taste Barcelona

When Gerald and I first went to Barcelona in 2007, we were on a budget and more focused on drinking and partying than eating and sightseeing. It didn't help that we were also with a bunch of 18 - 25 year olds who were looking to do the same. I wouldn't take back those moments we had with the Contiki group, as it was loads of fun! But now that we're older and wiser, we look to a different kind of fun while on holiday: eating and culture, which pretty much go hand and hand. We decided to do a "foodie" walking tour to discover the true Catalan cuisine and culture. We chose taste-Barcelona to be our guide and couldn't have been more pleased. The tour lasted 5 hours and we visited 4 neighborhoods, learning about the history of each as we were walking in between restaurants and digesting our foods. Here goes...

L'Eixample - modern, in neat grids
Ciudad Condal - great for after work light bites

Montaditos - finger foods, meant to be eaten with your hands

Wine: El Perro verde (The green dog), D.O. (Denominaciones de Origen) Verdejo (100%), From the Rueda (Verdejo) region - Castilla y León, Spain.

Cangrejo (Crab)

Cuatro quesos (4 Cheeses)

Langostinos (Prawns/Shrimp)

El Raval - grungy-cool

O' Toxo 3 Hermanos - perfect place to catch a Futbol game, and great "bar" food!

Pimientos del Padron (Padron peppers)

Patatas Bravas (Fried potatoes with the spicy brava sauce)

Chorizo Gallego

Tortilla de patatas (española)

Ensaladilla rusa

Croquetas de espinaca

Butifarra con Alioli

Chupito de licor - Orujo de hierbas   “Salut i força al canut!”  “Health and strength to the Money purse!”

Wine: El Cellet Rosado, Vino de la tierra - Granacha & Syrah, From the Penedés region – Catalunya

Barri Gotic -old city, with the narrow, winding lanes of ancient roman empire

La Vinateria del Call - true Catalan cuisine

Wine: Llagrimes de Tardor,  D.O. Terra Alta, Syrah y Cabernet Sauvignon, From the Terra Alta Region - Catalunya

Queso Herreno (goat)

Jamón ibérico de bellota

Fuet

Queso Manchego (sheep)

Pan con tomate

El Born - hip and bustling. I forgot the name of the bar, but I remember it being chill and great place to end the night!

  Raventos i blanc Reserva Brut Cava

  D.O. (Denominaciones de Origen) Cava

  Brut, Reserva

  Macabeo, Xarel.lo y Parellada

  Catalunya

Us with Paul, our Aussie guide who is married to a local

My canadian cop friend - conversations were interesting as both her and her husband are homicide cops

As you can see, we had an awesome meal with an awesome guide. What was super nice about the tour was that there were only 4 of us, so it was really intimate. We really did feel like locals popping in and out of restaurants, like good friends, enjoying a night out.  By the end of the night, we were stuffed and ready for bed. It didn't help that earlier that day, Gerald and I had a delicious meal by the beach, that is also a must try...

Barceloneta - seaside

Can Majo

Small clams with white wine sauce

Seafood Paella

This pretty much concludes our foodie tour, with a taste from all of the neighborhoods. I definitely recommend doing something similar when you visit as it's a great way to learn about the culture through food. Barcelona is definitely my foodie heaven, and Gerald's too! Salud!