Shoot First Eat Later

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)

arroz negro (black rice)

This gentleman even serenaded us. He reminded us of Palito the Filipino comedian.

We were even given 3 kinds of dessert.

pudding

chocolate mousse

Everyone’s favorite was the crema Catalan similar to crème brûlée.

crema Catalan

As a bonus the waiter even gave us ice cold apple schnapp and limoncello. Yum!!!!

apple schnapp & limoncello

Chee, Ethan, Erin and La

For roughly the same price as our buffet at Monchos the food at La Fonda was far superior and everyone enjoyed the meal.

Across the restaurant we all gawked at the giant croissant and asked permission to take pictures.

They even gave Erin and Ryan a small piece of croissant.

La Fonda Del Port Olimpic
Moll de Gregal, 7-10, 08005 Barcelona, Spain
telephone: 93 221 22 10
website

Barcelona: Hotel Arts Barcelona

In Barcelona our big group of 15 stayed in three different hotels depending on each one’s budget. Rochelle, Sharon & I stayed in AC Hotel Sants which was moderately priced, sized and quite clean. Houma and her two sons stayed in the middle of La Ramblas at Hotel Barcelona House. My two cousins, siblings La & Sid stayed in the luxurious Hotel Arts Barcelona.

We took a cab to Port Olimpic where the hotel was located to see how the other half lived. Our taxi’s meter was on the rear view mirror. Isn’t the tray table at the back of the chair so cute?

I couldn’t resist taking this picture.

Just from the lobby it was obvious how elegant the hotel was.

Just like the bathroom in our hotel the door provided little privacy.

Our entire room could fit in this bathroom!

My cousins had two kids each and they needed a big room to fit.

I loved the Bang & Olufsen stereo!

I helped myself to some espresso. Later on my cousin-in-law Chee kindly informed me that the coffee was billed to the room. I was shocked. Usually the coffee in hotel rooms with Nespresso machines are free like here and here. At least in our hotel the Nespresso coffee was free in the lobby at odd hours. (insert grin)

Sidney’s room had a better view of the marina and the beach. Yes, the hotel was located next to the beach which the kids went to.

If you have the budget then this hotel is a lovely place to stay in. A caveat is it’s farther to the city but it has access to the Metro. There are also many restaurants in the area which is a big plus.

Hotel Arts Barcelona
Marina 19–21 08005 Barcelona, Spain
telephone: +34 93 2211000
website

Barcelona: La Boqueria Market

I’ve read from several sources that the best food can be found in La Boqueria Market in Barcelona. Aside from selling all sorts of produce, fish, cured meats and candies there were also several tapas bars in the market.

We went to La Boqueria right after eating churros and espadrilles shopping. Even if I was still full I was hoping to try some tapas. When we got there around 6:00 pm and all the tapas bars were already closed! They close around 3-4 pm. What a big disappointment. We didn’t have time to go back so I have to go back to Barcelona for this among other things.

cured meats

Several stalls sold fruits, fruit juice, fruit shakes and cut up fruit.

It was a real market but it didn’t smell like our own wet markets in Manila. The Mercado San Miguel in Madrid was a cooked food market while La Boqueria combined raw and cooked food under one roof.

Spaniards have an affinity for sweets. This was just one of the many, many stalls dedicated to sweet treats.

chocolates

This stall sold typical Spanish sweets like torrones and crema de Catalan which I bought since they had free tastings.

This had to be the most charming egg stall I’ve ever seen. I didn’t know there were that many kinds of eggs and so many different colors and hues too.

eggs, huevos, uovo, oeuf, itlog

bacalao or salted cod

moxama or dried pressed tuna

anchovies (anchoas)

These unique looking creatures are called percebe cantabrico or goose barnacles.

shellfish

spices

I was tempted to try a fruit popsicle or helado. It’s also known as paleta in Mexican.

nuts galore

chili peppers

This guy was a friendly Pinoy so I bought some fruit jellies from him.

fresh fish

This was the first time I saw ham and salami packed together with cheese. It would be convenient for picnics or even lunch packs.

I wish a bought some churros with honey. I wonder if they taste as good as churros covered in chocolate.

churros with honey

baklava

These uniquely shaped tomatoes are called Montserrat tomatoes.

Like I said, more candies!!!

Picture on the left are cousins and on the right are batch mates. I wonder what the batch mates were laughing at.

