20 tables near the museums, rankedBest restaurants in Barcelona
Where to eat in Barcelona before or after a museum: the 20 tables with a history within reach of them, the old taverns of the Gothic Quarter and the Raval, the chocolate houses and granjas, the rice of the port and the Barceloneta, and the modernista bars, in the order their customers rate them.
- 20
- Tables near the museums, ranked
- 1786
- The oldest: Can Culleretes
- 6
- Within 500 metres of a museum
- 4.7
- The highest rating: El Xampanyet
The ranking for Barcelona
Show
All 20
14.7
El Xampanyet
Tapas bar, Born
A tiled bar of 1929 on the Carrer de Montcada, a few doors from the Picasso Museum, named for its house sparkling wine.
4.7
6,612 Google ratings
- Opened
- 1929, by its own account: a tavern is recorded here in 1898
- Nearest museum
- Picasso Museum, 100 m
24.7
La Plata
Tapas bar, Gothic Quarter
A tapas bar of 1945 on the Carrer de la Mercè that serves four tapas, much the same four it served when it opened.
34.7
Casa Leopoldo
Restaurant, Raval
A restaurant of 1929 in the Raval, the favourite of Manuel Vázquez Montalbán and of his detective, Pepe Carvalho.
44.7
The street the restaurant is on.. Picture: Enfo, CC BY-SA 3.0
Agut
Restaurant, Gothic Quarter
A family restaurant of 1924 on a lane of the lower Gothic Quarter, a house of traditional Catalan cooking.
54.6
A sandwich and cava at the bar.. Picture: robertorodriguex, CC BY-SA 2.0
Can Paixano
Cava bar, Born
A cava bar of 1969 near the port, where the house cava is poured with small sandwiches.
64.6
La Cova Fumada
Tavern, Barceloneta
A tavern of the Barceloneta with no sign on its door, open since about 1944, where the bomba, the city's fried potato ball, is said to have been made first.
74.6
Quimet & Quimet
Bodega, Poble-sec
A wine bodega of 1914 in the Poble-sec, its walls stacked with bottles, known for small open sandwiches built on preserves.
4.6
5,641 Google ratings
- Opened
- 1914, by its own account
- Nearest museum
- Fundació Joan Miró, 750 m
84.6
Fonda España
Restaurant, Raval
The dining room Lluís Domènech i Montaner designed in 1903 for the Hotel España, with Ramon Casas's paintings and Eusebi Arnau's fireplace.
4.6
1,435 Google ratings
- Opened
- 1859, as a fonda: the dining room is of 1903
- Nearest museum
- Palau de la Música Catalana, 900 m
94.5
Mesón del Café
Café, Gothic Quarter
A small café of 1909 near the Plaça de Sant Jaume, with a front built to look like a country house.
104.4
7 Portes
Restaurant, Porxos d'en Xifré
A café of 1836 under the arcades of the Porxos d'en Xifré, by the port, a restaurant since 1929 and known for its rice.
114.4
Granja Viader
Granja, Raval
A dairy of 1870 on a lane behind La Rambla, where Cacaolat, the bottled chocolate milk, was first served in 1931.
4.4
4,459 Google ratings
- Opened
- 1870, by its own account
- Nearest museum
- Palau de la Música Catalana, 650 m
124.4
Bar Marsella
Bar, Raval
The oldest bar in Barcelona, open since 1820 in the Raval, with its dust, its chandeliers and its absinthe.
4.4
3,885 Google ratings
- Opened
- 1820
- Nearest museum
- Palau de la Música Catalana, 1.1 km
134.4
London Bar
Bar, Raval
A modernista bar of 1910 on the Carrer Nou de la Rambla, the meeting place of the circus people and of the city's artists.
4.4
1,153 Google ratings
- Opened
- 1910, the bar itself gives 1909
- Nearest museum
- Picasso Museum, 1.0 km
144.3
Can Culleretes
Restaurant, Gothic Quarter
The oldest restaurant in Barcelona by its own account, on a lane off La Rambla since 1786, first a chocolate house and later a dining room.
