Mobile World Congress in Barcelona - Restaurants near Plaza España (Barcelona)



Picture of Plaza España by Yurivane89 in Wikimedia Commons
Photo License Creative Commons

The Mobile World Congress 2014 will take place 24 – 27 February 2014 in Barcelona. The venue of the MWC is in Fira Gran Via with good connection to Fira Montjuïc, near Plaza España, a place where I don’t normally go to eat. If I go there, it’s usually to visit CaixaForum, MNAC or the Van der Rohe pavilion. 

I can not make any suggestions for Fira Gran Via, I am afraid. Still, I think I can make a few suggestions in the surrounding of Fira Montjuïc. 

First suggestion: avoid the upper floor restaurants at the Arenas Shopping Center. These are just a trap for tourist. If you want to see the view, go and have a beer but try not to eat. If you feel you have to eat there, there are some fast-food restaurants in the underground floor such as UDON, which are ok.

Second suggestion and last (for now), if you want to eat in a posh place and have a view, remember Restaurant VISUAL offers both. It is in the upper floor of Hotel Torre Catalunya in Plaça de Sants, just a few minutes from the MWC venue.

Restaurant Visual website



P.S. This post included a suggestion to visit RAFI, a small family-owned restaurant, which offered the best cous-cous in town. Unfortunately, Rafi and his husband - Mohammed - retired and the restaurant has changed hands, philosophy and menu. What can we say? It is a pity! Rafi / Mohammed: If you ever read this, thank you for the pleasure your food and tea has provided us. Now we regret not having eaten there more often! 

LA BARCELONETA: RESTAURANT CAN MAÑO

Today I was having lunch at CAN MAÑO, and I thought it was worth mencioning the place in this blog. It is a small, simple restaurant. The common "bar" we used to have in every corner. Now these

bars are becoming extinct, in favour of more modern options: gastro pubs, gourment hamburgueserías, tapas de luxe, ... places that claim to be "authentic" but are in fact 100% focused to tourists. That is why CAN MAÑO is worth mentioning: because it resists. Nor its furniture, or the food they serve, or the waiters have yet adapted to the tourism flooding that is quickly killing what La Barceloneta was once upon a time.

Well, let's focus on food. CAN MAÑO strenghts lie on fried fish: fresh, local, well priced. In our case today: one plate sardinas plancha, one plate molls, one plate mairas, bread, one bottle white wine, side dish of fried aubergines and green peppers, one bottle water plus one cortado. It was more than enough for two people. All for 28€. When you think in terms of quality, it is a fair price.

If you are in La Barceloneta, it is really a place where you should go. They are open from 8 am if you feel like having a earthy breakfast.

CAN MAÑO
c/Baluard 12 (very near to the market square)


I didn't dare take photos myself, but you can find a nice choice in these sites:
http://oohlalabites.blogspot.com.es/2012/01/can-mano-in-barcelona.html
http://barcelona-guide.info/es/restaurante-can-mano

BARCELONA APPS: PROXIMO BUS BARCELONA among others

The world seems to be drowned with apps these days. Some are very useful. Some others are less useful. Of course, Apps on Barcelona are popping up everywhere.

Here is a web page with APPs on BCN. Some claim to be “official”. I am sorry, I didn’t try any of them so I can not tell you if they are useful or not.

http://apps4bcn.cat/en/esp/experts/index/filter:AZ/Category:all/pagina:2/

And Barcelona Turisme has also published some APPS specifically addressed to visitors. You may find them in: 
http://apps.barcelonaturisme.com/?lang=en

But here is an APP I use so I can tell you for sure it is useful:

Próximo bus Barcelona


Bus stop in Plaça Molina

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cat.ereza.properbusbcn&hl=es

It will help you locating and using buses in Barcelona. Plus: it has a juicy story behind (It was “prosecuted” by the city council for using public data. Luckily, reason and public pressure imposed and we can continue enjoying this app).

I don't think they have an English version but it's quite intuitive so, that shouldn't be a problem. 

I hope you will find it useful too.

Festes de Santa Eulàlia - Saint patron of Barcelona (February 7, 8, 9, 12, 2014)

Tomorrow Barcelona starts the Festes de Santa Eulàlia in honour of the city saint co-patron. If you happen to be in Barcelona, don’t miss the opportunity to enjoy some of the most traditional events in the town such as “correfocs”.

Here is the council programm:

http://santaeulalia.bcn.cat/

And here a few data about the unfortunate death of the Saint and the main points of interest related to her in Barcelona:

http://www.localnomad.com/en/blog/2013/03/11/mystery-tour-of-santa-eulalia-in-barcelona/


It is also worth a visit to the Gothic crypt devoted to her in the Cathedral. The crypt is accessed by a wide staircase under an almost flat arch, behind the high altar. Inside the crypt, there is a huge flat vault with twelve archs sealed with a big keystone. It is uncommon to have a crypt in a Gothic cathedral. In this case, it is believed that it exists because the former Romanesque cathedral already had a crypt devoted to Santa Eulàlia.    

