GR8 2CU BCN: Hot tapas and cold cava

Probably every day of our visit to Barcelona we found ourselves comparing aspects of the city to Madrid and debating the merits of the two rivals. One key consideration for us when visiting any place is the quality (and cost) of food and drink. Not only because like everyone else we want to be well fed and watered on our travels, but also because we usually come back from our trips with our bags stuffed with new ingredients and our heads full of recipe ideas to try at home.

Thus far our meals in Barcelona had been rather hit and miss, although to save funds we were eating breakfast every day at our holiday flat, where we'd return most evenings for a meal, so we weren't eating out as often as we had on our trips to Madrid. I also have to admit I did not map out as many eateries as I would normally do ahead of a big trip like this by browsing Tripadvisor and reading specialist dining out guides. It was disappointing that at least two or three of the places which I had mapped out had gone out of business or changed their offering by the time we found them. Never mind, we did find some wonderful places to eat and drink, most of which I'll review here.

Barcelona is blessed with not one but two central food markets: the Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria (or simply 'La Boqueria') which sits right on Las Ramblas and Mercat Santa Caterina, which is a bit more off the beaten track in the Barri Gotic. Naturally the central location of La Boqueria makes it touristy and pricey, but it's well worth a look for the stupendous displays and abundant colours alone.

The front of La Boqueria seems to have nothing but fruit juice stalls. Here, the counters are covered with mounds of crushed ice where dozens of clear plastic glasses are kept chilled, each filled to the brim with fresh fruit juice. At the time these were only €1 each, with some merchants offering a 'buy two, get one free' deal. On a sunny day a cool fruit juice is hard to resist and it looked like everyone had one in their hands.

Gimmicks like this aside, La Boqueria is a serious market hall in the business of promoting some of the country's finest wares. Impeccable fruit and veg is stacked high...

you can hardly see the staff for all the meat and cheese...

some stalls sell every bit of the pig aside from the oink...

and you can choose to have your small animals skinned...

or left furry and feathered. Good thing I am a pheasant plucker!

Compared to Madrid's central San Miguel market, the focus at La Boqueria is on shopping, not eating. Aside from the fruit juice stalls, there were only a handful of counters serving up food to eat at the counter or to take away. It was at one of these at the back where we found an organic vegetarian stall called, oddly enough, Organic. First, we were asked to pick our mains (falafel for me, spicy veg paella for Christian; I believe a bean burrito was another option). Then on top of this the friendly man behind the counter piled on salad leaves, tomato, couscous, hummus, roast peppers, cheese, deep-fried croquettes and other goodies. This large carton of food and a drink (your choice of either a bottle of water or a bottle of beer) cost us €10 each. Not the cheapest lunch we could have had (in a country famous for its cheap lunches), but it was filling, tasty and fresh. Like their motto says, Organic is Ogasmic!

Speaking of cheap lunches, on another day while wandering around with our Spanish friend Jose, we found a harbourside Mexican eatery called Casa Mexicana. It's probably one of the few times I've been glad to have taken a leaflet from someone in the street. The flyer promised a 3-course lunch with drinks for less than €10, which is quite typical actually for most of the country, but as it is rare though to find Mexican food in Spain we thought it would be worth a try. The restaurant turned out be in a lovely position, on the second floor of a shopping mall's open-air balcony, giving us a great view of the city's marina. Even in early November the sun was shining and it was pure bliss to sit in the sea breeze and watch the masts of hundreds of sailboats bob on the water below. I don't actually recall what we ate, but it must have been good or else I would have given them a stinging write-up. Probably not worth the trip down to the waterside, but it was more down to earth and friendlier than places nearby if you do find yourself hungry in that part of town.

At one point during our visit we popped into Mercat Santa Caterina, which is a lot smaller and more geared up for the locals than the more famous La Boqueria. It has been renovated recently and now sits under a colourful wavy roof. Inside it was airy and spacious, with wider aisles and higher ceilings than La Boqueria which made for a more relaxing experience. No hassle to buy any fruit juice here! Although not nearly as boisterous, it was plenty busy, with every single seat taken at its food counters and what appeared to be a ritzy restaurant alongside. I didn't check, but I bet food prices are probably cheaper here. Certainly judging by its popularity among the locals, this looks like an excellent place for some market-fresh specialties (despite the rubber chickens on display).

We will definitely go back on our next trip and will be more persistent in finding room at one of the counters.

Leaving Mercat Santa Caterina a bit hungry and thirsty, we pitched up at a tapas joint called El Bitxo near the city's gorgeous concert hall, at 9 Calle Verdaguer I Callis. Squeezing in, we found only four tables and nabbed one. There was no menu, only an assortment of hand-written notices here and there on the walls. We ordered a platter of meat and cheese for €16. This came with spicy chorizo, fuet (a local cured sausage), a fragrant truffle cheese, a colourful basil cheese, a smoked cheese and what we eventually established was sheep cheese. The waitress was describing each of these, but forgot the word when she reached the last one. 'Beef?' she asked herself aloud, before going 'baaaaaaa....'. 'Sheep?' we said. 'Yes,' she replied, 'ship!'

To wash all this down we had bottles of Mortiz beer, which despite the Germanic name turned out to be brewed locally. These cost €2 each and were very strong at 5.4%. In a nod to the concert hall right around the corner, the bar was papered with old sheet music, plus had an assortment of fans hanging by strings so customers could keep themselves cool on a hot day. It was a lovely spot and quite cozy inside with relaxing jazz music in the background and the scent of lilies flooding the air. We would have lingered for longer, but it was getting dark and it was the night of the 'magic fountain' light show.

Believe it or not, we found a dining spot even better than El Bitxo, so click back soon to find out about that and to see the magic fountain in action!