with a seasonal, seafood-centric focus, like a sea cucumber pasta with bone marrow and young artichokes. If your wallet allows, indulge in a wine pairing, which includes some wonderful surprises like a Spanish-made sake. Exemplary service and a posh location make this a true two-Michelin-star experience.

The sumptuous glory of this restored late-19th-century Moderniste dining room has food to match, courtesy of chef German Espinosa, who spent many years working under superstar Martín Berasategui. Catalan cuisine is interpreted with a French influence—set menus start at €40 (for lunch) and go to €151 for the full tasting menu including premium wine pairings, a relative bargain considering the presentation, the knowledgeable staff, and the historic setting. 

One of Barcelona's most beloved bars, La Alcoba Azul offers a wide selection of tapas with a full-on immersive atmosphere. The decor reflects the Moorish influence of Andalucía mixed with the quirkiness of the original owners, so you'll get illuminated lanterns and broken birdcages hanging from the ceiling, while a years-old candle burns in a corner. In case you can't get a table here, try one of their sister restaurants a couple doors down, La Alcobita. 

Don't be deterred by the graffitied walls: the innovative tapas at La Pepita lives up to the hipster hype. The room is dominated by a long marble-topped bar—there are only a handful of tables in the narrow space—so it’s best for couples or small groups; next door, sister eatery La Mini Pepita offers up further stool seating.

Standards like Ibérico ham and patatas bravas are on offer at this snug tapas bar, but it’s the rotating selection of seasonal small plates that really make it worth a visit. There’s no menu; a chalkboard brought to your table lists the main ingredient—cod, pork rib, sweetbreads, for example—and friendly servers will explain the daily preparation for each.

While Martin Berasategui, one of San Sebastián's corps of master chefs, no longer runs the day-to-day operations of this Barcelona kitchen (it's in the capable hands of chef Paolo Casagrande) the restaurant continues to be a culinary triumph. Expect an eclectic selection of Basque, Mediterranean, and off-the-map creations, a hefty bill, service that's second-to-none, and fierce perfectionism apparent in every dish. If you're not in the mood for the full tasting menu, this is one of few Michelin stars that also offers an à la carte option.

There's no need for complicated sauces here—the superfresh grilled fish and seafood speaks for itself, simply drizzled with olive oil or served with a lemon slice. The diminutive dining space is equally unadorned, with plain white walls and bright, somewhat industrial-style lighting; an illuminated panel above the bar lists what’s available that day, which might include razor clams, octopus, sardines, and the restaurant’s namesake fish. A same-concept sibling, Lluritu 2, is a 10-minute walk away.

Inside the ultrasleek Mandarin Oriental hotel, this restaurant, with food by Raül Balam and his mother—the legendary Carme Ruscalleda—lives up to its stellar pedigree, with original preparations that draw on deep wells of Catalan culinary traditions. Dishes on the tasting menus display a masterful lightness of touch and come to the table so exquisitely presented that putting a fork into them feels almost like wanton vandalism; the reward, however, is sublime, with treasures of taste revealed in every astonishing bite.

Easily one of the hottest tickets in town for lovers of eclectic, avant-garde cuisine, Slow & Low is run by an energetic multicultural young team who have translated their culinary genius into two tasting menus, which combine Mediterranean, Mexican, Peruvian, and even some Southeast Asian influences. The three tasting menus (11 courses for €115, 13 courses for €140, or 14 courses for €170) are all equally worthy of your time and hard-earned cash.

This is a strong contender for the crown of Barcelona’s best bistro, where chef Toni Romero turns out Catalan tapas and dishes that have roots in rustic classics but reach high modern standards of execution. The name is a twist on the Catalan sucar lent (to dip slowly), and excellent bread is duly provided to soak up the sauces, which you won't want to let go to waste.

Inspired by her Catalan roots, Teresa Carles Borrás has been creating inventive vegetarian fare for 40 years and counting but this namesake was her first restaurant. Both the space and the food are more sophisticated than the typical vegetarian restaurant.