Choosing the best restaurants in Barcelona is not an easy task in a city where world-class cuisine tops other widely known attractions like Gaudi’s famous architecture, sandy Mediterranean beaches, art museums, vibrant cultural heritage, and of course, its outstanding football team.
Eating out in Barcelona is an authentic taste experience and the favourite way of spending the evening for locals, somewhat annoyed by the never-ending stream of foodies from all over the globe.
Barcelona is the third city in Europe, as ranked by Michelin star restaurants (after Paris and London). These are all luxury restaurants whose primary gastronomic offering is their tasting menu, and they are places where you have to book well in advance if you plan to enjoy a visit.
There are literally too many dazzling restaurants and famous chefs that have taken residence in the Catalan capital to list them all, but we in Noble & Style have risen to the challenge and offer you our curated choice of the best restaurants in Barcelona. Whether you are looking for Michelin star fame, unpretentious tapas bars, or local Catalan cuisine, we’ve got you covered.
OUR CHOICE OF THE BEST RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
BEST MICHELIN STAR RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Cocina Hermanos Torres
The TV-famous Torres twins have stated a few times that their Michelin three-star restaurant is a ‘kitchen with a restaurant.’ And they mean it: you are literally seated in a kitchen with seats around it.
The main show is the preparation of dishes in public. And the main star of the show is their tasting menu, for which only seasonal and local products are used. Our opinion: One of the best Michelin Star Restaurants Barcelona.
El Celler de Can Roca
The best way to start this list is with the famous Michelin three-star restaurant, also the winner of the ‘World’s Best Restaurant’ in 2013 and 2015, as awarded by the prestigious list ‘The World’s 50 Best Restaurants’. The eminent award-winning trio of Roca brothers leads the freestyle kitchen.
Suffice it to say that many guests describe their visit to El Celler de Can Roca as the best dining experience of their life. Exceptional. Innovative. Unique. Simply one of the best restaurants in the world.
Lasarte
One of the most emblematic names on the Spanish gastronomic scene, famous chef Martín Berasategui who has been awarded 12 Michelin stars (yes, 12!), directs his own gastronomic luxury Michelin three-star project in Barcelona that shows off innovative dishes and creative presentation.
You can choose between a short or a long tasting menu to enjoy their magnificent elaborations; a top-level experience for all the senses.
ABaC
ABaC restaurant has a lot to boast about: it has been awarded three soles Repsol and three Michelin stars. It is directed by another chef of culinary TV show fame Jordi Cruz. He makes sure to source only the finest local products for his creative and original tasting menu. The restaurant shares a 19th-century estate with a luxury hotel.
Moments
How about the true Catalan cuisine dishes served in Passeig de Gràcia by award-winning chef Carme Ruscalleda? Moments has already received two Michelin stars, which is not an easy endeavour, considering that strictly local recipes are the main part of their acclaimed tasting menu.
Oria
While we are still on the Passeig de Gràcia, visiting another of Martín Berasategui’s Michelin star jewels is a must for food lovers. Oria offers innovative Basque cuisine, an astonishing and surprising personal interpretation of the most famous cuisine in Spain. The Basque and Mediterranean ingredients shine in their 14-course tasting menu!
Disfrutar
A ‘molecular gastronomy’ has brought fame to the Disfrutar’s fabulous tasting menu. The menu is presented as truly modern art, and visitors are encouraged to take photos, which they do. It is one of the most innovative restaurants in the world that proudly boasts two Michelin stars and three soles Repsol.
This restaurant originated as a spin-off from one of the most famous restaurants in the world, elBulli, a dream made true by some of its former chefs.
Hofmann
Hofmann is the Michelin star restaurant of the prestigious cooking school with the same name, boasting a mix of traditional Catalan cuisine with innovations and French haute cuisine. It offers a delicious weekly menu elaborated with care, quality and imagination.
Nowadays, it is difficult to offer elaborate quality gastronomy at competitive prices, but Hofmann restaurant has achieved it. Hofmann group director Silvia Hofmann has managed to build culinary empire with integrity.
BEST TAPAS RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Teatro Kitchen (formerly Tickets)
The Teatro Kitchen restaurant was formerly known as the legendary ‘Tickets’ (the restaurant of Albert Adrià and the Iglesias brothers, who launched Barcelona into world fame in the food scene). Open kitchens with low bars provide a fascinating spectacle: watching 30 high-end kitchen professionals at work. Teatro Kitchen offers a curated selection of its house-made tapas.
