This place has awesome tapas. I have tried most of them and couldn't find a bad one. It is a tiny hole in the wall and you may need a reservation especially if your group is more than two read more

I can't say enough good things about this restaurant. My boyfriend and I were in Barcelona on a long layover and stumbled upon this tapas bar on our way back from the Gaudi parks. The staff was incredibly friendly and welcoming, the food was delicious and homemade, the drinks were fantastic, and the bar itself had a great cozy atmosphere. Prices were very reasonable for the quality. We couldn't have asked for a better dinner spot for our one night in Barcelona. Thank you Valentina for the guest appearance as well. :) read more

What an incredible place to eat. Pilar is the best person you can ever meet in your life. The food was incredible. Paulino a great person to have taking care of you. An incredible experience! Highly recommend this tapas bar. read more

Very small place with cool atmosphere, good food for low prices. Very friendly staff. You can't miss it if you visit Gracia.

Excellent place for tapas. Everything on the menú is good. Come early in order to get a place to sit, because it gets crowded fast. The owners run the place and make sure you are treated right. Prices are very reasonable. Popular with locals. Highly recommended. read more

Came here as I am visiting from California on a busy Friday night, the place was completely full but still adorable Pilar managed to find me a seat by the bar. Food was absolutely amazing and the service was friendly and very fast, totally recommended, I will come back again for sure, everything was delicious! read more

Fantastic! We arrived close to when they opened and were some of the first customers there. Not much english was spoken but that didn't matter. Everyone was so friendly and kind. We ordered a couple of cervezas and with each, came an amazing snack. One of the owners came over to us and spoke a bit of english. She was so kind, so went to call her partner who spoke perfect english to come in and talk with us. We had such a nice visit here and only got a sample a few items as we were headed to other places, but it has been most memorable. They even gave us a phone number in case we need anything during our time in Barcelona. Between the excellent food, service, prices and pure kindness, we will be back many times. read more

Delicious food and really friendly staff. Would recommend to anyone in this part of town

I read a few reviews and decided to give Gatamala a try. We met Pilar just outside the door she was very welcoming and invited us in. We ordered a couple beers and talked to Pilar about some food suggestions. She recommended the "Combinacion Catalan & Entrenadita" based on our food preferences and level of hunger. We were immediately served the "Combinacion" which was essentially a sample platter. It was both tasty and filling. We thought we were done (forgot about the Entrenadita) but as soon as we finished the sample platter we were served the Entrenadita. Despite feeling satisfied we couldn't resist trying it. It was very tender and perfectly cooked meat, yum. After sampling this dish we asked if we could take it to go and Pilar generously offered us a plate to take home, trusting us to bring it back on our next visit, which will definitely be tomorrow! read more

What a great local neighborhood restaurant! We were visiting Garcia and walked out of our way based on the reviews. We hesitated b/c it has simple decorations but the service and food was great - kids and parents all agreed. We felt welcome and like part of the neighborhood! read more

Great service. Great ambitious By the way every drink comes with a yummy tapa. Must try

This was by far the most memorable restaurant I've been to in Barcelona. Every dish we had was personalized and fitted to the ideals of the restaurant. Absolutely delicious! The food was phenomenal, but the atmosphere is just unmatched. I feel like we would be happy coming here everyday. We felt like part of the family for our(too short) dinner here. We will be back everytime we come to Barcelona without a doubt. read more

Very happy we ran into this delicious and joyful place. The crew are fabulous, super friendly and helpful and somehow manage to cook and serve the most delicious tapas simultaneously. Diego, our chef, made the best recommendations for a superb dinner, wine and dessert included. Will come back here at least a few more times during our short visit and bookmark it for our next trip back. read more

Pilar, the owner and Monica, the bartender made us feel thoroughly at home. They brought tapas to us gratis which were exquisite. We went back for a second dinner, just their house sampler. It was a delightful array of complementary tastes. The sun dried tomatoes were sublime. read more

After visiting Park Guell we found this spot on yelp and after reading reviews, we decided to give it a try. It lived up to the hype! We walked and were immediately greater by Pilar. What a super friendly woman. We ordered the steak, tarta of Jamon, quedo and tomate as well as the morcilla. Everything was so delicious. It's a very small place. We were there around 8:30 which is a little early for Spaniards which I think is why there was an open table. read more

Best food we've had in Barcelona and the service is excellent!! Pilar and Monica (?) are so warm and helpful. A must do in Barcelona!!

Great food and awesome atmosphere! We loved this place and would recommend to anyone! Very friendly and great vibe!

