Wednesday, May 30, 2007

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Top 10 local hangouts in Barcelona

location based services

Damien Simonis, author of Lonely Planet's new Barcelona city guide, shares an insider's tips on the best places to take off your tourist hat and enjoy the city with the locals

Guardian Unlimited
Wednesday May 30 2007

Palau de la Música Catalana ... a fantastic night out for music-lovers that's as Catalan as it gets. Photograph: Richard T. Nowitz/Corbis

Església de Santa Maria del Mar

If there's one sight in central Barcelona where you might run into locals, this is it. Not only is the Church of Our Lady of the Sea the city's grandest - and strikingly sober - Gothic construction, it is the symbolic favourite with Barcelonins (Barcelona's residents). Grand Catalan family weddings take place here, along with occasional baroque or classical music recitals that see stampedes of well-dressed Barcelona bourgeois pour into a barrio they otherwise tend to leave to the guiris (foreigners).

+34 93 319 05 16
Plaça de Santa Maria del Mar, Jaume I

Mercat de la Boqueria

Mums from the barrio armed with shopping trolleys jostle past the likes of Ferran Adrià and other high-flying chefs in search of the freshest looking cuttlefish, gambes de Palamòs (much-prized Costa Brava shrimp), Cabrales cheese or even dried insects (it takes all kinds). The banter in Catalan and Spanish flies as quick-witted vendors compete for customers' attentions. But get here early to see one of Europe's grandest produce markets at its genuine best, because the secret is well and truly out and by midday you'll be struggling past hordes of justifiably curious, camera-toting visitors from around the planet.

+34 93 318 25 84
La Rambla de Sant Josep 91, Liceu

Parc del Fòrum

Away from the tourist-filled beaches closer to La Barceloneta, the Parc del Forum makes for an intriguing summer Sunday family outing. Dominated by a giant solar panel and cutting-edge conference buildings, this undulating park comprises gardens, a protected seawater swimming area, great Rollerblade territory, swings and other kids' distractions and, at the height of the season, a good old-fashioned funfair with dodgem cars, shooting galleries, candyfloss and cheap and cheerful food stands.

+34 93 356 10 50
www.bcn.es/parcdelforum
Rambla de Prim 2-4, El Maresme Fòrum

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Cafè de l'Acadèmia

The Barri Gòtic heaves to the flow of tourists streaming through to admire its medieval splendours. Come lunchtime, however, the streets fill with Barcelonins who operate the machinery of municipal power at the Ajuntament (Town Hall). Many head around the corner for lunch at their old haunt, the Cafè de l'Acadèmia. Grab a table outside in the sunny little square and see how good Catalan food (with the occasional, lightly inventive touch) keeps public servants in good humour!

+34 93 319 82 53
Carrer de Lledò 1, Jaume I

Vaso de Oro

Open the doors of the Glass of Gold and a torrent of talk immediately assaults you. With only a couple of feet of squeezing room between the doors and the long, food-laden bar, your main problem will be finding enough standing room to hold a glass of beer and balance a plateful of pork, calamari or octopus. If you're after a genuine tapas experience just a short walk from La Barceloneta beach, you've found it.

+34 93 319 30 98
Carrer de Balboa 6, Barceloneta

Inopia

You need to get away from the bright lights to enjoy the gourmet tapas whipped up by Albert Adrià (yes, Ferran's brother) and his team at this stylish corner eatery that attracts fashionable folk from all over town. You can probably forget about getting a seat or bar stool inside - hang at the streetside bar hatch instead. The food ranges from feather-light vegetable tempura to bite-size skewers of tender chicken. Ask for the croquetes de pernil ibèric (great ham croquettes).

+34 93 424 52 31
Carrer de Tamarit 104, Sant Antoni

Palau de la Música Catalana

A wonder of Modernista architecture and symbol of local national identity, the Palace of Catalan Music can also be a fantastic night out for music-lovers. Concerts sweep broadly from classical to Portuguese fado and never fail to draw an appreciative audience into the richly decorated auditorium. It is a romantic setting and about as Catalan as it gets.

+34 902 442882
palaumusica.org
Carrer de Sant Francesc de Paula 2, Urquinaona

Harlem Jazz Club

Fashionable bars come and go in Barcelona's old town centre, but the fervid beat never seems to die at this classic, smoke-filled jazz and blues den. Some superb voices have been exposed to the Spanish penchant for tobacco here - but gratification comes from the crowds that fill the place to bursting for the double bills that take place most evenings.

+34 93 310 07 55
Carrer de la Comtessa de Sobradiel 8, Jaume I

Crawling Carrer d'Aribau

Join the restless, nocturnal souls on Thursday to Saturday nights for some bar-crawling along the upper end of this street, where it crosses Avinguda del Diagonal. From white-jacket waiter cocktail bars to singalong dens with Argentine guitarists, from Colombian dance spots to a Milan-style aperitivo joint, the choices are eclectic. Later, a phalanx of late-night bars, snack joints, clubs and ill-disguised girlie bars bump and grind until dawn.

La Paloma

The 100-year-old La Paloma is a unique local institution and an essential night out. The evening (or late afternoon) starts early with bands playing cha-chas and tangos for an appreciative crowd of mostly retired couples gliding around this classic dancehall. As they exhaust themselves, the galleries and stage undergo a metamorphosis, turning The Dove into one of the most sought-after clubs in town. It attracts a mixed, inner-city crowd attracted by an eclectic musical programme and the unique location.

+34 93 301 68 97
lapaloma-bcn.com
Carrer del Tigre 27, Universitat

· Damien Simonis has lived in Barcelona on and off since 1992 and is the author of Barcelona Encounter, part of Lonely Planet's new series of guides written by residents.