La Boqueria Market
Rambla, 91 Mercat de la Boqueria
(Edifici Direcció, 2a planta)
08001 Barcelona
Telephone: 93 412 13 15
website

Around Barcelona, Xurreria, La Manual Alpargatera

Our day tour of Barcelona booked with Barcelona Day Tours and led by the fountain of knowledge named Marta took us to Montserrat, Park Güell and ended with a drive around famous places around Barcelona. We opt not to go to Sagrada Familia since we were going there on our own the next day.

We passed by Parc Joan Miró and saw this monument he completed just one year before he died at the age of 90. Joan Miró was a Barcelona born surrealist painter and sculptor.

These pictures were taken while I was in the tour bus.

Dona i Ocell’ Sculpture by Joan Miro

This used to be the last bullring in Barcelona. Now it’s a shopping complex. Too bad we didn’t have time to go shopping there.

Arenas de Barcelona

monument in Plaça d’Espanya (Plaza de España)

Montjuïc Telecommunications Tower

Olympic Stadium of Barcelona

The summer olympics were last held in Barcelona in 1992. We went to the well maintained and used stadium for a quick look. It’s also a popular venue for big concerts.

Next Marta brought us Montjuïc where we had a bird’s eye view of Port Vell and the cruise ports.

Port Vell

My cousin Sidney and his family took a Princess cruise a couple of days later.

From the hill we could see La Sagrada Familia.

Arc de Triomf

The bus then dropped us at Las Ramblas and Marta continued the tour on foot.

Las Ramblas

I will post about La Boqueria market separately.

Mercat de La Boqueria

Santa Maria del Mar

This narrow alley led to the Gothic Quarter which is the center of the old city of Barcelona.

This is dedicated to Senator Sotto. At least Spain is open minded and progressive enough to have stores like this.

After several disastrous churros in Madrid and Barcelona we begged Marta to take us to an authentic place. She brought us to this small hole in the wall without any tables or chairs.

Xurreria

patisset €1.20 & potato chips

The churros were made upon order. There was no hot chocolate though.

Who needs hot chocolate when the churro was light, not greasy and so crisp. Just a little sprinkling of sugar and it was perfect. All my bad churros experience in Spain was instantly erased. A bag of 5 pieces of churros cost only €1. If you really, really need hot chocolate go to La Granja five doors down and order a cup or two. I read from this blog that they allowed you to take the churros in their

xurros (churros) €1 for 5 pcs.

Initially we didn’t know what to expect with the chocolate covered churros so I bought 100 grams worth and shared it with my cousins and Rochelle. In a flash all my churros was gone and moans and groans could be heard echoing through the store’s walls. We all bought more until we depleted the store’s stock.

It was sheer genius to dip churros in chocolate. It was decadent and tasted better than dipping churros in hot chocolate. Amazingly the covered churros remained crisp and not oily. Although the batch we kept for breakfast the next morning became soft and greasy but Rochelle still ate it all. Anyone going to Barcelona has to go to Xurreria for these awesome churros.

xurros de xocolata €1.20 per 100 grams

These were all the women in our group all smiles after eating churros. Thanks Marta!!!

Next stop nearby was a popular store to buy espadrilles. Marta recommended La Manual Alpargatera as the best place to buy espadrilles.

Wow I’ve never seen espadrille booties. Cute!

Choose your color and size and the guy manning this wall of espadrilles will give you your shoes. Make sure you choose a size with a very snug fit because espadrilles will get loose with use.

The basic espadrille style on the lowest row cost only €10 each.

Almost everyone bought a pair or two except me. Both stores are closed on Sundays as discovered by my cousin La who went back for more churros.

Xurerria
Carrer dels Banys Nous, 8 08002 Barcelona

La Manual Alpargatera
C/. Avinyó, 7 – 08002 Barcelona
telephone: 93 3010172
website (not working)
Working hours: 9:30 am -1:30pm & 4:30 – 8:00 pm

Dinner at Maimee’s Garden Cafe

Last week I received a text from my friend Deb who invited me and my US based cousin, Stanley for dinner with some of his HS classmates. Since it was in a restaurant that was very near my house I quickly said yes. But then I hardly turn down dinner invitations – far or near.

I never expected to find a family home turned into a restaurant in the middle of Little Baguio in San Juan. Most of the house/restaurants are located in the Tomas Morato area in Quezon City. (Romulo Cafe, Bagoong Club, Taste of L.A., Napa)

Street parking was also available.

This was the outdoor seating area.

Inside was the air-conditioned dining room.