Wow! Seriously? Me and my husband had one of the best experience when dinning in this place! Food is out of this world, I will definitively come back to Barcelona just to eat here! Totally worth it! The staff, I have no words to describe how nice and awesome they are, yes... It's tiny and maybe you will be eating standing up but believe me they make you feel so welcome and the owner is super nice that you fell your home! One of my best experience ever while eating in Europe! The veal is juice and tender, all the tapas are so flavorful and fresh and Even though they have a small selection of wine and beers, the are really good. Important tip... You will want to have a reservation! It is always busy! read more

Amazing tapas, friendly service, fun atmosphere! We got the combinado plate and the bombolas which was all really good, but our favorite was definitely the eggplant on the combinado plate, so I guess I'll have to go back and get the full eggplant dish, that's the only logical conclusion. Pilar greeted everyone and she was so sweet and made us feel right at home! Amazing bartender (wish I got her name!) gave us some free tapas and a few winks, my heart was a flutter and cinched GataMala's spot as one of my fav dining experiences in Barcelona! read more

Loved this place! The food was absolutely delicious, and the staff was very friendly. One of the chefs even took the time out to help us out with the menu since our Spanish/Catalan is not great and read and explained everything in English. An all around great experience! read more

WTF unbelievable warmth and comfort from a new friend, Pilar! She greeted us with hospitality, understanding and care! Just go if you're nearby and have a wonderful time!!! I will look for our photo with Pilar and post it to this blog. Enjoy life!!! read more

Gata Mala - Pilar in the middle - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

If you want the perfect little cervezas And tapas in Barcelona in the best neighborhood then come here. My wife and I came here because it had good reviews. To be honest we came here our first night in Barcelona and came back here for our last night because it's that amazing. The entranita was the best meat we had in the whole city. The beer called "Mahou" were served in the perfectly sized glasses and for some reason their tap created the best taste. Anyways I can go on and on so just go here, you won't be disappointed. read more

been here evety yesr gor last 3 years - the best staff the best tapas and best cutomers. A must eat is the 'Tartaletta de Foie"

This was a wonderful dining experience- a real highlight of my time in Barcelona! I went with a group of six and the staff took very good care of us. All the food was delicious and they even catered for me as a vegetarian! I would recommend the eggplant and patatas gravis. The woman who served us was absolutely amazing and so sweet! She helped us choose items on the menu and ensured we were we happy, despite the language barriers. Would highly recommend this place! read more

Great place run by great people serving great food. Nothing else a human can ask for! I suggest the veal steak most definitely

We were with a large group (18 people), exhausted after trekking up to Parc Guell. No place was opened yet, and we were about to expire right there in the street , when one of the chefs invited us to come in . They were all so gracious for taking us in when they weren't prepared to be opened yet- and it was some if the best food we are in Barcelona! I had a dish with eggplant that was amazing! read more

What a wonderful hidden gem ! We were recommended this place by a friend and we're so happy we stopped in! Pinar is such a sweet person. She greeted us and came to have a conversation with us after our meal. The food was delicious and very reasonably priced. Small place, so make a reservation or get there early. Definitely recommend and will be back here if we ever come back to Barcelona! read more

Gata Mala - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

Lovely night at Gata Mala's. Pilar was very warm & welcoming. She suggested we try the Combinacion Catalana as we are open to trying anything. That platter included ensalata de patata (very moist & tasty), sun dried tomatoes (delicious), manchego, olives, zucchini, and ensalata de zucchini & onions. We ate every bite. Though we were full, we squeezed in some bites of the entranadita - so tender and cooked expertly. Pilar lent us a plate to bring our leftovers home. Excellent overall - including the beer! read more

Gata Mala has consistently been an excellent and tantalizing experience. This is what I would consider a true neighborhood tapas bar. Not that I'm an expert, but there is no menu to be found, you simply point at what you want in the glass case of deliciousness, or ask if they have something. Everything I have eaten here (admittedly, I don't even know what some of the things are) is simply amazing, especially the eggplant. Be prepared to stand. The place has been packed each time I have been there, despite the fact they open earlier than most other places in Gracia, which I believe is a testament to Gata Mala's cool vibe and tasty tapas. The staff is impressive, seemingly memorizing a million orders at once and never forgetting a drink, tapa, or check- and all in a tiny bar and kitchen area. Also a plus: each drink earns you a free tapa. I also received free wine top-offs and unlimited bread- yay! read more

The best tapas I ever had in Barcelona. The workers are kinda and sweet they go out of their way to help you order. The best dish to eat here is the veal omg it melts in your mouth..I recommend this to everyone that wants to eat where the locals eat... read more

Went tonight with my family (wife, me, 5 year old and one year old). I've had the opportunity to travel quite a bit, and this was truly one of the best meals and experiences I've had. The staff spoke little to no English, we spoke little to no Spanish, yet they went out of their way to bridge the communication gap - including engaging local guests to aide the translation. They politely checked in with us regularly to ensure that we were enjoying our food and that our boys were happy. And the food was simply wonderful: the 'small plates' were anything but small and the flavors were fantastic - we had the vegetable compote and grilled beef with pureed potatoes, my son had the meat pizza - and all were exceptional. Could not more highly recommend this place... read more

