Barcelona: Dinner at La Fonda Del Port Olimpic

Before parting with with our tour guide Marta we asked her for her restaurant recommendation at the Olympic Marina. She suggested La Fonda Del Port Olimpic so that’s where we went. It was a short walk from my cousins’ hotel.

The Olympic Village is a young neighbourhood which offers visitors a whole host of possibilities for their leisure time. Overlooking the sea, it is the ideal place to enjoy a stroll while admiring the cutting-edge architecture, enjoying a delicious meal in the marina or a dip in the sea along the Barcelona coastline.

The Olympic Village was created in the Sant Martí district for the 1992 Olympic Games, when the decision was taken to build an entire neighbourhood by the sea to house the athletes who were going to take part in the sporting competitions. This major urban-planning project brought about the regeneration of large areas of the city’s coastline and reclaimed a derelict industrial site. The leading architects of the time were chosen to design housing blocks, and Barcelona gained a residential district as well as new beaches, spacious landscaped areas and public amenities.

A number of chimneys still dot the skyline, providing a reminder of the industrial past of a neighbourhood that offers Barcelona’s best leisure opportunities. Looking up, you’ll see two skyscrapers towering over the Olympic Marina, the Torre Mapfre and the luxury Hotel Arts, which stands 144 metres in height. Below it, a giant goldfish, designed by Frank Gehry, overlooks the sea. The Olympic Marina has over 40 bars and restaurants where you can enjoy a delicious meal at any time of the day.

And the beaches, which stretch out on either side of the port, invite you to take a cooling dip or a stroll along the seafront. The area also offers a wide range of water sports and sailing activities. source

Without Marta’s recommendation we would have had a hard time choosing from all these restaurants.

This looks like a nice place to go drinking at night.

Frank Gehry created this goldfish sculpture and placed it at the foot of the hotel. The sculpture is 56 metres long and 35 metres high.

Peix (Fish), Frank Gehry

a rare cousins picture

These were displayed outside the restaurant. The cochinillo (baby pig) wasn’t even fully cooked yet.

olives

I really enjoyed the traditional pan de tomate or toasted bread rubbed with garlic, tomatoes and drizzled with olive oil. I must have eaten 2-3 slices. I thought these were free since we didn’t order it until I saw the bill.

Pan de Tomate €1.62*4=6.48

Sha ordered these two extra appetizers. I liked the razor clams a lot.

navajas plancha (razor clams) €13.50

anchoas de l’Escal €9.21

We all ordered this set menu. It came with bottled water and bottles of house wine.

La Fonda Del Port Olimpic’s menu €17 (€18.36 with tax)

We ordered per family of 4. Each group got the same salad, squid and mussels. We ordered different entrees so we could try more kinds of food. With just the starters I was already more than half full.

ensalada de la Fonda (mixed salad)

The shrimp and mussels were fresh and well cooked.

calamares a la Romana (batter fried squid)

mejilones a la marinera (mussels fisherman’s style)

One person had the baked fish which I wasn’t able to try.

baked gilthead

The rest ordered paella. The portions were quite generous and it was quite good. Not the best but definitely more than edible.

paella de marico (fisherman’s paella)