NoJennyNo: Food in Barcelona with Top 4 Favorite eats

There cannot be a trip to Spain without raving about its food culture.

Barcelona is thriving with busy markets and restaurants. With fresh produce readily available locally, it's easy to find good eats anywhere you go. Tapas or pinchos (or pinxto) are typical eats here. Some of the must haves are the seafood and paellas.

Fried calamari and spicy potatoes

Tapas: translates 'to cover'. Originates from taverns providing assortments of food to illiterate travelers wanting to dine but unable to read menus. They are small plates of food meant to be shared in a group.

Pinchos: meaning toothpick, are snacks often with a meat or cheese skewered on bread. The total bill is calculated by the number of sticks at the end of the meal.

Ham and bread

Omelette with potatoes

Seafood platter

Seafood paella

I ate outside almost every day and tried many new restaurants. I didn't find any great new 'gems' with the exception of one, but the old favorites proved to still be as good as I recalled.

Here's my top 4 favorites from this trip, in ascending favorite order.

4. Tapas 24

Recommended by other chefs with high ratings, this place is a must try for tapas. They offer beautiful tapas in a casual basement setting. It's typically crowded with long lines due to the small space and they do not take reservations. Food is pretty good, but expect claustrophobia and a long wait for any service.

Open kitchen

Bar seating

Ham and bread, made to order by servers not chefs

Russian potato salad

Mozzarella, ham and truffle sandwich. Must try!

Crab salad with avocado. Looked prettier than it tasted

Omelette with ham. Really good.

Spicy potatoes, so fresh it may burn your tongue

Spicy lamb skewers

Potato croquette with meat inside

Creme brulee

Lemon sorbet

Chocolate mousse with olive oil

3. Irati

I go here every trip at least once. They have separate menu for their famous pinxtos at the bar and seated table sections, but I always go to the restaurant section due to ability to reserve in advance. I with I could try their well known pinxtos, but unfortunately they are eaten standing up, first come first serve and often have an hour wait. Good thing is that the food in the seated section is always top notch.

The only thing is that it used to be my favorite restaurant, but some dishes' quality and tastes have changed. I've noticed little details like the pork isn't the same texture as before as well as the figs which used to be prepared paper-thin and now served in thick slices. It's still one of my favorites, just a couple of notches down the list.

Farm fresh menu

Home made pate

Beef ham and olives/pickled peppers

Farm tomatoes, peeled and simply drizzled in olive oil. The best!

Deep fried vegetable stuffed courgette flowers

Entrecote steak

Duck with apricots

Super tender crispy pork

Desserts are in separate menus

Home made truffles

Catalan desserts, goxua and almond biscuits

Figs

Cuajada, curd pudding bread

2. Osmosis

A fancy restaurant suitable for date night, I found this little gem after much research. They have a small number of tables and one set menu, with minimalist interior design. The dishes are derived from a mix of Spanish/European cuisines. The food was delicious and impeccably presented, modern take on the traditional without being 'too creative'. The boyfriend claimed their rice dish, similar to a local paella, was the best he's ever had.

Fresh avocado foam and a fish cracker

Foie gras with fruit jelly on top of crackers

Beef tartare with saffron foam

Seafood rice with foam, kind of like paella. Cooked to perfection with a burst of flavor that's nothing short of amazing.

A firm type of local type of fish with a chewier skin. Usually I skip the fish skin due to it being too fishy and rubbery, but this one was an exception.

Lamb with crispy skin

Pork with a sweet-savory glaze on top. My personal favorite.

Local cow and sheep cheese from light flavor to very aged.

Deconstructed apple pie with apple sorbet, yuzu, and basil foam.

Dark chocolate mousse and ice cream with crumbles

1. Montiel

My absolute favorite from this trip. I only come here once a year during the annual Barcelona trips, but the staff remembered us for raving about the food from previous visits. When we first went the restaurant seemed like a hidden gem without much reviews. I felt it was underrated with their dedication to not only tasty but health conscious local foods. They changed very few of their tasting menu throughout the years and always perfecting the main signature items.