Love this restaurant! Pilar, the owner, was warm and welcoming. We didn't know what to order so we asked her to recommend her favorite dishes. My kids enjoyed every dish, especially the bombolas. Overall, great food and excellent prices! read more

We had some refreshing tinto de verano s here in around 7 pm on a Tuesday night and it was packed with locals. The bartender didn't speak English but was super nice to us. The owner was originally from Pakistan and was a cool guy to chat with. Lovely bar and highly recommended for a more low key, authentic barca experience. read more

Everything about this establishment was amazing. The staff was so friendly and the food was delicious. But the best thing was how at home everyone made you feel, no matter what language you spoke. read more

I recently got food poisoning from another restaurant while traveling. So all day today my stomach has been churning. My husband convinced me to get something, anything, and this is where We ended up. The Patatas Bravas and the steak and pimento mashed potatoes were outstanding. Just what I needed to get me going. I'm so thankful! The steak though, I didn't get a chance to tell the owner that as Americans we take our steak seriously, and this is easily some of the best steak I've eaten. A 12 euro plate in America like that could EASILY go for 20 dollars, I would still pay that much. So worth. read more

On March 17, 2017 on a Friday night around 830PM my boyfriend Charlie and I, while visiting Barcelona from NYC, walked around the corner from where we were staying in La Gracia, upon our friend and host Jorge's recommendation, and popped into Gata Mala. We did not have a reservation and the owner Pilar jovially teased us about being a walk up yet some how cheerfully found a place for us to sit just over the tapas counter. She explained it was ok for us to eat there if we were ok with eating there- which we were definitely into, in part because of the friendliness of the staff and the fun of seeing the tapas plates come together. We then continued to have a glorious meal, one charming and delicious plate after the next. Along with plenty of cervesa and vino. We loved the combination cold tapas plate, with zucchini, potato salad, eggplant and cheese and can not stop thinking about how the carne plate - Argentinian steak with potatoes melted in our mouths not to mention the amazing mid course tapas sent out on the house. The quail egg toast so simple and so amazing also was mind blowing. We loved every moment of our experience there. Pilar was a joy to meet. The food and service was by far the best in Barcelona! I highly, highly recommend! Also a few minutes after we left my boyfriend got down on one knee with a surprise proposal. We will always have a special place in our hearts for Gata Mala in La Gracia, Barcelona, Spain. It is a must go spot! So go! read more

This is one of the best gems in Barcelona. It's a local and restaurant perfect to visit for a dinner after seeing park Guell. Tapas are original and very local to Barcelona. The staff is fantastic. They helped us get around and hinted a few local venues that proved to be spot on. I'll come here again next time I'm in Barcelona. Huge thanks! read more

I was persuaded by all the good feedback to check this place out with my boyfriend for our first tapas experience. Wow! We were greeted warmly despite not having reservations on a Saturday night. They even had one of the servers recite the menu in English when my Spanish did not hold up. Our favorite dishes were the eggplant and the veal with potato. Also enjoyed the homemade pie and spinach bolitas. Two glasses of red wine rounded out the meal nicely. In total, our meal was 40 euro including tip and we were VERY satisfied. Great service, cozy space, and amazing food. read more

Wow truly AMAZING!!!!!!! Everyone must go to this restaurant if they are in Barcelona for tapas! Hands down the best experience for tapas my family and I had in Barcelona! The owners: Pinar and Nacho, were so friendly and inviting and made conversation with us and everyone else. They shook our hands, gave us kisses on the cheek, made an effort to get to know our family! They gave us a couple free tapas as well, after we had ordered a few drinks. We had asked for Nacho's favorite tapa and he suggested the Venezuelan beef and the potato (which is Pinar's dad's recipe)! Seriously a little whole in the wall with the best tasting food and incredible atmosphere! read more

The reason I keep using Yelp wherever I go is precisely to come across this kind of place. Located 15min away from the Parc Güell and about the same from Passeig de Gràcia, I would have not been able to find this very tiny restaurant without the app. First time we try to get there the place was packed and we had to wait for about an hour. We decided to come back another day and it was worth it! Nothing special to say about Pilar that has not been said before. But the second woman behind the bar was also extremely nice and helpful. We were a bit struggling with the menu and asked her for advice. We ended up with the eggplant/cheese, the meat (Argentina), and the foie gras (+ the tapas you get when you order beverages).. Sounds quite fancy, right?! I was really positively surprised by the cuenta that was totally decent. Definitely one of my best experiences in Barcelona when it comes to food. read more