Best paella in Barcelona according to locals
As a tourist in Catalonia, you may fancy to taste the best value paella in Barcelona, but you might have noticed that only very few restaurants serve a decent paella and, unfortunately not always at reasonable prices. In this post we explain three different options to eat a good paella in Barcelona, according to locals, including a deal in a local restaurant in the Old City for less than 6€.
Option 1: Best restaurants for a paella by the sea
Because many tourists arriving in Barcelona ask for paella, you will be able to find it in almost every single establishment in city centre. However, we need to warn you: some places might serve you the pre-cooked, cheap and frozen version, charging you a disappointing bill for what you get.
If you don’t mind spending a considerable amount of money for your dinner, you may want to try a restaurant in La Barceloneta area. In fact, this is the area where it’s still possible to find the original home-made paella, but because only tourists ask for it, prices have ridiculously skyrocketed in the past decade. The most popular restaurants where you can eat paella here are 7 Portes, Can Solé, Can Majó and Restaurant Barceloneta. Expect to pay at least 30€ per person if you drink wine with your meal. If you are a solo traveller, consider that these restaurants normally request a minimum of two people to serve paella.
Option 2: Prepare your paella with locals
If your idea is to skip the tourist path and eat an authentic paella with locals (and if you don’t mind spending some extra euros to learn how to prepare it) Eatwith might be the right option for you.
What is Eatwith about?
It’s a social dining experience at well-known or amateur masterchefs’ homes around the world.
It’s a local trend for a global community. It’s also a great chance to experience both local culture and cuisine, while travelling. You need to sign up on www.eatwith.com, select a city and pick an event. You can choose a traditional dinner, a cooking class, a wine tasting, a private event or a shared dining. Type “Barcelona paella” on the search bar, and you will be able to find a paella cooking class with a professional chef, beside a dinner with paella and sangria at a local couple’s place (prices: from 36€ per person).
This is the perfect chance to learn how to prepare this traditional Spanish dish with locals, while experiencing a cultural immersion.
If you continue reading this post, you will find out about the third option, which is a great value paella in a local restaurant in the Old City for less than 6€.
What is a paella?
Before telling you about the third option, you might wonder what paella is, and you might want to know why it’s not so popular in Barcelona. Actually, the word “paella” represents the union of the Romans (paella is the pan they used to cook) and the Arabs (who introduced rice and saffron in Spain).
Paella is believed to be the national Spanish dish, but Spaniards consider it as a regional specialty from the city of Valencia, and there is still some controversy about the traditional recipe. In fact, although many restaurants in Spain and around the world serve mixed paella (paella with both meat and seafood), and they name it paella valenciana, people from Valencia claim that the original recipe is with meat only.
Reasons why paella is not the most popular dish in Barcelona
Unlike in other regions of Spain, paella is not exactly the most popular dish in Catalonia and in Barcelona. Perhaps the reason is that Catalans prefer local dishes, and maybe also because the offer of paella in this very touristy area is often an expensive tourist trap.
Although paella is considered as the national dish by foreigners, Catalans have a different opinion. Let’s go back in time for a moment and let’s take a quick look at Spanish history to discover why
Spain unification was declared in 1492, but before that time, Spanish territories had been invaded, dominated and strongly influenced by different civilizations, like the Moors, the Phoenicians, the Romans, the Vandals and the Visigoths, making it impossible to unify so many types of people and heritages in one unique concept.
At the end of the same year 1492, Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas and that marked the beginning of the Spanish Empire. Spain had suddenly access to gold, silver, land and natural resources, which soon turned the recent unified nation into one of the richest and most powerful countries in the world, although this imperialistic vision was probably the only unifying factor, since autonomy and powers began to shift away from local territories.
While conquering and dominating the world, the Spanish Empire was also involved in a more silent internal battle, trying to eclipse local languages and local cultures, in the name of one unique Spanish language and lifestyle.