We sat in an enclosed function room. One of their classmates was the son of one of the owners and he joined us for dinner.

Deb said the iced tea was good and reminded her of butterfly iced tea.

Maimee’s special iced tea

The menu had mostly Filipino dishes with some pasta and international favorites. I didn’t expect to see an appetizer like brie. I wanted to try the nachos but Deb decided this would suit our older dining mates better.

It was just a store bought brie warmed in the oven and topped with honey, dried raisins, cranberries, mango and walnuts. What made it stand out was a spoonful of pesto. I’ve never tried the combination of pesto and honey and I must say it works! It was a really good starter. I just wish they provided more crostini since it wasn’t enough.

honey brie with crostini P250

They didn’t have any vegetables in the menu except for 3 kinds of salad. Deb chose this simple salad with sliced apples, walnuts and raspberry vinaigrette.

Maimee’s garden salad P260

The gambas didn’t look like the typical gambas al ajillo since this version had lots of tomato sauce but once I tasted it I was instantly enamored. I simply loved the spicy sauce that I used the crostini above to mop up the yummy sauce. This would be perfect on pasta or eaten with lots of rice. With the crostini gone I proceeded to spoon the sauce into my mouth directly.

gambas al ajillo P330

The next three dishes are labelled Maimee’s Comfort food in the menu and I agree 100%. These dishes are meant to be shared and are on the small side. For our group of 6 guys and 2 gals we ordered 2 of each and there were NO LEFTOVERS!

I don’t normally order beef caldereta in restaurants since it’s a common dish to make at home but this version was SO MUCH better than any caldereta I’ve ever tried. The beef was tender but the real star was the mildly spicy rich sauce that seemed to have been simmering for hours. The flavors were bold and very rich. Rice was essential for this dish. “Sauce pa lang ulam na.” This is a MUST order.

spicy beef caldereta P350

I don’t eat callos so I don’t know how this tasted but based on the empty dishes I assumed they enjoyed it too.

callos a la Fernando P350

Kare kare or oxtail peanut stew is one of my all-time favorite dishes but I’ve been let down too often in many restaurants.

Maimee’s kare kare P370

This version did not disappoint. The sauce was thickened with ground rice and the sauce was very nutty without being overwhelming. It had just the perfect amount of sweetness too. I didn’t even need any bagoong to eat the ox tail and vegetables. I’m ashamed to admit I slurped the sauce too. That’s what happens when I don’t eat rice.

I forgot how many rice we ordered and to think half of the group TRIED not to eat rice.

garlic rice

The next three dishes are normally good for one and served with herb rice and a side dish but since we ate everything family style they served rice on the side.

The bangus (milkfish) was cooked like beef steak with soy sauce and onions.

bangus steak a la pobre P240

I was already so full when the boneless short ribs came out. I still tried a small piece and knew Maimee had another winner. Tender beef marinated in a Korean flavor marinade with some tendon and bits of fat was divine. It would make for a good pulutan (food eaten with beer or alcohol) too.

boneless barbeque short ribs P390

The chicken thighs were marinated in the same sauce as the short ribs.

barbecue grilled chicken P260

The dish that I liked least was the Butcher’s log or embotido but the others liked it specially when they learned the pork roll contained liver, mushroom and cheese and was wrapped in bacon.

butcher’s log P280

dessert menu

While I loved the food at Maimee’s I wasn’t happy with the two desserts we ordered. While the apple crumble was served was the apples and topping were both soggy and limp as if it were microwaved.

apple crumble with vanilla ice cream P120

The cheesecake was the no-bake gelatin kind which I can’t stand. I wish they served Filipino desserts instead like turon a la mode or even simple but well made leche flan. We only ordered one each and they more than half remained on the table.

blueberry cheesecake P90

Maimee’s Garden Cafe menu (click to enlarge)

One thing I really loved were the sauces of the viands specially from the gambas, caldereta and kare kare. If only I let myself eat rice I would have easily eaten 3 cups instead of 3 spoonfuls. I’m that type of rice eater, I need sauce to eat rice. I can’t eat rice with fried chicken, steak or barbecue or any viand without sauce for that matter. So you can just imagine how tempting rice was during our meal.

To my balikbayan friends and cousins I’m taking you here!!!!

Maimee’s Garden Cafe
20 E. Jacinto St., Little Baguio,
San Juan Metro Manila
telephone:724-1538
Facebook

opens from:
Lunch 11:00 am to 2:00 pm
Dinner 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm
Closed on Mondays

These directions from Anton really helped me find the place easily.

