A sandwich and a drink, it’s a meal combo we’ve all enjoyed since elementary school. But like many culinary and beverage pursuits, there are a couple of Barcelona restaurants who are currently elevating the simple concept to new heights.
On one end of the spectrum sits La Xampanyeria, a bustling bar situated a stone’s throw from the Barceloneta metro station. The standing-room-only space serves bottles and glasses of their own house Cava, Can Paixano, which comes in six varieties, alongside classic tapas and sandwiches. The walls behind the bar are covered in menus, which include a variety of house specialty sandwiches that are basically made up of meat and cheese, or meat, meat, and meat in the case of our personal favorite lomo, york, y foie gras. Sandwiches run between €2 and €3.50, which means you and a friend can down a bottle of bubbly and two sandwiches for under €15–and leave significantly more merry than when you entered.
On the more inventive side of the Barcelona drink and sandwich destinations is Quimet & Quimet. Located in Poble-Sec, wine and spirit bottles fill the walls of the snug and boisterous restaurant, which hums from open to close. The bar boasts over 500 bottles of wine, along with a variety of spirits–including a particularly intriguing selection of gins–and, of course, vermouth. The restaurant is best known for montaditos, small open-face Spanish sandwiches. The options are intriguing and madely with top quality ingredients. Favorites include a combo of salmon, yogurt, and truffle honey; muscles, caviar, and tomato; tomato, Ventresca tuna, and uni.
If you’re looking to explore Barcelona’s blossoming cocktail scene, we recommend heading over to El Born. Located next to the winding Gothic, a wide array of top-notch drinks stops fill the streets with energy and creativity.
If you’re in San Francisco hankering for some Barcelona grub, Chef Jason Fox has turned the Proper Hotel’s former coffee bar, La Bande, into a gin and tapas bar.