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That's interesting because I find eating in restaurants of all kinds, both home and abroad, to offer socialogical experiences, and that white tablecloth restaurants offer their own kind of sociological experiences that are as fascinating as any. I should've added 'as a tourist'. I'd say that in Europe and the US upper-middle classes are more similar to each other than working-class people, that's why grandma places, when you're abroad, tend to be more interesting for me.

Have you written about this place in Badalona, Eric, or is it a secret you must be tortured to disclose? :-) BTW, I share your approach to food but I'd add that the charm of eating in a grandma place includes not only the gastronomic experience but a sociological one that I find most interesting.

The Esquerra de l'Eixample is the best neighbourhood for restaurants in Barcelona. Ciutat Vella caters too much to tourists and it is difficult to find reasonable price/quality ratios, though there are some destination restaurants and some classics which you will enjoy for their character plus the advantage of being close to sights. In Sarrià, Eixample Dret and Gracia you can find nice restaurants too but the sheer variety of the Eixample Esquerra is unparalleled. So if you haven't had time to plan or want to take a stroll and pick a restaurant on a whim, this is the place to go. Lots of ethnic quality restaurants too, so it's also great if you make an extended visit to Barcelona.

Yes, they're like farmers markets but limited to certain products. You can mostly find sausages (embotits), cheese, honey and marmelade (sp?), bread and other pastries, herbs and maybe some fruits. I'd say it's an increasing trend, for now limited to Barcelona. I know there's another one in C.Rogent/C.València and I suppose there must be more in other neighbourhoods. Till now you could find some of these products in those small shops we were talking about but I think people knew they were more expensive than necessary, so there's a niche for them. The only problem is people leave on week-ends!

Besides buying sausages in rural villages, which I do everywhere I can, the place to buy them in Barcelona for me is on Sunday street markets in Avda. Gaudí, besides Sagrada Familia (only the first and third Sunday every month). Absolutely recommended.

I'm a local but I don't cook much so I don't have as much to share as I'd like. I think people tend to go local, buying as much in small shops (peixateries, carnisseries, xarcuteries) as in neighbourhood markets as in supermarkets (not necessarily bad). I've heard the Mercat del Ninot is expensive relative to quality. My nearest market, el Mercat de la Sagrada Familia, seems fine to me. But I'm sure you'll find plenty of great food shops in your area, since it's a non-tourist neighbourhood. As for specific suggestions, it's difficult to recommend something worth going out of your way for. I can only suggest Colmado Quilez, in carrer Aragó with Rambla de Catalunya, which should be near enough where you live, for high quality canned products, cheese and spirits. It's much better than El Club del Gourmet in El Corte Inglés, and that goes for tourists as well. A similar place to La Ribera according to your description is not far away, in small Carrer Sombrerers, on the side of Santa Maria del Mar. Highly advisable both for ambiance, products and price. Can't remember the name though.

Sorry about that, I lost a couple of days getting in as a member. Anyway, if you're interested in buying wine in Barcelona there's a couple of places I can recommend other than the famous Vila Viniteca (c. Agullers 7). There's a big place called 'Vinacoteca' in c. Valencia, 595. Great number of selections at great prices, both cheap and expensive, though weak in foreign wines -which is no disadvantage for you visitors-. A perhaps more suitable place for visitors is a little shop in c. Sombrerers (can't find the number but it's a very small street, right besides Santa Maria del Mar) where the owner is an American who speaks an excellent Catalan. Since he's a native English speaker and has been living here for years as his commanding Catalan shows, he's just the right person to ask whatever you want to know, whether you buy there or not. The subject of good Japanese restaurants is one I'm interested in, let's save for another day and another thread -though I'll be asking more than giving advice-.

I hope they speak Spanish as not too many tourists are likely to speak Gallego or Catala. Welcome to eGullet. We look forward to more posts about the local Barcelona. I doubt you'll ever hear Gallego in Foxos...and, yes, of course everyone speaks Spanish. Now let me tell you, Bux, that I enjoy your posts a lot. It's great to find an American with such good knowledge and appreciation for our food, plus I love your writing style. And since I'm on this road, let me add that I appreciate vserna's posts as well -and I've used his suggestions a couple of times already.

Hi, this is my first post here. I'm from Barcelona and I hope I can be helpful to people coming to Barcelona and Catalonia. I won't add much about the starred places since you all know about them more than I do, but I hope I can help you people find places that are both good and authentic -of course I hope to get similar advice for other cities- or answer culturally-related questions. So, to add some spice to my post, let me concur with Pepe that Goliard is a very nice inexpensive restaurant. It is neither traditional nor highly creative but a very reasonable middle-ground with good roots in Catalan cooking. Eating there at lunch weekdays is a bargain (about 9€ with wine included). I've also read a lot about Can Majó here. There are quite a number of similar restaurants in Barceloneta but at least two that I've tried are on a par with Can Majó: Cal Pinxo (c. Baluard, 124) and Cal Ramonet (c. Maquinista, 17). You'll eat as well and at the same price level, but the clientele is bound to be less touristy since all guides feature Can Majó. Now let's get to the heart of it. If you're like me, you love local places where people eat well and tourists are nowhere to be found. It would seem a little foolish of me to publicize a place like that to see it flocked with egulleteers, but I hope the e-gullet community is still far and small enough not to spoil it -and a couple of wandering tall Americans going in now and then is also a fun and welcome sight-. In this place called Foxos, a more-or-less Galician restaurant, there are no single tables, people sit where they can; there are no reservations, people wait till they can get seated; food is wholesome, delicious and portions are huge; there is no written menu, the waiter tells it to the clients and no one will talk English, unless you find some young patron willing to help. Plus it is located in a working class neighbourhood so you'll be eating with people you don't usually see, and they'll be friendly although difficult to communicate with. I lack English vocab to fully describe dishes, but most of you will probably know the names: salpicon de marisco, escudella i carn d'olla, lentejas con chorizo, codillo -huge!-, estofado de ternera, are some of the house staples. A Spanish inn 50 years ago. Now, unfortunately I don't have the exact address but it is located in Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes between c. Agricultura and c. Cantabria, at around number 1100. The nearest tube station, two blocks away, is Sant Marti (Line #2, 4 stops from Sagrada Familia). Oh, and it's only open for lunch. Cheaper than dirt on weekdays (7.50), a little more expensive on Saturdays (15-20), but then you can try their jamon. Hope you like it! alfred