La Barra, Mediterranean restaurant in W Hotel, Barcelona, Spain
La Barra is a seafood restaurant inside the W Barcelona Hotel, situated at the edge of the city's waterfront. The space features an open kitchen and a counter where guests can look at the fresh catch of the day before ordering.
The restaurant was opened by chef Carles Abellán when the W Hotel launched in Barcelona's redeveloped harbour area. Abellán had already made a name for himself in the Catalan dining scene, and this project was his way of bringing a more relaxed approach to quality seafood.
In Catalonia, seafood has always been central to the table, and this restaurant carries that tradition forward in a setting that feels open and direct. Guests eat late, as is common in Barcelona, and the connection between the kitchen and the dining room is visible and natural throughout the meal.
The restaurant is on the ground floor of the W Hotel, at the tip of the Barceloneta peninsula, and is easy to reach on foot from the beach. Evenings tend to fill up, so booking ahead is a good idea, especially on weekends.
The fish counter at the entrance is not decorative but a working part of the kitchen, and what is on display changes daily depending on what arrived from the market that morning. On some days, you may find species rarely seen in Barcelona restaurants, depending on the catch.
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