This is the real deal – a contemporary Japanese restaurant owned and managed by a Japanese chef. Chef Kenji is very highly regarded within the Japanese community. When the Japanese Consul hosts a reception for esteemed guests he calls Chef Kenji. I’ve never eaten here when there has not been at least one Japanese customer.

Can Kenji is also really very popular with locals – and for very good reason – the food is fantastic, the prices very keen and the service is friendly. The cheapest dish is €3.50 and the most expensive about €12. And there are a range of lunchtime meal deals available.

The restaurant is designed like an izakaya (a Japanese pub, or tapas bar) and serves what has become called MediterrAsian food – an inventive balance of Japanese style with Catalan ingredients – sort of Japanese tapas. The food is always very fresh and always very tasty.

Not long after it opened I visited  the place four times in the space of ten days – each time with different companions – by way of testing my original perceptions of the quality of the food. We all agreed – it was the real deal. The last few times we’ve visited I’ve not been able to get a table in the evening.

The restaurant frontage is fairly nondescript – and the only way you’ll know it is a restaurant is from the noren – the banner over the entrance, which is only displayed when the restaurant is open.

Highly recommended. ¡Bon profit!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Can Kenji | Snacks, Restaurants (Mediterrasian) | 3 course lunch € 10.80
C/Roselló, 325 | Eixample | +34934761823
Mon – Thu 12:00 – 16:00 & 20:00 – 01:00, Fri – Sat 12:00 – 16:00 & 20:00 – 02:00

This friendly little bar, a vermuteria, is the size of a lock-up or small garage.

It’s a cute place, almost a shrine to the Costa Brava, its walls decorated with early 1970s photos and maps, and shelves packed with canned seafood, sauces and wines.

The specialties here are draft vermut and anchovies from L’Escala, and they serve a good range of cold tapas – sea-snails, prawns, ham etc. Football fans should know that the owner is a ‘periquito‘ – little parrot – a supporter of Espanyol, so it may not be the brightest thing to do to go there wearing a Barça shirt!

The bar’s big sister – a restaurant where you can sit down and enjoy a larger meal – also called Cala del Vermut – is just 100 meters along the street. And the bar’s little brother, which has a fabulous range of hot tapas and quesos (cheeses), and also called Cala del Vermut, is 200 meters up the street, heading back up towards Urquinaona.

I really like this spot, a really good place for a stop-off when en route to Urquinaona metro station after a downtown shopping expedition.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Cala del Vermut | Bars, Snacks | Vermut € 2.00
C/Magdalenes 6 | El Barrio Gotico | +34933179623
Mon – Sat 11:00 – 16:00 & 18:00 – 23:00

Ok, so it’s not the Ritz, and probably one of the scruffiest bars you’ll visit when in Barcelona – but it is, as they say, More than a bar.

It’s called Oller but everyone knows it as Pep’s – after its illustrious former owner who still pops in now and then. If you look around the walls you’ll see pencil portraits of Pep.

Opened in 1929 – as you step into the bar look down at the pavement – you’ll see a plaque celebrating the bar’s contribution to city life.

It’s fairly quiet during the morning and a good place to chill with café con leche, a croissant and a newspaper.

The terrace is perfectly positioned to get the best of the afternoon sunshine.

In the evening it’s a different place altogether – ram-packed with friends and neighbours meeting up for a beer, a bite and a chinwag after work, and good music.

The mix of local characters: writers, photographers, musicians, journalists, teachers, artisans and builders make this a lively place to meet up before dinner or going out on the town.

Tapas and sandwiches available: croquetas, bombas (balls of potato filled with meat and rolled in breadcrumbs), tortillas, cheeses, chorizo, fuet and llonganiza (cured meat sausages) and, uniquely, mini filo pastry wraps filled with emmental cheese, frankfurter and sobrassada (pressed pork).

It’s just around the corner from restaurant Can Josep (see Can Josep article) so you may want to pop in for an aperitivo before going on for a meal.

Voll Damm on draft available.

Be aware the bar is closed Mondays.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Bar Oller | Bars, Snacks | Draft beer € 1.20
Passeig de Sant Joan 146 | Eixample | +34934578159
Tue – Sat 09:30 – 22:00, Sun 10:00 – 15:00

This petite bar, modeled on a typical bar in pre-war Marseille, opened in 1947 and has hardly changed since.

It’s a cosy little, arty bar, about the size of a small living room, decked with paintings, sketches and prints layered with nicotine, offering chatter, laughter, Edith Piaf and French accordion music.

Ángel, the owner, serves his own labelled absinthe and pastis, good cold draught beer and a spread of French wines and spirits.

The bar hosts very intimate gigs – chanteueses and tango – there’s only just enough space for two or three slim performers. And there’s music, at around 22:30, most nights.

The clientele are a mix of the curious, the romantic, the lost, the knowing, the restless and the brave.

Go there, try it, it’s a one-off. If you’ve any romance in your soul I’m sure you’ll fall in love with the place.