SUPERMARKETS IN BARCELONA - My Top 5

With a growing number of people who visits Barcelona and stays in an apartment rather than in a hotel, choosing the right place to buy can make a difference. Barcelona has plenty of supermarkets and small convenience stores in every corner, except maybe for the old town where convenience stores have taken over the place. Obviously, quality and price varies hugely from discount supermarkets (such as Dia) to classy “gourmet stores”.

A Bonpreu store in Carrer Verdi (Gràcia)

In my neighborhood (near Sagrada Familia), there is almost a store from each important supermarket chain and plenty of small convenience stores. Most of them can also be found all over Barcelona. In my ranking, the best places to buy are.

        BON PREU STORES IN BARCELONA 

It is a middle range supermarket, with all the top brands plus their own brand products. They have also a good choice of local products including ready to eat food (fideuà, croquetes) and good local wines (they usually have Les Sorts, a very affordable – and good - red wine). It is a good choice if you want to try some local specialties “at home”. They have also some vegetarian products.

2     VERITAS STORES

In fact, it is a franchise, so the range of products available depends on the size of the store. They usually have a better selection in vegetarian products than common supermarkets, including their own brand products. They have also ecologic wine. I strongly recommend to try Petit Albet red-wine, a tasty, very moderately priced local wine.

 

3     CAPRABO



A Caprabo in Gràcia

There are many “Caprabos”. Some big ones and some small ones. Some very well kept. Others seem to need more care. But their offer covers all the basics (plus some extras, depending on the size of the store) at affordable prices.
 

4     SUPERCOR

It is a convenience store so prices are high. They sell a wide variety of products. It is a good choice when all the other supermarkets are closed and you don’t trust the hygiene of smaller convenience stores.

5     MERCADONA

They mostly sell their own brand products, which are ok. It is not the place to look for fancy wines or gourmet products but will keep the bill down and let you buy all the basics.

Back in the Blog - GENERATOR HOSTEL in Barcelona

Generator Hostels webpage

After a long time without working on it, I amb back in the blog. I will try to recover my enthusiasm and publish new ideas and recommendations for your visit to Barcelona more often.

My recommendation today is the Generator Hostel in Barcelona. Very affordable and extremely well located (10 minutes away from Pg. de Gràcia and about 20 minutes away from Sagrada Familia, always easy walking distance). Very convenient also for a visit to Gràcia. Well connected by bus & underground to other areas of the city.

For what I know, is quite addressed to young customers but I don't think they will exclude families or older people.

So, if you are looking for accomodation, check this out.

BEST WAY TO MOVE AROUND BARCELONA

As in any other town, first thing to consider is what king of traveler you are.

If you are short of time and like to have things ready for you, BUS TURISTIC may be your best choice. They have different routes and cover the key touristic points in Barcelona, including the “remote” ones. If this is your choice, check routes, timetables and prices in:

Barcelona city tour: http://www.barcelonacitytour.cat/en/

Bus turistic: http://www.barcelonabusturistic.cat/web/guest/home

If you, like me, prefer to do as locals do, I would suggest you to buy a T-10 CARD for public transport + WALK. Barcelona is not spreaded and, except some places like Park Güell, Montjuic, Tibidabo and the Barça stadium, most of your visits can easily be done by foot. For T -10 card information, see specific entry in this blog.  Remember to ask for a map of the public transport network at the metro booths or at the tourist information points.

Supposing you like sport, there is always the possibility to rent a bicycle. You will probably see many BICING stations in Barcelona. Unfortunately, these are not addressed to the temporary visitors and they require a card (costs 100€ per year) which must be issued in advance, etc. Nevertheless, there are other companies to rent a bicycle, particularly in the Born area. Let me just remind you that Barcelona is not so well prepared for bicycles. Bike lanes are scarce and not always respected. Having said that, a visit to Barceloneta in a bike can be very pleasant in a sunny morning.

A link to the Bike rentals association with different phones, addresses and a map of the companies location: http://www.bicitoursbarcelona.org/lloguer/

Barcelona Rent a Bike (in Barceloneta): http://www.barcelonarentabike.com

Bicing Station in carrer Provença

Finally, have you considered renting a mopped or scooter? I think that is the best way to visit Barcelona (in fact, Barcelona is a “scooter city”, as you will surely notice). Just bear in mind, rent a scooter only if you are familiar with driving such vehicle in a busy town and remember to wear a helmet … always (helmets are rented together with the scooter).

For scooters rentals see:

Rent a Vespa: http://rentvespabarcelona.com/

P.S. Ups! I almost forgot. There are also taxis, of course. Painted in yellow and black they are quickly recognizable. Fares are fixed by the city council but try not to get cheated with longer routes than needed or similar tricks. Even if taxis in Barcelona are more affordable than in Paris or London, they are still quite expensive by Spanish standards. We would only recommend a company, which we know from personal experience to be quite reliable, it is Taxi Class: http://www.taxiclassrent.com/

In yellow and black, taxis are easy to see