Barcelona Tapas Bar & Restaurant

I love good restaurants that are hidden away from the main streets. I also love when they don’t advertise anywhere, so it’s up to you to happen upon it one day. Which is exactly what happened with me and Barcelona Tapas. Wandering around the Bow Lane area, me and some friends ducked into a narrow passage, only to find this colourful spot greeting us inside.
Lunch here today with Larissa D was muy bueno. I love tapas, but not when they are swimming in sizzling oil. You’ll find none of that here. They have certainly gone for quality over quantity and the prices reflect that (but won’t break the bank either).
We shared a veggie dish with slow-​cooked tomatoes, peppers, courgettes, and aubergine (pretty standard) and some salted cod with almonds and paprika (I was a bit disappointed to find out it was fried, but took that back when I realised it wasn’t fried in that fishnchips mess). I also had a plate of chorizo, which came out cold, but was meaty and delicious. Mmmm meat. And I ended up appreciating the lightness of the thin slices rather than the heaviness of a greasy cooked chorizo.
Unfortunately, they were all out of those fun sorbet/​ice creams that come in their own shell (i.e. coconut, pineapple, orange, lemon, etc.) so luckily our bill came to under £20.
A good find, and a place I’ll definitely come back to… after work sangria anyone?

Good food, but truly bad service. I had learned long ago that the standard of service was different in Europe from the US, but even my European companions were feeling neglected. We probably sat around for 45 minutes before a waiter came by to take our order, and it was near impossible to get anyone’s attention to get more drinks. At one point, we actually initiated synchronised staring to see which of the three waiters chatting behind the bar would notice that we were trying to get their attention; eventually my friend just took our orders directly to the bar. Amazingly, they didn’t appear embarrassed at all by their lack of attention.
While I understand that service can be slow during busy hours, there were exactly three tables in the entire place and three waiters! The icing on the cake was that they forgot a some of our orders but had no problems charging us for them. Can’t say I’d go again, despite decent food and a great wine list.

This place has kooky decoration, that smacks of Spain in its brightness and boldness. A large mosaic runs off the wall in the bar to lead you through to the dining area that is brightly painted with dark wood tables.
The tapas are delicious and the choice HUGE try bits of as much as possible to get a good varety.
Added to which there is the mandatory Spanish winelist, which is also well-​populated.
Add the castinets and the evening gets off to good start here, every time.

Tucked away in a teensy side street in the city is Barcelona. Which plays to my love of hidden away places before I’ve even go through the door. And considering this place is a chain, they do a really great job of being authentic.
There’s a tiny little bar on the top level, which is perfect for waiting for people if you’re early and having a glass of wine and some olives. It’s cute enough to stay here the whole evening, but the food downstairs is so yummy I never have.
Buying on of the set tapas menus is the best option. It’ll set you back about £15 each for a million different dishes. They’re all perfect and pretty varied. Sure, there’s the usual tortilla (amazing) but with stuff like meatballs and prawns and good stuff. Really yummy. They’ve actually thought about the food instead of just throwing it together.
Watch the time you come here. Being so close to the city you’ll get caught in a flurry of business meetings at lunchtime. But if you go in the evening, it’s actually pretty great.
The only reason it’s not getting four stars is because I wish Spanish chains wouldn’t all have nasty plastic tablecloths. It makes them look cheap. I also wish they could do decent desserts here. Ice cream just doesn’t cut it sometimes.
Still, yummy Spanish food for two with a bottle of Rioja will set you back 50 quid. Pretty good in my book.