Barcelona Food Guide
Barcelona Cheap Eats
Teddy’s Saj Sandwiches — El Raval Carrer dels Escudellers, 12, 08002 Barcelona, Spain
Before you eat one more sandwich from a 365 consider going to Teddy’s. For under €7, you can have any of the delicious Saj sandwiches. Teddy’s became my go to spot after my first sandwich, I ended up trying almost every menu item, all uniquely delicious. The Super Pollo, which has marinated chicken, gouda, avocado, vegetables, mint, seasoning, and honey mustard was easily the best €6 I spent while living in Barcelona. A close second had to be any sandwich with Za’atar, a middle eastern spice. The El Famoso, which included artisanal goat cheese, za’atar, onion, tomato, mint, olive oil, and onion. The spot is welcoming, especially when Teddy is working he talks to everyone and remembers returning customers. Also if you bring your skateboard you get a free drink with any order.
Teddy’s from the outside in El Raval.
Xampanyeria — Carrer de la Reina Cristina, 7, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
Xampanyeria has numerous reasons to be one of my favorite places in Barcelona. The first two are meat and cava. So first, order a bottle of cava (basically champagne), they have a traditional white cava and a red cava for only €8. The safest bet when ordering food is to order the hamburger or the pork sandwich with peppers. However, any sausage on the menu will be delicious. Xampanyeria can be quite intimidating the first time you visit, especially for exchange students with very little understanding of Catalan (the menu is only in Catalan). Luckily, I had a friend who spoke a little. Even if you don’t have this luxury, I firmly believe you can ask the guys behind the counter for any of the menu items and be pleased with what you receive. Space is limited but never let that deter you from going inside. Once you have secured a spot, go up to the counter to order, and pay when you are done ordering eating everything.
The counter at La Xampanyeria.
Champanillo — 148, Carrer de Jovara Calella 08370
Similar to Xampanyeria, Champanillo’s specializes in salty snacks that go well with cava. However, Champanillo offers a bottle of cava for €3. When I learned about this, the spot quickly became a great place to pregame or end the night since it is open so late. They offer cheap snacks such as calamari, chicken wings, sausages, grilled shishito peppers, fries, burgers, salads, and sandwiches. The food is not the best you can eat in Barcelona by far but I found myself ignoring this aspect due to the lively atmosphere and cheap cava. You can easily leave Champanillo drunk, full and only spending €10 or less.
Some food options at Champanillo.
Bo de B — Carrer de la Fusteria, 14, 08002 Barcelona, Spain
Bo de B is a simple sandwich spot where you can grab a quick nutritious meal. They offer chicken, beef, hamburguesa meat, and vegetarian sandwiches. All sandwiches (which are quite large) with cheese cost only €4.50. Whenever I found myself out of groceries or in a hurry I would be thankful for this spot. The bread is baked fresh in the restaurant and you can add as many fresh vegetables as you want to the sandwich.
Everything you can get on a sandwich.
Kino — Carrer de Ferlandina, 23, 08001 Barcelona, Spain
Kino is in a great location with outside seating. It is right next to the Museum of Contemporary Art where the front steps are used as a skate park where everyone hangs out and drinks (the museum is also a great place to visit). Kino offers a wide arrange of Spanish tapas as well as bar snacks you would find at an American bar. Not much can beat great nachos, an Estrella, and great seating in the sun.
Nachos at Kino.
Honorable Mention The Good Burger — Multiple locations throughout the city
The city center in Barcelona is filled with chain restaurants and poor quality restaurants like on the Ramblas. During my time there I did my best to avoid these places. However, The Good Burger was one spot I visited every so often. Every Thursday and Sunday they offer a 2 for 1 burger deal. The burgers are pretty cheap to begin with so the deal makes it even better. In my experience the only chain restaurant with a better burger was Five Guys but in Barcelona a burger there costs €11. The Good Burger has a large selection of burgers that kept me coming back. It reminded me somewhat of a knockoff Shake Shack but still definitely worth the money especially on Thursday and Sunday.
Images:
Champanillo: https://www.facebook.com/champanillo1/
Bo de B: https://www.facebook.com/BodeBCN/
Teddy’s: https://www.barcelonafoodexperience.com/blog/teddys