Driving Directions:
From Greenhills Shopping Center, drive along Wilson St. and turn right into Jose Abad Santos (with Alex III as the landmark). After three blocks, turn right into V. Ibanez St. (after Ristras and Little Store). Turn right into E. Jacinto (which is the second corner after Barasoain St.).

Barcelona: Park Güell

The places I most wanted to see in Barcelona were the works of famous Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. Right after Montserrat we went to Park Güell, a park he designed initially as a housing complex.

We entered through the secondary entrance which was near the parking of all the tour buses. This thick and heavy metal gate seemed impossible to move but our tour guide Marta was able to push it with just one hand.

She showed us the secret which was it pivots on an anchor on the floor.

The park was originally part of a commercially unsuccessful housing site, the idea of Count Eusebi Güell, whom the park was named after. It was inspired by the English garden city movement; hence the original English name Park. The site was a rocky hill with little vegetation and few trees, called Muntanya Pelada (Bare Mountain). It already included a large country house called Larrard House or Muntaner de Dalt House, and was next to a neighborhood of upper class houses called La Salut (The Health). The intention was to exploit the fresh air (well away from smoky factories) and beautiful views from the site, with sixty triangular lots being provided for luxury houses. Count Eusebi Güell added to the prestige of the development by moving in 1906 to live in Larrard House. Ultimately, only two houses were built, neither designed by Gaudí. One was intended to be a show house, but on being completed in 1904 was put up for sale, and as no buyers came forward, Gaudí, at Güell’s suggestion, bought it with his savings and moved in with his family and his father in 1906. This house, where Gaudí lived from 1906 to 1926, was built by Francesc Berenguer in 1904. It contains original works by Gaudí and several of his collaborators. It is now the Gaudi House Museum (Casa Museu Gaudí) since 1963. In 1969 it was declared a historical artistic monument of national interest. Wikipedia

Gaudi believed in combining nature and architecture. He didn’t believe in straight lines and used a lot of stone, mosaic tiles and old pieces of pottery and tiles.

planter’s viaduct

Gaudi created several viaducts around the park. They were all wide enough for carriages to pass.

Rochelle and I take a seat and photo-op on the natural stone ledges.

Carob’s viaduct

viaduct of the museum

This is the main entrance to the park.

principal entrance

This is the grand staircase and the most famous and most recognized part of the park.

the staircase

This was the first fountain on the staircase.

The second fountain was the famous mosaic salamander ofter mistaken as a dragon and called “el drac.” That’s our friend Bettina posing with the lizard.

Gaudi’s salamander or “el drac”

Above the staircase is the Hispotalia room. Rochelle took my picture from entrance of the Hispotalia room while I took hers from the stairs.

At the top of the staircase is a seating area. On the right is a picture of our guide Marta and my two nephews, Kevin and Ryan.

From this picture you can see Nature’s square on top of the Hispotalia room.

Hipostila room

This room with 86 columns was supposed to be the marketplace for the residential community. The columns provided an important function of not only supporting the square above it but it also served as a drain from the rain water collected. The water is filtered then goes throught the columns into a chamber under the room that served as a reservoir.

The ceiling was decorated with colorful mosaic tiles.

A free school for the local children is located inside Park Güell.

Baldiri Reixac school

This is Nature’s park right on top of the Hipostila room.

Looks like a beach right? Quite an unexpected sight.

nature’s square

The unique shape of the serpentine bench enables the people sitting on it to converse privately, although the square is large. The bench is tiled and in order to dry up quickly after it rains, and to stop people from sitting in the wet part of the bench, small bumps were installed by Gaudí. Wikipedia

serpentine benches

We were pressed for time so we didn’t get to go in the Gaudi museum.

Gaudi museum

Other than the extreme heat I really enjoyed seeing my first Gaudi work. Coming up are two more of Gaudi’s masterpieces.

Barcelona: Day Tour Part 1 – Montserrat

One of the most popular attractions in Barcelona is the famous pilgrimage site up in Montserrat, a mountain located 30 miles from the city and houses the Abbey of Montserrat and La Montera or the Black Virgin.

We booked a day tour with Barcelona Day Tours that also included an afternoon city tour. Since our group consisted of 18 adults and kids we had a small bus to ourselves. Our guide was the very knowledgable and friendly, Marta. Be sure to ask for her when you book with this company.

Our group stayed in three different hotels and they picked us up from each hotel. We were also able to tailor the tour to our preference. We paid €55 per person which was a very good deal.