Cruix
If you are looking for creative tapas based on seasonal cuisine and an extensive wine list, Cruix is the perfect place for you. It has a tasting menu with a total of six dishes and two desserts, including the rice-based star dish. Our advice is to visit it soon before it’s awarded a Michelin star and things really take off.
BEST SPANISH RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Enoteca Paco Perez
In a Michelin two-star restaurant, you can enjoy Mediterranean haute cuisine by chef Paco Pérez (who himself has five Michelin stars). Frequently, here, chefs come out of the kitchen to explain their tasting menu dishes in detail to clients. Each dish is a discovery of flavours in a cosy and romantic setting.
Angle
Seasonal tasting menus in a Michelin two-star restaurant, directed by award-winning celebrity chef Jordi Cruz. It offers a creative tasting menu based on market products with touches of modernity in its pairings. Angle is located in the Hotel Cram Barcelona.
Fismuler
Three former Bulli chefs have combined their gastronomic knowledge in their new great eating house, which offers a market cuisine with absolute respect for products sourced from small quality local suppliers. They are proud to create ‘dishes that require no explanation once you have read the menu’.
The famous schnitzel, razor clams and cheesecake are exquisite. And don’t forget to finish with a spectacular infused coffee. Even after you are done, there’s live music, encouraging people to have some more drinks at the bar and dance after their lunch or dinner.
BEST CATALAN RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Cinc Sentits
In his Michelin two-star and two-soles Repsol restaurant, Chef Jordi Artal offers a modern and sophisticated interpretation of Catalan cuisine.
Cinc Sentits is not just a restaurant where you are going to eat, but a place where you are going to live a Catalan gastronomic experience like few others. The presentation of the tasting menu dishes is a visual delight and has the perfect rhythm.
Alkimia
In Alkimia, with one Michelin star, you can travel from the traditional past of Catalan cuisine all the way to the modern, with futuristic and creative dishes inspired by the local produce. All of this is provided by chef Jordi Vilà, awarded with the National Prize of Gastronomy in 2021.
Luxury at a moderate price. The entrance itself enforces exclusivity, as it is nothing more than a closed door with a small plaque indicating the restaurant’s name and a bell, where when you ring, they let you in only if you have a reservation.
Raó
Raó – which means ‘reason’ in Catalan – is a restaurant in the heart of Barcelona that insists on modern Catalan cuisine presented in creative, locally sourced dishes. It received a Travellers’ Choice award in 2020. The quality of the product, the preparation and the presentation are exquisite.
Teòric Taverna Gastronòmica
The degustation menu is based on a traditional Catalan cuisine concept, ‘Mar i Muntanya’ (‘Sea and Mountain’), a culinary concept based on their mix of local land-based and sea-based products. The elaborate quality of its 10-dish tasting menu is emblematic. Excellent value for money.
Casa Amàlia
Since 1950, this rustic-style restaurant has offered traditional Catalan dishes, recently with an innovative twist, based on local ingredients. The menu is extensive and delicious. Casa Amàlia is the type of restaurant that you will remember and recommend to your friends.
BEST SEAFOOD RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Estimar
Estimar defines its cuisine as the pure love for raw ingredients from the Mediterranean Sea. Directed by a chef from the El Bulli school, Rafa Zafra, it has already gained two soles Repsol and a place in the Michelin Guide. In the centre of this very discreet place, without pretensions, are the fresh fish and shellfish displayed in the kitchen window. As they are served, you can see them disappearing.
Botafumeiro
The restaurant’s very name reveals a Galician cuisine (‘Botafumeiro’), based on products sourced from the Bay of Biscay. It offers generous seafood dishes in private dining rooms. The quality of the food is in accordance with the restaurant’s great fame in the city. Botafumeiro is locally known for having arguably ‘the best seafood soup in the world’ and one of the most famous restaurants in Barcelona.
Besta
Besta amalgamates the best both seas can offer: the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean. It makes sense, knowing it’s directed by a duo of Catalan and Galician chefs, escaping the haute cuisine in which they once worked, yet to which they do not intend to return.
They bring seafood from Galicia and source the best Mediterranean fish they find in the nearest fish market. The name of the restaurant, ‘Besta’, means beast, drawing a connection with its origin, the Galician countryside.
Fiskebar
Fiskebar specializes in seafood. But expect much more than just grilled fish! Their plates combine Mediterranean and Nordic recipes; as they say “it’s the sea seen from another perspective”.
Moreover, the situation of the restaurant is excellent: in the heart of Barcelona’s Old Port. Sit on the terrace, grab a drink and relax watching probably the best sunset views in the city.