4.3
6,925 Google ratings
- Opened
- 1786, by its own account
- Nearest museum
- Picasso Museum, 700 m
154.3
Los Caracoles
Restaurant, Gothic Quarter
A tavern of 1835 on the Carrer dels Escudellers, run by the Bofarull family ever since, known for its snails and its chickens roasting on the spit.
4.3
6,608 Google ratings
- Opened
- 1835, by its own account
- Nearest museum
- Picasso Museum, 700 m
164.3
Can Solé
Restaurant, Barceloneta
A restaurant of 1903 in the Barceloneta, cooking rice and seafood for the fishermen first and for the city since, with Josep Pla among its regulars.
174.3
Casa Almirall
Bar, Raval
A bar of 1860 in the Raval, with its modernista counter, shelves and painted glass still in place.
184.2
Granja Dulcinea
Granja, Carrer de Petritxol
A chocolate house of 1941 on the Carrer de Petritxol, the narrow street of the city's chocolate shops.
194.1
Els Quatre Gats
Café and restaurant, Casa Martí
The artists' café of 1897 in Puig i Cadafalch's Casa Martí, where the young Picasso showed his work for the first time.
4.1
8,710 Google ratings
- Opened
- 1897, as the artists' café: it closed in 1903 and was reopened in the late twentieth century
- Nearest museum
- Palau de la Música Catalana, 250 m
204.0
Cafè de l'Òpera
Café, La Rambla
A café on La Rambla, opposite the Liceu opera house, open since 1929 in a room of mirrors and painted panels.
How long they have been open
Each bar runs from the year a restaurant opened to today. The oldest on the list opened 240 years ago, and 8 of the 20 were already open in 1900.
- Can Culleretes1786, by its own account
- Bar Marsella1820
- Los Caracoles1835, by its own account
- 7 Portes1836
- Fonda España1859, as a fonda: the dining room is of 1903
- Casa Almirall1860
- Granja Viader1870, by its own account
- Els Quatre Gats1897, as the artists' café: it closed in 1903 and was reopened in the late twentieth century
- Can Solé1903
- Mesón del Café1909
- London Bar1910, the bar itself gives 1909
- Quimet & Quimet1914, by its own account
- Agut1924
- El Xampanyet1929, by its own account: a tavern is recorded here in 1898
- Casa Leopoldo1929
- Cafè de l'Òpera1929
- Granja Dulcinea1941
- La Cova Fumada1944, about
- La Plata1945
- Can Paixano1969
How near they are to a museum
For each restaurant, the museum or sight it is nearest to, and how far it is in a straight line. Nearest first: the top of the list is where to go when you come out hungry.
- El XampanyetPicasso Museum, 100 m
- Els Quatre GatsPalau de la Música Catalana, 250 m
- Mesón del CaféPicasso Museum, 350 m
- 7 PortesPicasso Museum, 400 m
- Can PaixanoPicasso Museum, 450 m
- AgutPicasso Museum, 500 m
- La PlataPicasso Museum, 550 m
- Granja DulcineaPalau de la Música Catalana, 600 m
- Granja ViaderPalau de la Música Catalana, 650 m
- Can CulleretesPicasso Museum, 700 m
- Los CaracolesPicasso Museum, 700 m
- Cafè de l'ÒperaPalau de la Música Catalana, 750 m
- Quimet & QuimetFundació Joan Miró, 750 m
- Fonda EspañaPalau de la Música Catalana, 900 m
- Can SoléPicasso Museum, 950 m
- La Cova FumadaPicasso Museum, 1.0 km
- Casa AlmirallPalau de la Música Catalana, 1.0 km
- London BarPicasso Museum, 1.0 km
- Casa LeopoldoPalau de la Música Catalana, 1.0 km
- Bar MarsellaPalau de la Música Catalana, 1.1 km
The track is 3 kilometres long. A restaurant inside a museum or a monument has almost no bar at all.
What diners say
Each restaurant's overall rating on Google, and how many people have given one. The longer the bar, the more people have eaten there and said so.