Two members of the band, R.E.M. called in once to try the absinthe. It’s a popular haunt for local transvestites and prostitutes. It’s the sort of place I can imagine Jean Genet hanging out in.

It’s just around the corner from El Cangrejo.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Bar Pastis | Bars, Music | Drinks € 3.50
Carrer de Santa Monica 4 | El Raval | +34933187980
Mon – Thu 19:00 – 02:00, Fri – Sun 20:00 – 03:00

Imagine you could visit one of the most fascinating, and most popular, buildings in the world. And then, after your visit, imagine you could take a pleasant six minute stroll, leaving the crowds behind you, and find a comfortable, relatively quiet, tree-screened, shaded restaurant terrace. Imagine sitting at a table and being served excellent, fresh little bites by a friendly and attentive waiter or waitress. Imagine the experience costing a lot less time, hassle and money than many popular, crowded, noisy city centre restaurant-bars.

Well, you don’t have to imagine – you can do it.

Tossa serves deliciously fresh tapas all day long. Their homemade croquetas (€ 1.10 each served inside and € 1.15 served on the terrace) are filled with foie gras, mushrooms, chicken, cheese or vegetables. They are possibly the best croquetas in Barcelona. They also serve a good selection of hams and cured meats (fuet, lloganiza, etc), sausages, jacket potatoes stuffed with tuna and topped with cheese, clams, baby clams, mussels, cheeses, potato salad, Russian salad, Greek salad, lovely omelettes, exquisite asparagus dishes and other delights.

Very friendly and helpful staff, and a relaxed family friendly atmosphere – good at any time of day – from breakfast to supper.

Tossa closes at 17:00 on Saturdays and is not open on Sundays.

¡Bon profit!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Tossa | Bars, Coffee & tea, Snacks, Restaurants (Spanish/Catalan) | Croqueta € 1.10
Nàpols,291 | Eixample | +34934576510
Mon – Fri 07:00 – 23:00, Sat 07:00 – 17:00

Small spots come out every week in Barcelona but sometimes it takes ages before you finally discover them – something like that happened in my neighborhood when Nakashita came around. It was so clearly out there, in the open, that it didn’t seem to be a special thing at all – oh, but it is!

In a city filled with restaurants for tourists and so-called Japanese restaurants actually run by Chinese tenants, there’s a big charm on a real Japanese run by a Brazilian chef. Nakashita features classic Japanese with a twist you would only expect in Sao Paulo – like fresh oysters with maracujá sauce. It’s not the cheap option for Japanese – you don’t want it after you’ve tasted the extra fresh fish and the superb combinations they offer for lunch or dinner.

With the place so small and cozy a recommendation from the chef will always do – he definitely knows what is doing. Services is quite good, but it can be that sometimes you’ll get too much of an explanation. If you’re on your own or with a small group and there are not too many patrons, a good choice is to sit in the bar and ask, ask, ask. You’ll get more for your meal.

Nakashita offers a set menu on week-days: not cheap, but definitely a good choice for real Japanese food lovers. Also, they have a discount if you order to-go… Good local wines and extra cold Japanese round up a good choice for oriental cravings.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Nakashita | Restaurants (Japanese) | Lunch menu € 25
Rec Comtal 15 | El Borne | +34932955378
13:30 – 16:30 & 20:30 – 00:00 daily

This is something special. Not your ordinary. Not your regular, but somewhere to visit maybe three or four times a year. Exquisite food prepared by Robert Gelonch, one of the most inventive chefs currently trading in the city, coupled with a strong wine-list.

Though the entrance colourways and typography suggest a kind of 70s retro vibe (and hints of Clockwork Orange) the very contemporary tastes you’ll encounter when dining here will disabuse you of the notion Gelonch is some kind of throwback.

You have a choice – a lunchtime menú del día for just 19 euros, or an evening special 9 course tasting menú for 52,50 euros . You will not be disappointed. How could you be disappointed with such dishes as frozen apple coconut foam, iced mint, lemon confit, caramelized cream and black olives? Yep, that’s right – black olives in a dessert.

There are so many intriguing combinations in each dish – artichoke stuffed with mushrooms, pig’s trotters (pigs’ feet) with prawns – cookie-sized pizzas – that every bite is a pleasant surprise.

Some claim the food here is the culinary equivalent of a pointillist painting. It’s a good analogy. Each component has individual flavour – but it’s the inventive combinations which delight the palate.

It may seem expensive – but, honestly, when compared with other establishments in the city, (where often the food is mediocre) it’s surprisingly good value for a memorable experience.

Gelonch will soon, I’m convinced, have an international reputation — so, get here ahead of the herd.

¡Bon profit!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Gelonch | Restaurants | 9 course tasting menu € 52.50
Carrer Bailén, 56 | Eixample | +34932658298
Tue – Sat 13:30 – 15:30 & 21:00 – 23:30

You’ll find TRAM-TRAM in Sarrià, an interesting, well-heeled barrio above Diagonal.

