Many of you have been asking about recommendations for a weekend in Barcelona, and as I keep loosing my emails I thought that it would be better to post all the information here. This way I will save time every time one of you goes to Barcelona for the weekend.
Where to EAT
Tapas - La Cervecería Catalana
Best tapas in town. I go back there every time I go back to Barcelona. Don't leave without tasting jamón de jabugo, pimientos del padrón, pincho de solomillo, and of course pan con tomate. Una clara (beer with lemon juice) to drink will work perfectly with the food.
No booking allowed, but worth queuing for a while.
Meat - El asador de Aranda
Delicious corderito and cochinillo. The building on the Tibidabo outskirts is amazing and the meat can't be better. I would recommend to go for dinner if you don't want to spend the rest of the day taking a siesta.
Booking essential.
Paella - El Merendero de la Mari
You will their paella.
Black rice - Peixerot
What is black rice? Rice that has been cooked with calamari ink and lobster. Delicious!
Fish - Els Pescadors
The restaurant is located in a dodgy area, but the trip is worth as you will have first class fish.
Hot chocolate - Cacao Sampaka
You must try it with some melindros. What are melindros? You will have to find out yourself.
What to VISIT
Gaudí
As a Gaudí fan I highly recommend to visit La Pedrera, la Casa Batlló, and el Parque Güell. Amazing arquitecture. If you visit during the summer you can't miss the concerts on la Pedrera's roof - jazz, flamenco,... different music and same cold champagne every night.
La Boqueria Market
If you are a food lover you can't miss La Boqueria, one of the best markets in the world. BTW La Boqueria is hermanado with Borough Market in South London.
MACBA Museum
If you like modern art you can not miss the MACBA Museum, in the old neighbourhood of the city
Where to WALK AROUND
You will see that walking around is easy in Barcelona.
Paseo de Gracia, Rambla Catalunya, la Rambla de les flors (full of pick pockets - hold your handbag as hard as you can!), el Born, Barri Gotic, Port Olimpic (can be a bit dodgy)...
Where to GO SHOPPING
Paseo de Gracia and Rambla Catalunya are the best places to shop as almost all brands have a shop there. Begin your walk in Rambla Catalunya with Diagonal and then walk down until Plaza Cataluña. After that take Puerta del Angel - At that point you will probably have burnt your plastic card.
If you want to buy any food as ham, chorizo, tuna, or cheese, I would recommend to go to el Corte Ingles where they seal the embutido very well so that it lasts for weeks in the fridge (well, that is the theory - It does not matter if I buy 200 grams or 2 kilos of jabugo, I always finish it withing a couple of weeks!)
How TO MOVE around
You can walk to almost everywhere if you stay in the center of the city. If you feel tired at some point you can take the tube or bus.
A good way to discover the rest of the city is to take a Bus Turistic (I took it myself and found it very good) and have an idea of how the rest of the city looks like. You can get in and out the bus as many times as you like and you get a voucher checkbook that has discounts to many places in the city.
Where to PARTY AT NIGHT
I am too old for that an I have lost the track. You will have to investigate yourself!
Still, if you want to know where to party we recommend Luz de Gas or a bit more crazier Danzatoria.
Useful WEBSITES
www.lanetro.com - For restaurant locations
www.tmb.net - For transport information
www.servicaixa.com - For purchasing any kind of tickets
Enjoy your trip!