Los Caracoles ★★

The bar at Los Caracoles restaurant. (Photo courtesy of the restaurant)

A classic Catalan restaurant in the old center of Barcelona

This colorful Barcelona institution of good, solid cooking was founded in 1835 near the port and has patronized by everyone from Salvador Dalí to John Wayne.

After four generations in the Bofaruli family, it still kind of looks exactly like you think a Spanish restaurant should: hamhocks and iron chandeliers hanging from wood-beamed ceilings, colorful ceramic tiles on the walls, chunky wooden furniture, a huge open kitchen, polite and smartly-attired waiters, and meat grilling over open fires.

You can try the snails (the restaurant's namesake), a dozen seafood paelas, suckling pig, roasted lamb, or half a spit-roasted chicken with potatoes.

Its fame does draw the crowds (and, frankly, your fellow tourists), but the quality remains uncompromised—there is a reason it is famous.

Tips & Links

Details

Carrer dels Escudellers 14 (turn east off La Rambla at Plaça del Teatre and just follow the curving street)
[ Barri Gòtic ]

Tel. +34-933-012-041
www.loscaracoles.es

Open daily

Metro: Drassanes (L3)
Bus: 14, 59, N9, N12, N15

€€–€€€

Barcelona food tours

• Tapas, wine, & chocolate
• Cooking & markets
• Dinners
• Daytrips

• Tapas Evening Walking Tour of Barcelona
• Context: Pica-Pica in Poble-Sec Tapas Walk
• Barcelona Tapas Tour “en el barrio”
• Barcelona Cycle & Tapas
• Spanish Wine Tasting in Barcelona
• Context: City of Chocolate
• Small-Group Barcelona Chocolate and Sweets Walking Tour

• Context: My Barcelona Kitchen
• Small-Group Barcelona Cooking Class
• Private Tour: Barcelona Cooking Class with Boqueria Market Walking Tour
• Context: Farm to Fork, the Boqueria and Beyond
• Barcelona Gourmet Food and La Boqueria Market Walking Tour
• Context: Modernista Menu: Avant-Garde Barcelona Cuisine

• Context: Modernista Menu: Avant-Garde Barcelona Cuisine
• Barcelona Gourmet Tapas and Private Flamenco Show in a Medieval Palace
• Barcelona Gourmet Dinner on a Deluxe Glass-Roof Bus
• Flamenco Night at Tablao Cordobes

• Small-Group Tour: Traditional Food and Wine Day Trip from Barcelona
• Small-Group Cava and Wine Day Trip from Barcelona
• Sitges and Freixenet's Cava Wine Cellars Day Trip from Barcelona
• Barcelona Super Saver: City Tour, Sitges and Freixenet Cava Day Trip
• Barcelona Super Saver: Sitges, Freixenet Cava Wine Cellars and Montserrat Tour
• Small-Group Montserrat Tour from Barcelona: Wine and Cheese Tasting with Optional Golf Round
• Catalan Culture Tour from Barcelona: Food Market, Montblanc and Human Tower Festival
• Small-Group Catalonia Tour from Barcelona: Alella Wine Tasting, Catalan Food and Human Tower Displays

 

 

Useful links & resources

SIGHTS

Barcelona tourist info: Barcelonaturisme.com (info office), Guiadelocio.com (events mag); Catalunya.com (regional info), Spain.info

Sightseeing passes: Barcelona Card (20+ sights; transport; discounts), Museum Pass (6 sights)

Tours & activities: Viator.com, ContextTravel.com, UrbanAdventures.com, City-Discovery.com, Intrepidtravel.com, Gadventures.com

LODGING

Hotels: Booking.com, Venere.com, Priceline.com, Hotels.com

B&Bs: Booking.com, Bedandbreakfast.com, Airbnb.com, Venere.com

Apartments: Rentalo.com, Vrbo.com, Booking.com, Airbnb.com, Interhomeusa.com, Homeaway.com

Hostels & campgrounds: Hostelbookers.com, Hostelworld.com, Hostelz.com, Booking.com

TRANSPORT

Airfares:

• Momondo.com
• AutoEurope.com
• Vayama.com
• CheapOair.com
• Cheapflights.com
• DoHop.com
• CheapTickets.com
• Priceline.com

Airports: Aena.es

Trains: Raileurope.com (throughout Europe), Renfe.com (within Spain), Bahn.de (throughout Europe), Seat61.com

Public transport: Barcelona Card (free transport; sightseeing); Search all public transit: mou-te.gencat.cat; Metro/Bus: Tmb.cat; Tram: Trambcn.com; Light rail: Fgc.cat; Taxi: Taxibarcelona.cat

Car rentals: Autoeurope.com, RentalCars.com, Momondo.com, Orbitz.com, Expedia.com, Travelocity.com, Kayak.com

Related Articles

• Barcelona homepage
• Spain planning FAQ
• Spain homepage