BEST DINNER RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
La Dama
Located in an apartment in the main part of a beautiful modernist building Casa Sayrach in Barcelona. Known for its superb lighting and decoration, and often described as magical, classic and modern at the same time, La Dama is the ideal place to have a romantic dinner. It offers contemporary cuisine with a French touch.
Inquiet
The menu has the hallmarks to be expected of Alejandro Goñi, an Argentine chef with more than 20 years of experience: cuisine without additives, with the seasonal product as the protagonist, and Latin, Mediterranean and Asian influences.
The fame of this small restaurant with a large repertoire of dishes and wines is growing by leaps and bounds, thanks to word of mouth from its more-than-satisfied clients.
Amar
Located in the oldest luxury hotel in the city, The Palace Barcelona (Old ‘Ritz’), the newly opened Amar restaurant is inspired by the Barcelona of the 20s, with navy blue walls and blue velvet on the seats. The seafood is provided by renowned fish suppliers. Its dishes are defined as a casual luxury that makes the customer happy. We have no doubt it will receive a Michelin star in the next edition.
Gala
Good service and even better food made by Barcelona-native chefs are the trademarks of this fun and original restaurant. It offers a Mediterranean menu with a special section of high-quality sushi in its five large and different rooms with different environments, each a dreamlike interior terrace. The originally designed entrance even has a merry-go-round. A perfect place to go with your friends.
BEST TRENDING RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Direkte Boqueria
Direkte Boqueria is perhaps the smallest restaurant in Barcelona. We are talking about the hard-to-believe size of this tiny restaurant: only 14 square meters and a single bar inside, with three tables added on a small outside terrace. Imagine how exclusive and hard-to-get each seat is, without a prior booking.
However, it has managed to enter the Michelin guide in 2022 because of its spectacular tasting menu of ten dishes and two desserts. It’s directed by Arnau Muñío, a chef who has worked with Albert Adrià.
Xavier Pellicer
Healthy cooking based on local eco products is a mantra of the World’s Best Veggie Restaurant in 2018, granted by the ‘We’re Smart Green Guide’, the world guide to green restaurants. It has also obtained two soles Repsol.
The renowned chef Xavier Pellicer proves that it is possible to eat healthily without giving up the pleasure of flavour. The vegetarian menu includes one appetizer, seven main courses, and one dessert. It’s described as spectacular in every way: the presentation, the textures, the freshness of the vegetables, the careful mix of flavours…
El Nacional
The very name of this large venue with high ceilings indicates what it is all about: Spanish grilled meats, Spanish fish and seafood and of course, exquisite tapas. It’s divided into four independent gastronomic spaces with different prices and four specialized bars, all of them integrated into the single space of an old market. The mirrors in the bathroom are famous for their ornamentation and history.
Salvaje
Salvaje is a trendy place in the Catalan capital, which fuses Japanese and Mediterranean food and boasts unique signature cocktails. It’s ideal for lovers of haute cuisine. The decor lives up to the restaurant’s name (‘Savage’). To dine here is a wholesome experience because Salvaje surrounds you in its world, both in terms of atmosphere and food. Live performances are the icing on the cake.
Enigma
Barcelona-born ex-elBulli chef Albert Adrià’s new venue, already with one Michelin star, is the evolution of the famous Tickets restaurant. Here, the famous chef is set to explore new ways of eating and drinking, with innovative and experimental food.
The authentic spectacle is on the plate. This special method of gastronomy is one Adrià has baptized as ‘fun dining’. They host a variety of dishes and wines, personalized attention and a discreet DJ. It is essential to go with an open mind.
La Balabusta
Ronit Stern, the chef of Israeli origin of this Michelin Guide restaurant, enjoys creating Middle Eastern fusion cuisine dishes that combine Sephardic and North African flavours with local Mediterranean ones.
The name of the restaurant is a word that evokes in Hebrew the figure of the Jewish ‘mamma’, and indeed, La Balabusta is a kept promise of homely food made by a caring mother. Its gastronomy is focused on seasonality, proximity, vegetables, animal welfare and crops without pesticides.
The interior is laid out as if you were inside a kitchen, and you can enjoy the smells, see the preparations and feel the hustle and bustle of the place. A true explosion of the senses.
Tunateca
If you’re fond of red tuna, then this is your place. The Tunateca offers a wide variety of plates from all over the World with red tuna as the principal ingredient. Try their gastronomic menus, Red and Blue, the Japanese version or any dish from the menu; you won’t be disappointed.
Moreover, the owners designed the interior of the restaurant so that it goes along with what you eat, so the walls seem like fish scales, and there are bunches of fish on the ceiling – all of that made with an exquisite taste.