Even if I’m not Catholic I really enjoyed the drive up the mountain, the scenery, the architecture of the beautiful Basilica and the serenity of the place.

This is L’Escolania de Montserrat, a choir school for young boys. They perform at the Basilica everyday but unfortunately they were off school the day we were there.

In the Apostles’ Square is the work called “Stairway to Understanding” by sculptor Josef M. Subirach. The monument was inspired by the thinking of Ramon Llull.

The Abbey of Montserrat is a Benedictine abbey located on this mountain with beautiful rock formations.

This building called “Apostles Lookout Point” had restaurants, cafeteria and retail shops as well as terraces where you can see magnificent views. We bought sandwiches there for a quick lunch after our tour.

A small market sold cheese and dried fruit. Rochelle and I were able to buy stinky goat cheese and a fig bar while the rest of our group was walking.

There was a funicular that brought one up 820 feet above the monastery that led to the St. Joan chapel as well as several scenic hikes in the area. We didn’t have time to do this.

This work of art was created by Josep M. Subirach, a Catalan sculptor known for his work in Sagrada Familia. This cross is dedicated to San Miguel, the Patron Saint of Montserrat. The meaning of the name of the Archangel Michael is “Who is as God?” and it is engraved on the cross in several languages.

What do you think does the rock formation looks like?

Here’s another work of Subirach of the Virgin. Look at the eyes and move. You can almost see the eyes follow your movement.

Sta. Maria Square

Atrium’s Entrance

In this atrium is the baptistery with its door which has a representation of the cycle of Church sacraments according to the catechism beginning with baptism. source

The original church from the 11th century was destroyed in the war and this neo-Romanesque church was built only in 1850.

The Atrium

This impressive facade was restored in 1968.

Initially our guide Marta said there was little chance for us to see the Black Virgin since we were on a time schedule and the lines were usually long. But Marta saw an opening in the line and quickly gathered us to stand in the queue. We were very, very lucky to get in.

When we went in we were able to see the Basilica on the left. The Basilica was consecrated in 1592 and rebuilt at the end of the 19th century. The main altar (1959) was from an 8 ton block of stone from Montserrat. source

The Basilica

The line went very slow but nobody minded since there were so many things to see.

Look at the details in the marble.

Legend has it that the Benedictine monks could not move the statue (12th century) to construct their monastery, choosing to instead build around it. The statue’s sanctuary is located at the rear of the chapel, where an altar of gold surrounds the icon, and is now a site of pilgrimage. source

The ritual gesture used to venerate the image is to kiss or touch the right hand which holds a sphere which is a symbol of the universe.

We exit to the Throne’s Chapel decorated with ornamental motifs by a very young architect named Antonio Gaudi.

Throne’s Chapel

Candles were sold for €1.80 and you can place it here along with your prayers and offerings.

On the left is a bronze statute by Manuel Cusachs (1933), dedicated to the Abbot Oliba, founder of the Monastery.

We all bought sandwiches in the cafeteria. I chose the Jamon Iberico with Camembert which was a bit salty and a slice of delicious almond cake.

Jamon Iberico & camembert cheese sandwich

After our quick lunch we left Montserrat to continue with our tour of Barcelona.

Barcelona: Hotel Barcelona House, Las Ramblas, Plaça Reial

Houma and her two boys who are friends of my cousin Sidney and his family joined us in Barcelona. After our dinner in Moncho’s she showed us her hotel right next to Plaça Reial and a few meters away from the famous tourist attraction Las Ramblas.

At night the tree-lined 1.2 km. pedestrian mall known as Las Ramblas (or La Rambla) was lit up beautifully and had many stores and eateries on both sides. As beautiful as it was I was deathly scared to bring out my camera to take pictures. This was the only one I took. A lot of guides I read online warned tourists that there were a lot of pickpockets in the area since the place was teeming with locals and tourists the whole day. We all had a deathly grip on our bags and cameras. It worked since we managed to leave with everything we owned.

The Hotel Barcelona House was located in a busy street with restaurants and bars. If you like to be in the middle of a lot of activity this would be a good place to stay. I just don’t know if you can hear the noise in the room. Personally I wouldn’t stay here since I would have to pass Las Ramblas everytime I leave and go home and my nervousness about the potential crime would be too stressful.

The hotel lobby was small but very modern and colorful.

We all had a geeky time admiring the lighted elevator floor.

