My husband and I decided to celebrate our anniversary in Barcelona, Spain. A country full of history, art and last but not least innovative and delicious food! I have been wanting to post about the whole trip however I thought the food in Barcelona deserves a full page plus tons of photos!

Our first night we went go to this place called “Bar Cañete” my husband found while looking for the best places to eat in Barcelona. It was a great mix of locals and tourists and was the perfect start to our trip. After trying to so many restaurants we can honestly say that  this restaurant is pretty up there with the best of the best of Barcelona eateries. The wait here is a bit longer , about 1-3 hours. There are no reservations. My husband put us down and they said 1 hour so we went down the block for a drink. Came back and sat us at the bar right away.  This is definitely the way to go when eating here. You get to see the entertaining chefs prepare the food for you. We have been to a ton of incredible restaurants all over the world and my husband commented that this was the first time that he looked around and eery person in the place would take a bite and then just have the biggest smile on their face. Have a glass of Cava and enjoy, this was Catalan cuisine at it’s finest.

The next morning we decided to hit up El Quim in La Boqueria. It is recommended by every travel website and even visited by the world known chef Anthony Bourdain during his show’s Barcelona episode. We got there before the crowds and had the place to ourselves. Quim himself was a riot! We had baby squid with eggs and shrimp with eggs which was absolutely scrumptious!  My tip is to get there before 10am to avoid the lines. I honestly can’t think of a better breakfast than a glass of fresh squeezed juice, a cortado and his baby squid with eggs and the warm bread. You have never tasted food this fresh in your life.

Tickets is one of the TOP restaurants in the world. We were so lucky to be able to get a reservation while we visiting. They open two months to the
ay ahead of time at midnight and are normally filled up by 12:05am. We tried for the first two days and couldn’t get, then magically got a 9pm reservation on our third night. I don’t think my visit could have been quite the same without going here. It was a playful atmosphere full of innovative dishes. One beautiful dish after another. You take your first bite and your tongue thinks it’s going to taste a certain way, but it doesn’t taste anything like it. The food plays with your sense of taste and is so damn good! That’s what Tickets is all about. This is what forward thinking food is all about. We were so honored to have spent some time with the chef Albert. He was so sweet!! The staff was ridiculously good at what they do. Everyone seem to love their job and took such pride in the food and the experience. I have such respect for Catalan Cuisine!

7 Portes is a traditional spot. The restaurant has been around for over 100 years and regularly attracts celebrities, royalty and everyone else. They are known for their paella and I will admit, it was the BEST Paella I have tasted!

Our last meal of the trip was another mind blowing event. My husband found out about a restaurant called Con Gracia. This restaurant was borderline perfect. They have about 10 tables and only do a tasting menu. We agreed that the food and presentation that we had was unlike anything we have experienced before. Tickets was all about being playful, this was just about serious food. I think we had about 12 courses and each one was more mind blowing than the next. The owner came out personally and described each course and why he chose the perfect wine to pair it with. This man lived and breathed the food and making sure that his customers were more than amazed at the food. If you are ever in Barcelona, do yourself a favor and check this incredible restaurant out.

Last thing I need to post about is not just for a specific restaurant, but a specific type of food. Jamon Iberico…we could not get enough of the fatty, nutty, melt in your mouth food. We rarely eat ham while at home, but ate this at almost every meal (along with the incredible Cava) in Barcelona. Each time we tried it was better than the last. I wish I could find jamon of this quality around here, might have to look into it in the City, hopefully I can find something that compares somewhat. If in Barcelona…eat as much of this delicacy as possible!