Devouring vegetarian food in Barcelona

Being a foodie and a vegetarian, I’m always trying to explore local options while travelling. Before going to Spain, I really didn’t know anything about the Spanish cuisine apart from Tortillas (the potato omlette) and had heard a lot about Paella. That was pretty much it. So. I was really curious to see what the locals generally liked and what options were available for vegetarian food in Barcelona.

On my first day in Spain, I couchsurfed with a lovely couple who waited for me to have dinner and I could not have asked for a warmer welcome in Barcelona!

While everything was delicious, this particular Romesco Sauce is what I loved the most!

It tasted so good that I really wanted to buy a few of these before flying back. However, I didn’t manage to, and the only sauce available at the airport was a Spanish Salsa Brava, that doesn’t taste half as good:( If any of you visit Spain, I highly recommend trying it out…and getting one back for me !

After visiting some of the cultural gems of the city the next day(Pre-TBEX tours), I attended the TBEX event in Costa Brava and had a great time with all the sessions,networking and ofcourse..food! The guacomole that came with the Tortilla chips was different and absolutely amazing!It had me hooked the entire evening!

Good thing that I had planned on spending 3 days in Barcelona after the event, as I then got around to exploring the city. As I mentioned earlier, I had heard so much about Paella that I wanted to try it out once for sure. After being disappointed with a lot of restaurants for not having vegetarian paella(sea food paella is the most popular), I finally found a reasonably priced one at Restaurant Siempreviva(near Barceloneta Beach), and ordered Sangria again. The quantity was so much that I could not finish it up,even though I was super hungry. A quick shoutout to the wonderful management of the restaurant, if they ever read this. Kudos to them for being extremely understanding and helpful when my debit card refused to work in their card reader AND the nearest ATM. I had lost my wallet and was only left with one card and some cash.My card somehow didn’t work at that point and the cash wasn’t enough to pay the whole bill.They were aware of the pickpocketing situation in the city and I was so touched to see their kindness and helpful attitude.Ultimately, my card worked at a machine the next morning, and I went back to pay up the deficit amount. Oh, and a special mention of the most wonderful burger I had at a small cafe near the Sagrada Familia. The lady was freshly making the burger, based on the fillings you mention on the order form!It was the first time I had guacomole in a burger, and it was lip-smackingly delicious!

Finally on my last day, I had the opportunity take the Devour Barcelona Food Tour with the lovely guide Renee. This was really one of the best decisions I had taken, with respect to selecting tours and planning my stay.

So, what is special about this tour is that they take you through the streets of Gracia, a less touristic part of the city which was an independent village in earlier times. Many of the restaurants and cafes are family-owned and there is a strong sense of community prevalent even today. We met at 10 am at Passeig de Gracia 108, a popular shopping street,and then walked towards the Gracia neighbourhood. I was very excited as we were supposed to try out 12 different dishes at 9 places. I had also specified my vegetarian status in advance, and was really looking forward to all the food we would devour! When Renee asked us which Spanish dish came to our mind when we thought of Spanish cuisine, I couldn’t help saying olives and Romesco Sauce!

Our first stop was Can Tosca, where we tried out a grilled botifarra sandwich(I had a vegetarian equivalent) and Cava, the special champagne-like drink from Spain. What a wonderful way to start your day! Can Tosca was an interesting place, as the interiors were completely covered with old black and white pictures of members of the family who own it. It was interesting to see how much they value their history and traditions and Renee told us quite a bit about the sisters who run the place now.

Next we headed over to Mercat de l’Abaceria Central, the local market, and made two stops: one for olive and salt cod skewer and another for sampling spanish and catalan cheese. Walking through the local market was an enjoyable experience, and I just wouldn’t have discovered this place if it hadn’t been for this tour.

After exploring the local market, it was time to taste some of the organic Spanish extra virgin oils.We went into Oli Sal, and tasted three kinds of olive oils, while Renee told us more about how they are made and how all the olive oils that are supposedly ‘extra virgin’ are not necessarily of good quality.

By this time I had already started feeling full, and was wondering how I would manage eating my way through 5 more stops. We walked over to l’Anxoveta and then learnt how to make our own pa amb tomaquet (sandwich with special tomatoes and olive oil) as Carlos, the jovial owner demonstrated how to do so. We also got served with “Bomba”, a dish that was clearly the favourite for many of the non-vegetarians. Meanwhile, I had patata bravas with salsa romesco sauce, and we all had a glass of beer to go along with the food.

Now I have mentioned earlier my love for Romesco Sauce and I love potato wedges and fries, but for the first time, I had to leave food I love, as I was so full !

With a heavy heart (and stomach), I left and then moved on to try out some handmade Syrian pastry.Visiting a Syrian shop on a Spanish food tour may seem strange, but as Renee had mentioned earlier, there is a strong sense of community in Gracia, and the owner of Pastisseria Principe had been running this shop for three decades or so now. His vacation to Barcelona turned into a life-changing experience, when he fell in love, got married and decided to stay back. His team makes thousands of these desserts every day, and it is so difficult to choose one among all the different flavours available. They are all his children, he says, and loves them all equally!

Gracia was an interesting neighbourhood, and it was fascinating to learn about its history and traditions, while walking through. I had posted pictures of some of the masks and giants we had seen, in my Myths,Legends and folklore from Spain blog post.

Soon it was 1 pm, and for many of the locals, it was time for vermouth! We headed over to Bodega Ca’l Pep to try out local Perruchi red vermouth with pickled anchovies. This was our third alcoholic drink of the day already.and it tasted good by the way.It was a sweet wine, and was quite smooth. Interesting fact: this bar used to be the living space of the owner,who later converted it into this arrangement. No wonder the place had such a homely and relaxed environment!

So , with that we covered seven of the nine places on our list. Next up was La Botigueta del Bon Menjar, a small shop where we stopped to have ‘Escalivada and romesco “pinxto” ‘ (similar to olive sampling with salsa) and meatballs in bean and pea gravy (as usual, I had a vegetarian equivalent:) ) If you are looking for a small place offering homemade traditional Catalan cuisine, you should certainly check this out. They had many more dishes!

Finally, it was time for our last stop, ‘Pastisseria Ideal’, where we sat down for coffee and mini cremat. Now this, I think, was my favourite! The cremat tasted so good! It seemed to melt in my mouth. I would love to have them again.

So, by the end of the tour, we had spent the most memorable 4 hours, eating our way through Gracia! It was an incredible experience and I would totally recommend it to you if you would like to get familiar with the local Catalan cuisine and would like to get suggestions about more places to eat at and visit.

Renee had given us handouts, featuring some of their recommended cafes and dishes all over Barcelona, and there was also a basic guide to ordering food and drinks in Catalan.

Tips for food tour in Barcelona:

• Consider taking this tour at the beginning of your trip; that way you will have a better idea of what to explore next and what to order!
• Please DO NOT have breakfast before this tour. You will be so full by the end of 4 hours that you would certainly repent the decision of having breakfast.                                                                                                                   So, enjoy your time in Spain and let me know which dishes were your favourite!

 

Devour Barcelona Food Tour is available from Tuesday – Saturday at 10 am. It costs € 65 per adult and € 45 per child, 12 and under.Devour Spain food tours are also available in Madrid, Malaga and Seville.You can also find them on Facebook and Twitter. I was a guest on this tour and am very thankful to Lauren and Renee for the fabulous experience.

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