That’s Houma below showing us her room. It was quite roomy and had 3 beds. I think she paid only €100 a night and that was a good deal.

Her bathroom and shower was definitely better than the one at our hotel.

This restaurant was just outside the hotel.

We then walked to the Plaça Reial (Plaza Real), a square located next to Las Ramblas surrounded with restaurants. It’s a popular tourist attraction specially at night.

We passed by this organic food store called Artisa. I wanted to have dessert there since the pastries and the apple pie looked really good but my cousins suggested we walk around and look at the other options.

Artisa

It’s nice to have a big open square in the middle of a busy city.

Plaça Reial

We didn’t find any place to have dessert at the Plaça Reial so we went back to Las Ramblas and saw Cafe De L’Opera De Barcelona, a nicely decorated restaurant which had some customers so we assumed they would have decent churros.

Like the online guides said beware of peddlers like this guy who went in the restaurant and tried his best to sell us roses.

Even though we kept saying no firmly he still put the roses on our table. After more vocal and louder “No” and various hand signals he finally left us in peace.

This had to be the most awful churros and chocolate ever! The chocolate was thick from cornstarch period. There was no chocolate taste at all. The churros were obviously just re-fried and was still doughy inside. I just took a bite and had to spit it out. The next day our tour guide told us not to eat any establishment in Las Ramblas. I wish we knew it beforehand. Oh well it was an experience I want to forget. We should eaten at Artisa!!!

Hotel Barcelona House
C/ Escudellers, 19 08002 Barcelona
telephone: + 34 933 437 167
website

Art i Sa Barcelona, S.L.
2 Colom street (Next to Plaza Real)08002 Barcelona
telephone: +34 931 863 623
website

Cafe De L’Opera De Barcelona
La Rambla, 74 08002 BARCELONA
telephone: +34 933 177 585
website

Barcelona: Buffet at Moncho’s

Our group in Barcelona had grown to 21 less 2 who couldn’t join us for dinner. Sha thought a buffet dinner would be more efficient for such a big group and Moncho’s was suggested by a local tour guide.

I wasn’t expecting much from a buffet and I was right. The food wasn’t very good except for the seafood.

Paella

I’ve always wanted to try Paella Fideuà which is a also a classic dish made with thin pasta instead of rice. I was just scared to order it in a restaurant in case I didn’t like it. It was ok but I still like the rice version more.

Paella Fideuà

There were lots of cold salads which I skipped.

The usual salad bar and this took up more than half of the buffet table.

None of the hot entrees looked appetizing either.

You can’t go wrong with simply steamed seafood and there were a lot of choices.

shrimp

crab

conch

tortilla

pizza

These were on our table. On top was the classic tomato bread which was soggy and yucky. The potato chips didn’t fare any better.

Different kinds of meats were brought to our table. It wasn’t good either.

My first plate.

I really, really loved the super sweet crayfish!! Can you believe there was NO dessert in the buffet? Not even fruit.

The sausages were not edible either.

You get what you pay for. The price for the buffet cost €17.30 for adults and only €8.80 for kids. At least this was our first and last buffet. All our other meals in Barcelona were so much better.

Moncho’s Barcelona
Travesera de Gracia, 44-46. 08021 Barcelona
telephone: 93 414 66 22
website

Barcelona: AC Hotel Sants

Our home in Barcelona was another Marriott / AC Hotel chain located right across the Sants train station. The location was quite convenient to the major tourist attractions in the city by train or cab.

Wifi was free in the lobby.

Stark, simple…

Nice, spacious room with laminate flooring. Quite clean and modern.

The table was perfect for our luggage.

Everything in the mini bar was free!

The only thing we disliked was the open bathroom, the laminate counter, and the transparent and small shower stall.

That’s Rochelle, fully clothed, demonstrating the shower without any privacy.

You can slide the mirror to the left but for what? Still no privacy.

At least there was a hair dryer and a digital safe.

At least the toilet had privacy.

There was no free breakfast but there was free coffee via a Nespresso machine at the lobby restaurant from 10:00pm to 7:00 am only. That motivated Rochelle to go down before 7 to get coffee for the both of us. There were also some crackers and pastries for free.

The hotel was pretty nice for the price we paid but we just hated the bathroom. If you don’t mind the open bathroom then this hotel is a good place to stay in when you visit Barcelona.

AC Hotel Sants
Passeig de Sant Antoni, 36-40 · Barcelona, Barcelona 08014 Spain
telephone: 34-93-4324512
website