BEST OUTDOOR & ROOFTOP RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
The Rooftop at Sir Victor
The Rooftop is the Sir Victor Hotel’s restaurant, and is one of the best rooftop restaurants Barcelona, with views of Casa Milà and Gaudí’s Sagrada Familia. Located in the heart of Barcelona (Paseo de Gracia), it offers a Mediterranean-inspired menu based on ingredients from local markets.
The music is selected by the house DJ. In a few words: ambience with an excellent view, and the perfect place to spend an evening and dance the night away. As a unique treat, we offer you a privileged look behind the bar with The Rooftop at Sir Victor’s mixologist Andrea Garcia.
Julieta’s
The offerings at this Ibiza-inspired restaurant with sea views are based on rice, Mediterranean starters, grilled meat and fresh fish. It’s perfectly located on a promenade in front of Barcelona’s San Sebastián beach. The spacious and cosy tables with armchairs are so comfortable that it is hard to leave after eating. By the way, the grilled avocado stuffed with tuna is amazing.
BEST PAELLA RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Maná 75
When you hear ‘restaurante de arroces’ in Spain, you know this describes a specialized venue for Spanish paella-type rice dishes. Maná 75 is one of the best of those in Barcelona, located on the wonderful beach of Barceloneta.
The connoisseurs know the most important ingredient for an exquisite paella is the stock. The perfect paella is cooked at just 75 °C – thus the restaurant’s name. Its large bar with 19 stoves is the largest paella-rice cooking show in Europe.
Can Majó
How about paella on the Barceloneta beach promenade in a rustic-style restaurant? Can Majó is a renowned restaurant, a true Barcelona classic, famous for its excellent paella and fresh seafood.
It has a large terrace with beautiful views of the sea. Any of the dishes deserve praise, but the menu itself and the suggestions of the day are true delicacies.
Can Solé
The cosy story of Can Solé started in 1903, by it providing lunch to the fishermen of the port of Barceloneta. Today it’s an emblematic rice restaurant on the Barceloneta beach promenade, famous for making some of the best rice dishes in Barcelona.
Secondary dishes, such as baby squid and tomato bread, are exquisitely prepared and have an excellent flavour. It is owned by Josep Maria García, the holder of the National Gastronomy Award. It has loyal customers, from families to famous Barcelona citizens.
Maris&CO
This family-owned restaurant serves (probably) the best seafood near the Sagrada Familia. The products come directly from the fish market and, we assure you, they know how to prepare them!
The paella is divine, and don’t worry if you are going to eat on your own – they also serve paella for one, which is very unusual in most restaurants. So, while planning your tourist visits across Barcelona, don’t forget to include Maris&CO on your route.
7 Portes
We are contemplating one of the most emblematic and historic restaurants in Barcelona, which was founded all the way back in 1836 by the then-famous Catalan merchant Josep Cuyás. Nowadays, it’s a real temple of rice dishes, with traditional Catalan cuisine as a co-protagonist.
It has classic decor that gives you an idea of what restaurants were like in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Great value for the price.
BEST GLUTEN-FREE PIZZERIAS IN BARCELONA
Grosso Napolitano (Senza Glutine)
One of the best artisanal pizzeria chains in the world, Grosso Napoletano, offers authentic Neapolitan pizza with thick edges and very thin dough, with ingredients brought from Naples and made in two stone and wood ovens whose fires don’t stop burning.
The original twist of its restaurant placed in “carrer de Valencia” is that its pizzas are completely gluten-free. The chain also has another pizzeria in Barcelona located on Avenida Diagonal that serves normal pizzas. This way, Grosso Napolitano has covered both gluten-free pizza recipes and traditional ones.
Its design is inspired by the industrial aesthetics of New York, with a Neapolitan touch. The pizzas are big, so when you go there, make sure you get hungry. The pure Neapolitan ‘essenza’ (essence).
Messié
This small and cosy restaurant offers 100% gluten-free Italian gastronomy (also free of cross-contamination). It’s renowned for its craft beers.
The pizza offering varies, alternating between special and traditional pizzas, cut or whole. Its home delivery service is one of the best in town. It is an ideal spot for eating something quick before continuing to drink the night away in the bars of Barcelona.
BEST ITALIAN RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Spaccanapoli
If you want to taste true Neapolitan gastronomy in Barcelona, Spaccanapoli is probably the best place to do it. Not only does it offer one of the best pizzas in the Catalan capital, but an exclusive and varied menu of delicious Neapolitan dishes crafted by a true Neapolitan chef.
A traditional kitchen that widely respects the techniques of the Naples of yesteryear. Their tiramisu is out of this world. This exquisite Neapolitan restaurant is just a stone’s throw away from the famous Arc de Triomf.