Later on, under Francisco Franco’s dictatorship, local languages and traditions were even declared illegal. The democratic Spanish constitution was voted in 1978, after Franco died, and little by little locals proudly re-introduced their local languages and heritage. Today, there are four official languages in Spain: Castilian, Basque, Galician and Catalan, and there are 17 autonomous regions with infinite varieties of local tapas and dishes.
With this in mind, paella and sangria are both well-known in Catalonia, but definitely not the most popular culinary trend in the region. What we mean is that while people abroad think of Spanish people as a unique heterogeneous group, locals still proudly preserve their distinctive traditions, including regional habits and dishes. So, while Valencia claims to be the mother of paella, Barcelona simply attempts to meet the demand of tourists. Unfortunately, not always with great results.
Option 3: best paella in Raval for less than 6€
After the above mentioned long explanation about the reasons why paella is not so popular in Catalonia, if you happen to be in Barcelona and are on a budget, we have the solution for you. In fact, a few years ago we accidentally found a very informal restaurant in Raval, where you can eat a great value paella for less than 6€, and we still go there every time we are in the city.
We then decided to explore the sunrise shore and, over there, we found several decent and affordable accommodation options, at very good prices. We stayed at Surfer’s Home in Bulabong Beach, paying less than 20$ for a very clean and spacious double room, just steps from the beach, with hot water, delicious breakfast included and priceless views of the sunrise.
The establishment is run by Mario, a Uruguayan who moved to Barcelona with his family when he was very young, and who proudly runs L’Avia restaurant. Here all dishes are home-made, and at a very reasonable price. Don’t expect anything fancy, but let us tell you that Mario prepares the best paella mixta in the area, in terms of quality and price. The last time we were there was in February 2019, and we paid exactly 5,50€ for the paella dish you can see in the photo here below. The portion was generous, and the ingredients fresh and local. If you don’t eat meat and fish, a vegetarian option is available too. You need to be there around the time Mario’s paella is ready, which is normally 1pm ish. In case you are not a paella lover, keep in mind that he also prepares other Mediterranean specialities and desserts. Let him surprise you!
Recipe of original paella valenciana
In this post we have explained why paella is not the most popular dish in Barcelona, and we have provided you with three different options to find a good paella in the city. But what about if you’d just like to cook it at home on your own? Here below we explain the whole process that Nico adopted to prepare an authentic paella valenciana. Try it too at home and impress your family and friends! It’s easier than you might think!
Equipment: shallow large pan
Ingredients for 4 people:
500 gr. of rice
800 gr. of chopped chicken
600 gr. of chopped rabbit
250 gr. of flat green beans (bajoqueta)
200 gr. of white beans (garrofo)
100 gr. of crashed tomato
20 snails
saffron
paprika (pimentón)
olive oil
salt and pepper
water
Preparation: Heat the pan with olive oil and when it is hot, fry the chicken and the rabbit at medium heat, adding more oil if necessary and some paprika.
Push the meat out to the edges of the pan and add the beans and the tomatoes in the centre, mixing them well.
Add water, until the pan is half full and once the water has evaporated, add the snails and cook them for about 8 minutes.
Add the rice and water and stir it, paying attention that it does not get burnt. Season it with salt and pepper and add the saffron, while continuing stirring.
Add more water if necessary.
When it’s almost ready, increase the heat to high for the last minute.
When it is completely ready, remove the pan from the heat, add the rosemary and cover it for a couple of minutes, before serving it.
What to drink with paella
Chilled white wine, of course! While many people drink it with Verdejo, and although we love it, we believe that it’s a bit too fruity to be paired with paella. Undoubtedly, Catalonia offers marvellous regional wines, therefore we suggest trying this dish with Garnacha Blanca, instead. This variety of grape grows in Terra Alta, on the east coast, and it’s dry and crispy. It perfectly combines with rice, white meats and even seafood, in case you opt for a mixed paella.
Now you know that paella is the traditional dish from Valencia, you know that you need to choose very carefully where to it in Barcelona, and you also know that it’s not so difficult to prepare it yourself, to impress your family and friends.
Bon appetit! Enjoy your meal! Bon profit!
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