- 7 Portes4.425,264 Google ratings
- Can Paixano4.610,096 Google ratings
- Els Quatre Gats4.18,710 Google ratings
- Can Culleretes4.36,925 Google ratings
- El Xampanyet4.76,612 Google ratings
- Los Caracoles4.36,608 Google ratings
- La Cova Fumada4.65,789 Google ratings
- Quimet & Quimet4.65,641 Google ratings
- Granja Viader4.44,459 Google ratings
- La Plata4.74,147 Google ratings
- Bar Marsella4.43,885 Google ratings
- Granja Dulcinea4.23,884 Google ratings
- Cafè de l'Òpera4.02,643 Google ratings
- Can Solé4.32,086 Google ratings
- Fonda España4.61,435 Google ratings
- London Bar4.41,153 Google ratings
- Mesón del Café4.51,109 Google ratings
- Casa Almirall4.3968 Google ratings
- Casa Leopoldo4.7957 Google ratings
- Agut4.7832 Google ratings
Read on Google Maps. A famous café is rated by a great many visitors who came for the name, which is why the best known are not the best rated. Ratings change, and so will this.
Where they are
Each number is a restaurant, by its place in the ranking. The yellow squares are the museums and sights this site has a guide to. The blue is the sea, the green blocks the parks, and each square of the grid is one kilometre.
- 1El Xampanyet
- 2La Plata
- 3Casa Leopoldo
- 4Agut
- 5Can Paixano
- 6La Cova Fumada
- 7Quimet & Quimet
- 8Fonda España
- 9Mesón del Café
- 107 Portes
- 11Granja Viader
- 12Bar Marsella
- 13London Bar
- 14Can Culleretes
- 15Los Caracoles
- 16Can Solé
- 17Casa Almirall
- 18Granja Dulcinea
- 19Els Quatre Gats
- 20Cafè de l'Òpera
River and green areas: © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Where to eat in Barcelona: common questions
- Which is the best restaurant in Barcelona?
- Of the 20 on this list, El Xampanyet: 4.7 out of 5 from 6,612 ratings on Google. La Plata and Casa Leopoldo come next. The order on this page follows that rating and nothing else.
- Where can you eat near the Sagrada Família?
- Els Quatre Gats, 2.0 km away; El Xampanyet, 2.2 km away; Mesón del Café, 2.3 km away; Granja Viader, 2.3 km away. Distances are in a straight line.
- Which is the oldest restaurant in Barcelona?
- Of those on this list, Can Culleretes, which dates itself to 1786, by its own account.
- Which are the famous cafés of Barcelona?
- Can Paixano, Mesón del Café, Granja Viader, Bar Marsella, London Bar, Casa Almirall, Granja Dulcinea, Els Quatre Gats and Cafè de l'Òpera are the cafés and tea rooms on this list.
- How is the list made?
- The restaurants are chosen by this site: famous tables with a history, within reach of the museums. Their order is not chosen. It follows each one's overall rating on Google, and where two are level, the one more people have rated comes first. No restaurant pays to be listed or to be higher.
Things to do in Barcelona
- 1Stand inside Gaudí's forest of stone at the Sagrada FamíliaEixampleChurch, 1.5 to 2.5 hours, ticket with a start time, sold online
- 2Sit on Gaudí's mosaic bench at Park GüellGràciaGarden, 1 to 2 hours, ticket with a start time for the monumental area
- 3Walk through the house of bones at Casa BatllóPasseig de GràciaMonument, 1 to 1.5 hours, ticket
- 4Walk among the chimney warriors on La Pedrera's roofPasseig de GràciaMonument, 1 to 1.5 hours, ticket
Where to stay in Barcelona
- Majestic Hotel & Spa Barcelona4.7Five-star hotel, Passeig de Gràcia
- Mandarin Oriental, Barcelona4.7Five-star hotel, Passeig de Gràcia
- El Palace Barcelona4.6Five-star hotel, Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes
- Cotton House Hotel4.6Five-star hotel, Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes
How the ranking is made
Which restaurants are on the list is this site's choice: famous tables with a history, within reach of the museums. Their order is not. It follows each one's overall rating on Google, highest first, and where two are level, the one more people have rated comes first. No restaurant has paid to be here or to be higher.
No prices are given, because they change, and no stars, for the same reason. The button on each restaurant's page leads to its own site, where the menu and the bookings are.