Sartoria Panatieri
A sustainable kitchen based on locally sourced produce respecting its seasonality is the essence of this artisanal pizzeria and delicatessen, one of the 50 best World pizza restaurants (as rated by the Top 50 Pizza Guide).
Everything revolves around Sartoria Panatieri’s motto: ‘From farm to pizza’. The care for local products and the commitment to their quality as the main protagonist is evident, from the starters to the main pizza dishes.
Their tasty homemade tomato sauce, an often ignored key ingredient, gives personality to the pizzas prepared and cooked in a wood oven.
Velissima
Just on the shore of Barcelona, with spectacular sea views, it’s one of the best Italian restaurants in the city. With the interiors designed to take the guests to the Amalfi Coast and the tasty plates, this spot should not be missed.
On the menu, apart from pasta and pizza, you can find traditional Italian seafood recipes adapted by the chef with his personal touch. If you want to continue partying after dinner, you’ll find music and cocktails at the in-house Club di Mare.
Parking Pizza
Another foodie spot in Barcelona that should not be missed is Parking Pizza. This industrial-designed restaurant serves one of the best pizzas in the city! You can leave your bike parked inside, have a seat, and see how the cooks prepare your meal.
Let the waiters help you choose the ingredients, as they offer a wide range of original and unexpected toppings. Oh, and finish with their famous brownie.
BEST ASIAN RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Dos Palillos
Albert Raurich was for many years the head chef of elBulli, working with Ferran Adrià. Dos Palillos is his own creative Asian fusion cuisine Michelin-starred restaurant, with two tasting menus inspired by Japan, China, Thailand and Vietnam.
We are talking Asian flavours married to traditional Spanish tapas. The attentive and friendly staff explain each dish in detail for an even more special experience. It is worth doing a tasting at the bar and seeing how the chefs work.
If you enjoy high-end creative gastronomy, Dos Palillos will provide a few unforgettable moments.
BEST MEXICAN RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
Come, by Paco Méndez
Paco Méndez is a Michelin star awarded Mexican chef (the first obtained by a Mexican cuisine restaurant in Barcelona and the second in Spain and Europe), whose new restaurant boasts Mexican haute cuisine without the almost-obligatory tasting menus. It even adds a bit of informality, such as tasty tacos.
For a few hours, you feel like you are in Mexico, experiencing its true flavours, without the spiciness taking away from the prominence of its magnificent elaborations. Intense flavours in the mouth, top-quality, carefully sourced products with very bright colours, creativity when choosing dishes and pure art when plating.
Ándele
You will feel Mexico in every detail in this modern and cosy restaurant. It offers the most typical recipes of the cuisine of this country and a lunch menu that is well worth it.
To maintain the traditional flavour of this cuisine, they use fresh and high-quality products. You can ask for corn tortillas if you have any type of gluten intolerance.
The portions are generous, and all the cocktails are delicious. It’s a perfect place for a gathering of friends and even for an intimate dinner.
BEST STEAKHOUSE RESTAURANTS IN BARCELONA
MR PORTER
Another high-end restaurant and lounge placed in the renovated Sir Victor hotel, MR PORTER is a modern steakhouse with Amsterdam origins that lives up to its slogan: ‘Exploring the borders between dinner and sinner’.
MR PORTER completely transforms the traditional brasserie, raising it to a new level of elegance and style. The absolute star of its varied grilled meat offer is the exquisite Japanese wagyu, cut to a full 1,100 grams.
The tables are spacious and there are areas surrounded by comfortable leather sofas.
Solomillo
The Solomillo restaurant, a true meat lover’s paradise, offers selected high-quality meats available by weight that you personalize to taste with different sauces and delicious accompaniments.
We recommend a generous sirloin steak (‘Solomillo’ – the very restaurant’s name) or an amazing beef Stroganoff. All of that is paired with excellent accompaniments and rich starters.
Located on the terrace of the central Alexandra Hotel, this restaurant is not to be confused with the delicatessen of the same name on the ground floor next to the hotel.
Best Restaurants in Barcelona: the Bottom Line
Barcelona is among the world’s leading metropolises in terms of culinary experiences and gastronomic offerings. Being one of the world’s great dining capitals and a true food lover’s city, there’s a stunning choice of restaurants that you will be able to navigate with ease, by following our recommendations.
Before you decide on where to eat out, you have to find a place to stay. We’ve selected the most exclusive Barcelona hotels for the perfect city trip. Read on, choose your accommodation, and then reserve your table at some of the best restaurants in Barcelona.