This family owned, family run restaurant is a good spot for small get-togethers or, perhaps, a romantic rendezvous, and a good introduction to contemporary Catalan cuisine. And, unlike many restaurants in the city centre, you will not have to raise your voice, you can actually hear yourself, and your companions, speak while you chat.

Isidre Soler, the chef, (who spent time training with Ferran Adrià at El Bulli) takes evident, painstaking pride in the preparation and presentation of his exquisite dishes.

The 38 euro fixed price evening menu offers a starter, a first course, a second course, served with bread, and a dessert or cheese plate. Wine is extra.

The menú del día is just 22 euros, or you could try the executive menú at only 19 euros.

It’s a small, perfectly formed and tastefully decorated restaurant, with private dining-rooms and a pleasant terrace.

The food – original variations on classic dishes such as seafood paella and cochinillo (suckling pig) – is flavoursome without being rich, and is very, very good.

The wine list offers a selection of 150 excellent unpretentious wines, and 16 euros will buy you a very tasty bottle.

Service is very good, if, perhaps a bit formal. Having said that the very knowledgeable maitre’d will help you navigate the menu, and off-menu specials. (An English version of the menu is available).

All in all, excellent value and highly recommended.

Why TRAM-TRAM? Well, the Number 12 tram used to stop outside. Check out the website.

¡Bon profit!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
TRAM-TRAM | Restaurants (Nouveau Catalan) | Three-course meal € 38
Major de Sarriá, 121 | Above diagonal | +342048518
Tue – Sat 13:30 – 15:30 & 21:00 – 23:30

Even in my previous lives I don’t think I’ve ever found myself in the waiting-room of a 1950s upmarket Spanish bordello, but if I had I imagine it would look and feel a bit like Rouge (think Almodóvar).

Situated in Poble Sec, just off Parallel, not far from the newly re-opened music theater El Molino (Moulin Rouge – get it?), and a few doors down from Quimet i Quimet (see the Quimet i Quimet article), Rouge is a quirky lounge-bar decorated with gilt-framed copies of Impressionist and Old Masters’ paintings.

With its eclectic collection of comfy sofas, deep armchairs, bum-numbing stools, deep red walls and low lighting I love its louche atmosphere.

It’s a good spot for a drink or two after a gig at the nearby Apolo (see the Apolo article) and before going dancing.

Rouge attracts an interesting crowd: fashion designers, hat makers, graphic artists, songwriters, poets and film-makers. But, perhaps contrary to expectations, it’s not pretentious at all – just a cool place to hang out with friends.

The music is a discreet, cool, layered mix of lounge groove, 90s ambient and 80s synth-pop. The bar also occasionally hosts live gigs.

Friendly staff, a good, lively atmosphere, in a laid-back kind of way, make this a spot to remember and re-visit time and again. It’s so good I’ll probably still be visiting Rouge in future lives.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Rouge | Bars, Music, Snacks | Bottled beer € 3.00
C/Poeta Cabanyes 21 | Poble Sec | +34934424985
Tue – Wed 20:00 – 02:00, Thu – Fri 22:30 – 02:00, Sat 22:30 – 04:00

7 Portes (7 Doors) has been in business, first as a café, and since 1929 as a restaurant, for 175 years. In 2011 the restaurant celebrated this achievement by commissioning Milton Glaser, the well-known graphic designer who devised the I Love NY logo, and who is a frequent customer, to re-design the labels of its house wines and cava.

In addition Vinçon (See the article), the design-lifestyle store, staged an exhibition of the designs and preparatory drawings and sketches.

What do Woody Allen, Lou Reed, Che Guevara, the King of Spain, John Wayne, Ava Gardner, Catherine Deneuve, Pelé, Miró, Antonio Banderas, Harrison Ford, Mikhail Gorbachev, Martin & Donna Towell, Bo Derek and myself all have in common? We’ve all dined here, and we all enjoyed the experience.

So, what makes this spot so special? The food – rich and incredibly tasty paellas and arrossos (rice dishes), fantastic seafood and traditional meat dishes. The art – paintings, lithographs, photographs, drawings and sculpture by some of the 20th century’s best-known artists. The ambiance – the classically tiled, wood panelled and mirrored rooms hum with the sounds of happy eating merged with the tuneful tinkling of a live pianist (after 10pm) as the experienced staff seemingly glide between tables.

It’s not cheap – but compared with restaurants of a similar reputation – it’s not expensive.

If you enjoy paella try their legendary Paella Parellada, with skinless, boneless chicken, pork, fish, prawns, mussels and clams and other seafood.

You’ll need a reservation, otherwise expect at least a half-hour wait.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
7 Portes | Restaurants (Catalan-Spanish) | Dinner + house wine € 35.00
Passeig Isabel II, 14 | El Barrio Gotico | +34933193033
13:00 – 01:00 daily