🍷 Best Bars in Barcelona (and the world) 🍷

If Barcelona, Spain isn’t on your list, it should be! The coastal city in the Catalonia region is much bigger and more beautiful than we expected. And did we mention that there are no less than four of the top 50 best bars in the world here?  Yes, we visited them all! The city is so big and so diverse that we could never reflect everything in one post. So we’ll focus on the coolest and most historic bars we visited, most of which are centered in the Born district and Gothic Quarter, two of the most historic neighborhoods in the city.

First, the cocktail bar voted #1 in the world according to World’s Best Bars in 2023 and #3 in 2024 – Sips. This is a classic cocktail bar with lots of wood and leather and intimate lighting with one exception – the bar is in the middle of the room instead of along the wall. The mixologists create their award-winning cocktails from every angle of the bar space. And the payoff is a full menu of tasty and creative drinks! We enjoyed one that included a side of bubbles – yes, the kind you blow with a wand.

Now, we can’t go any further without digging into our favorite cocktail place on the entire trip and deserving of a spot on the 2024 World’s Best Bars. Paradiso has it all in our opinion. From the time we walked in the door, (behind an unassuming sandwich shop) the staff was welcoming and friendly and clearly enjoy their jobs. We scored two seats at the bar and marveled at the acrobatics of the bartenders as they created cocktails that were incredibly presented and tasted just as good. Make sure you ask about their back-room speakeasy but be prepared for a cheeky answer as they keep the mystery. Hint – it’s a restroom… or is it? This is our #tipsypick for sure!

There’s no question about the previous life of our next cocktail spot. Dr. Stravinsky proudly embraces its heritage as a former apothecary space. It’s worth it to grab a cocktail and walk around all three floors. The shelves are lined with their own brand of spirits and other interesting items on display. The menus are just as creative. The “Manhattan Essences” was particularly good. It’s a fat-washed version of the classic Manhattan.

One of the best dinners we had in Barcelona was at a restaurant called Speakeasy. Yes, the name is accurate as the space appears to be a former storage room turned into an upscale dining room. To enter you ring a doorbell at an unmarked door. The wine and cocktails were superb as was the food.

The restaurant is connected to a historic cocktail bar called Dry Martini. This elegant spot has been around for more than four decades, serving the signature dry martini. When it opened, that was all they served. The menu has expanded since then, but the flavor of the space remains unchanged – lots of dark wood, leather chairs and a martini recipe on full display along with servers in white shirts who can guide you along the way. It was the first European bar to make the World’s 50 Best list, and deservedly so. And the martinis are indeed as good as you would expect. They also make an excellent Gimlet. 

Ever been to a bar hidden behind a beverage cooler? That’s Supermercat! This intimate cocktail bar is hidden from the street as a beverage cooler. The only giveaway is the person at the door. Don’t be surprised if you have to wait to get in – there are only about a dozen seats. That means there’s not a bad view in the house to watch the mixologists at work (and to enjoy it!)

All the bars we have mentioned so far are relative newcomers compared to the rest of our list. We look forward to sharing them in our next post. Share your faves below. Merci!