For my first real post, what could be more appropriate than writing about my favorite sweets on my recent trip to Barcelona?
Barcelona is an unforgettable city, and will surely have many more posts devoted to its unique juxtaposition of the Gothic Quarter and Old City with the colorful, whimsical Modernism of Domanech i Montaner, Cadafalch, and most famously, Gaudi. It is also a city that delights in food and drink, and particularly, chocolate.
There are chocolate shops and pastelerias on every corner. Not all of the pastry shops are wonderful. Early mornings are a particular weakness, because the pastry shops are not open. Attempting to find something to eat before 9 am near the Placa Catalunya, we walked into one of the only open coffee shops. My muffin was simply inedible. My first croissant, at a unmemorable pastry shop near the Placa Reial, was unremarkable. As my first purchase in Barcelona, it didn’t bode well. But fortunately, this croissant was not the one I will remember.
Escriba, a chocolate and pastry shop at Las Ramblas 83, makes the most divine croissants I have had in my life. Not only did I sigh audibly while eating it, but I did the same thing again when I returned and ordered another one. The croissant is perfectly flaky without falling apart, rich without being greasy. The chocolate is good enough to elicit sighs, and the chocolate is what really sets it apart - this is a chocolate croissant with chocolate of the highest quality. Their hot chocolate is also wonderful. The hazelnut hot chocolate is rich and dark, with a hazelnut praline cream as you finish your mug. The 70% cacao is dense and delicious. The store sells chocolates, cakes, and pastries. They have solid chocolate shoes that I long for.
Xocoa, along tiny and adorable Petrixtol in the Gothic Quarter (home to several other chocolate shops), is a wonderful place for churros con chocolate. All churros I have had before, including once in Buenos Aires, have been overly fried. These churros are just the right level of crisp, and the hot chocolate is perfect for dipping and sipping. It’s not as dark as the hot chocolates I sampled at Escriba, but is perfect for churros or an indulgent afternoon snack.
Bubo, on Capuxtes 10, is a little dessert jewel box tucked along the side of Eglesia Santa Maria del Mar, in El Born. There are tiny, beautiful pastries from celebrated pastry chef Carlos Mampel. I had the scrumptious Xabina, a chocolate mousse, capuchin sponge cake with vanilla, crispy praline, and sponge cake with olive oil. Try looking at the website without salivating. I bought a container of their chocofruts mani, chocolate covered peanuts. Wonderful. This is a place I must go back and try as much as I can.
Then there’s the gelato. You might well be in Italy for the number of gelato shops in every neighborhood. I researched Barcelona’s best gelato before my trip and was more than pleasantly surprised to see that one of the most touted shops was steps from my hotel: Amorino. Normally I like to try as many places as possible, but after one taste at Amorino my dessert wanderlust disappeared. This is fantastic gelato. The amaretto is phenomenal. The coffee, made with coffee beans from Brazil is perfect. I loved their classic dark chocolate (the Inimitabile, while delicious, was too dark to combine well with some of the other flavors). Even the vanilla was wonderful. It is only at excellent gelato shops that I will even deign to taste vanilla, but this was vanilla the way it should be.
I didn’t get to visit all of the dessert shops I had written in my notebook, but hopefully next time! Here are the other recommendations that I had found in my dessert research:
For pastries:
Mauri, Rambla de Catalunya, 102, www.pasteleriasmauri.com
Dolso, C/ València, 227, in Eixemple, www.dolso.es
For gelato:
Arcobaleno, Ferlandina, 35, //www.gelateria-arcobaleno.es/
La Jijonenca, Avda. Gaudí, 32, near Sagrada Familia, www.jijonenca.es/
Cremeria Toscana, c/Muntaner 161, Eixample & Canvis Vells 2, near Santa Maria del Mar, El Born
Vioko, Passeig Joan de Borbo 55, Barceloneta, www.vioko.es
For unusual dessert experiences:
Espai Sucre, a dessert tasting restaurant, is highly unusual and has been written about all over the world. This is not a conventional dessert menu, and some of it does not appeal to me, but it’s an experience that would be exciting to try. The tasting menu is 40 euros each, so it is not as wallet-friendly as the pastelerias.
Calle Princesa 53, espaisucre.com
What I loved:
Escriba, Ramblas de les Flors 83, Gothic Quarter (also at Gran Via 546 & Ronda Litoral 42), www.escriba.es
…(and the website is adorable - just wait for the “Loading” page - so cute!)
Xocoa Petrixtol, Calle Petrixtol 11, www.xocoa-bcn.com; see website for additional locations
Bubo, Calle Caputxes 10, El Born, www.bubo.es
Amorino, Las Ramblas 125 (also at Calle Gran de Gracia, 53 & Calle Portaferrissa 7-9), amorino.es
