An Ode to Barcelona's Tapas
I went to Barcelona when I was 18 and foolish. I was fresh out of high school with 60 of my fellow WMMHS graduates. To be clear, I'm pretty sure I broke my personal no-fast food-abroad rule (not that I EVER eat it at home) and spent most of the time on the beach. Cringe.
Almost ten years older (ouch), I knew had two big goals to accomplish. I obviously needed my client's presence at Mobile World Congress to run smoothly. That was the professional (and far more important) goal. The personal goal, however, was to attack tapas.
The good news is that the Spanish eat late, making it easy for me to balance the two goals. I could work a full day, show up at 10:30 and still be there at a good time. And let me assure you, it was a good time. What an experience!
The spots I checked out were high energy and had a distinct but unintelligible process.. I'm not easily intimidated in a restaurant. Different languages and funky foods only add to my excitement of a meal. Tapas, however, is a different story. I walked in totally blind, with no idea of how to order. Luckily, I'm a fast learner and was excited to quite literally eat it all up. Here were our top three favorites:
1) El Quim - My first meal in Barcelona was actually one of my favorites. At around lunchtime, my work buddy (shout out to Adam!) and I strolled into the Mercado de la Boqueria. This is an incredible market with numerous different stalls overflowing with fish, fruit, candy, meat or cheese.
We first stopped and got a few bites here and there before snagging two seats at El Quim. After a celebratory glass of sangria (which was fantastic), we ordered two items that were maybe the best we had during the whole trip. The first was blistered shisito peppers, a dish I first fell in love with at Toro in Boston. These were divine. Coarse salt sprinkled the top of charred peppers that I wanted to endlessly eat. The second dish was croquetas. Oh damn do I have dreams about these. Go.
2) El Xampanyet - Confusing because there's another restaurant dubbed El Xampanyeria around the corner. Clearly someone was excited to mess with all of the tourists. The good news is that both are supposed to be great. We tried this one and it felt like the perfect lunch spot. The whole place teemed with locals and visitors alike. We started with their house cava and we were not disappointed.
After a little research and chitchat with the waiter, we ordered exceptionally well if I say so myself. The tapas came in waves per usual. Boquerones (anchovies) and pan (bread with garlic and tomato) arrived first followed by sun dried tomatoes and chorizo. The last two dishes were phenomenal. The first was fresh octopus, grilled, with a sauce on top. The last was mashed potatoes with cheese and an egg (runny yolk obviously) that all gets mixed together at the table. I think we floated out of the restaurant. Big winner.
3) Vinitus - This last tapas place was more serious, taking over a sprawling space with people spilling out into the street where more tables sat full of people. Despite a long-ish wait, the wait staff was friendly and thoughtful. When we finally took our seats at the bar, we were ravenous and ready for a good meal. After croquetas, jamon, and my personal favorite, toast with steak and foie gras (heaven), we left full and happy.
Thankfully, after these meals and a successful presence at Mobile World Congress, I checked off all of my goals here. Now I just have to return to Barcelona quickly to hit all of the spots I missed.
