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Number 19 of 20 in Barcelona

Els Quatre Gats

Els Quatre Gats opened in 1897, run by Pere Romeu and paid for largely by the painter Ramon Casas, on the model of the Chat Noir in Paris. The young Picasso had his first exhibition in its main room.

What it is
Café and restaurant
Opened
1897, as the artists' café: it closed in 1903 and was reopened in the late twentieth century
Area
Casa Martí
Nearest museum
Palau de la Música Catalana, 250 m

Barcelona this week

    What Els Quatre Gats is known for

    1. The Casa Martí

      The café is on the ground floor of the Casa Martí, an early building by Josep Puig i Cadafalch, in brick and carved stone, with a wrought-iron lantern at the corner.

    2. Casas, Rusiñol and Utrillo

      The painters Ramon Casas, Santiago Rusiñol and Miquel Utrillo were behind it, and it became the meeting place of Barcelona's modernista artists.

    3. Picasso's first show

      Picasso began coming here in 1899, at seventeen, and held his first exhibition in the main room.

    What to know

    • It opened in 1897 and closed in 1903
    • The café was later reopened and restored to its old look
    • Ramon Casas's painting of himself and Romeu on a tandem hangs here in copy; the original is in the MNAC

    Where Els Quatre Gats is

    Address

    Carrer de Montsió 3
    08002 Barcelona, Spain

    Nearest station

    Urquinaona, on lines 1 and 4, about three minutes away

    Museums and sights nearby

    Distances are in a straight line from the restaurant.

    Opened in 1897

    The café opened on 12 June 1897 and closed for lack of money in 1903.

    It was reopened in the late twentieth century, restored to look as it did, and is now a restaurant.

    Els Quatre Gats: common questions

    Where is Els Quatre Gats?
    At Carrer de Montsió 3, in the Ciutat Vella district of Barcelona. The nearest station is Urquinaona, on lines 1 and 4, about three minutes away.
    Which museums and sights are near Els Quatre Gats?
    Palau de la Música Catalana is 250 m away, Picasso Museum is 600 m away, Casa Batlló is 1.0 km away. Distances are in a straight line from the restaurant.
    What is Els Quatre Gats known for?
    The Casa Martí, Casas, Rusiñol and Utrillo, Picasso's first show. The artists' café of 1897 in Puig i Cadafalch's Casa Martí, where the young Picasso showed his work for the first time.
    When did Els Quatre Gats open?
    In 1897, as the artists' café: it closed in 1903 and was reopened in the late twentieth century. It opened in 1897 and closed in 1903.

    What visitors say about Els Quatre Gats

    Rating from Google

    4.1

    8,710 ratings on Google

    Google's figures as read on 25 October 2026.

    Read every review on Google

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