Sant Antoni Barcelona – An Alternative to Las Ramblas

Any one looking for a little authenticity and local proficiency must stray further afield than the touristy stretches along Las Ramblas. On the surface Sant Antoni, ensconced between the Raval, the Eixample and the Poble Sec, appears like little more than a sleepy, residential area. Young oldsters watching their kids as they clamber on the monkey bars. Dog lovers of all stripes mooching up and down Avinguda Mistral with their canine companions. Groups of teens with wildly gelled hair and fashionable lip piercings bunched around park benches. Simply a few blocks from the Montjuic Park, the locale feels removed from the urban chaos of the town centre.

wandering through Sant Antoni in the dusk – or on a weekend afternoon – is evidence that tapas have not become the sole terrain of the visitor traps on Las Ramblas, the expensive fusion joints in the Born or the nameless chains along the Passeig de Grcia. The’hora del vermut’ is a Spanish custom easily woven into the fabric of humdrum life in Sant Antoni, 2nd nature to most locals and enthusiastically embraced by many that have made Barcelona their adopted home. mid-morning, around 12pm, as a predecessor to a giant lunch with family or friends.

Casa Jacinta ( Tamarit, 154 ; 933 172 059 ) is a giant local fave. The bar prides itself on being an expert when it comes to the’vermouth hour.’ Customers get to choose from vintage vermouths, vermouth on tap, and wines from acclaimed regions like La Rioja, Ribera del Duero and Bierzo.

An outstanding spot for great food, good portions, good vermouth, all served with a good dose of rock’n'roll and jazz. After a couple of visits, the waiters remember you and then you’re part of the family – a big family, given that Bar Ramn draws trustworthy followers from the area, the city at large, even people who have long moved away but make it a point to return each time they are in town.

while superchef Ferran Adri won over food critics with orange froth, his bro, Albert, and his partners turned to their grandmothers’ cookbooks. Instead of going the nouvelle cuisine route, they went about recovering old, classic recipes, collecting the best possible ingredients and sprinkling them with a hint of imagination. The result : Inopia ( Carrer Tamarit, 104 ; 934 245 231 ; www.barinopia.com ), one of the most celebrated tapas restaurants in Sant Antoni, which even caught the iris of the Times. It’s hard to go bad here, every dish is a pleasure, but their seafood and fish tapas are especially superb. The only obstacle of celebrity and excellence : the crowds. It becomes very busy, and reservations are only accepted for the restaurant’s one table, which seats twelve and comes with a tasting menu. The crowd is colourful enough to provide plenty of entertainment as you wait, and the food and atmosphere at this perfect union of practice and modernity is definitely worthwhile.

Lately, Inopia has been handed a run for its place at the top by a modest spot 2 blocks down the road : Bohemic ( Carrer Mans, 42 ; 934 240 628 ). A little, family enterprise with six tables and roughly forty tapas, headed by cook Francesc Gimeno. Bohemic’s reputation has grown continuously and quietly through recommendation by friends. And rumor has it that their house vermouth has gotten more than some glowing reviews.

For those of us who call Sant Antoni home, these are all familiar names and faces. Other Barcelonans are making the trip across the town to discover what all of the excitement is about and discover a corner of the city that hasn’t lost touch with its roots. And if you are visiting from out of the city and want something off the well trodden path, a spot that’s's still more area than keepsake stand, it might be a good idea to search out a little home away from home in Sant Antoni. Nothing causes you to feel more of a local than staying in your own studio ( www.bcninternet.com is a safe bet for quality apartments in Barcelona and around the area ), heading to the corner and ordering a tapa of boquerones al vinagre ( fresh anchovies in vinegar ), some olives and a tall glass of vermouth.

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