Stopped by this place for some tapas at night and it was busy and packed but they let me sit at the bar. They do have some folks working there speak English but honestly, just try to speak Spanish. The tinto de verano was refreshing but the food didn't really wow me. My bomba was cold in the middle but the patatas bravas were hot and delicious. It was lively and the service friendly. I'm sure if I actually sat there with the intention to eat my review would be higher read more

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Popped into Restaurante Bodega Joan looking for some paella and ended up getting their Lobster stew (~€23/pp) for two, some grilled snails, & a bottle of still water! Total was €63.25. It was our first time trying lobster stew; it is like a lobster porridge with mussels and green peas. Quite delicious! The snails came piping hot, with some allioli (garlic Catalan mayo) to dip. It was very flavorful and I found it to be super enjoyable... highly recommend both dishes! read more

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Nice simple food. Nothing fancy but sometimes that's just what you need after a long day. In our case a long journey. It was recommended by our hotel. Prices were reasonable. Service was good. They were very busy. Recommend reservations because we tried to go back and second night and they were full. It was kind of noisy and bustling. There is a bar and a tv playing sports. Is it touristy? Idk... I'm a tourist and I saw some other tourists and lots of families. read more

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One of the authentic tapas places in Barcelona. They speak Spanish and only a little bit of English Pros - large affordable portions of food. Definitely not the small portions you are used to having. Their paella is their signature dish and thats what you should stick to. Cons - the appetizers and non-paella dishes are subpar. The cerviche pieces were too large and only flavored by a tomato. The grilled snails were poorly seasoned. The mussels were fresh but not seasoned well. Stick to the paella. Cool place to get some great filling paella. read more

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Went for the paella, not the sass. I guess our waitress doesn't like American tourists. Paella was just ok. It didn't have any of the delicious singed parts on the bottom so maybe it was premade. Best part was the Brazilian steak served raw to cook at the table yourself. It was delicious We wanted to sit outside (had reservation) but instead we sat in a corner inside The history of Joan Gamper is neat. Read about him read more

I'd love to find the few websites we came across when planning our trio to Barcelona that recommended this place and inquire with a big WTF ... because this was the only place in Barcelona where we felt completely underwhelmed. Nothing about this place was average or above it - from the service and the food in general to the environment overall and the paella specifically. We came here particularly because of the paella recommendations, and I have to believe there would be better paella almost anywhere else. There was zero flavor, more than 75% of it was overcooked, and there was nothing special about it at all (most likely due to the fact that it felt like I was eating flavorless paste). Do yourself a major favor and look elsewhere; you'll be glad you did, considering everywhere else we went had 100x better service and product. read more

Ordered the seafood paella and the rice was undercooked. Would not recommend. The flavor could be better. read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Seafood paella - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

Best dinner during our Barcelona trip. I would take a cab to this restaurant if you're staying in the gothic quarter. Paella = best in the city for us, perfectly crisp rice on the edges, nice and soft rice in the middle. Veal= just melts in your mouth. Order it rare because it cooks on the hotplate. The service was impressive. Our waiter was a guy from Ecuador and very friendly. Make reservations or get here before 7:30p! read more

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I should have relied more on the Yelp reviews than the multiple sites that recommended this restaurant. The quick summation--the service was abrupt and haphazard. It was inattentive at best. The paella was over cooked and lacking flavors perhaps the price point was fine but the product (and service) will leave you wanting more. Wish I would have gone somewhere else. read more

Walked over to Seasons across the street because of the good reviews but they were not serving the full menu, the waiter was kind enough to let me know that Bodega Joan is owned by the same family and the food is just as good, he was not wrong. Easily the best paella I had in Barcelona, great service and non touristy prices. It's a few km away Ramblas, which in my short stay in Barca means better tasting/quality food, a very local spot, can't wait to go back. read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Black Rice Paella with Garlic prawns. Great flavor and real pieces of seafood - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

They squeezed us in without a booking and were we lucky! The food was fantastic and the service was friendly and accommodating. Outstanding!

Loved this local restaurant, my waiter did not speak English, but that's OK because he gave me a picture menu, I ordered wine, shrimp in garlic and oil, and grilled veal with chimichurri. I'll definitely come back on my next trip. read more

We've been in Barcelona for less than a week and have gone here twice in three days. I will have dreams about the seafood paella for the rest of my life. Big healthy portions, but you have to be a party of at least two (no swan diving into this one solo, unfortunately). We also had the potatoes with brava sauce the croquettes (both times- the six), Pan con tomate and the chorizo. Everything was great, but the chorizo was average. We also had the cava sangria which had lots of great fruit in here. If you're in this area of the city, would highly recommend stopping by! Well priced, delicious and very conveniently located. read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Seafood paella - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

Delicious Seafood Paella. Great Sangria. Reasonable price. Place is busy with locals and tourists. read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Seafood Paella - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

Food/Drink: We did the prie fix menu which involved a paella for two, three tapas, a drink of choice (sangria, beer, etc), and a coffee at the end. We go the mixed paella which is definitely recommended if you want both seafood and meat in your dish. The rice was cooked to perfection with the little crisp at the bottom and the waiter even helps you serve it. The three tapas were patata braves, a sort of pork loin dish and grilled shrimp. After the tapas we thought we couldn't finish the paella but it was so good that we ended up finishing everything. Even though it's not the most authentic place to get a paella, still would recommend as an option for a lot of food. Price: The prie fix menu was 25 euros per person which is a little on the higher side but not bad at all when you consider how much food you're getting and the quality. It feels authentic enough since we saw locals in the restaurant as well as tourists. Atmosphere: It's a lively casual bar with a lot of football memorabilia and can be great place to watch sports with its huge TV. It's well air conditioned which was important to us and there are many tables and chairs for both small and large groups. The waiters were nice enough but weren't overly enthusiastic although I suspect that's everyone in Barcelona so we didn't take it personally. Tips: you can reserve a seat online in case it gets busy! read more

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Absolutely fantastic! Seafood paella is amazing, the octopus gallician too! We loved the sangria. You better make a reservation, as it is quite busy! The staff is great and it's definitely worth the visit! read more

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Probably the best seafood paella I've ever had. The service wasn't great but it's definitely worth going for the food. Great experience overall, would go again if I'm ever back in Barcelona. read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Seafood paella for two people - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

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Delicious tapas - some of the best calamari/fried octopus rings on the planet! So fresh, with a wonderful aioli. We enjoyed the reasonable wine list, tasty paella, crispy potatoes bravas and amazing prawns. read more

We had a leisurely lunch here. This is a nice, family-friendly tapas spot, filled with locals on a Sunday afternoon. The plate of iberico meats was a nice portion of ham, chorizo and salami, all nicely sliced and delicious. Tomato bread was okay--I've had better elsewhere, but this worked well with the meats. Pig's feet were rich and saucy, as were the patatas bravas. The grilled pork was also nice. All in all, a solid meal--nothing fancy, but comforting. Service was friendly--they were very busy so it was nice for the servers to be friendly even with no time. read more

This place was so good I came here twice in 8 days. After looking up several places to eat, this place surprisingly came up on google reviews/message boards as a good place to get a paella. The first time I came here me and my buddy ordered a small beer and a paella. Note the beers come with a tapa. The next time I came we just ordered two appetizers and the paella. I can say that two nights of paella, paella'd me out. Nevertheless this was some of the best paella I had (after some of my friends got ripped off in the San Miguel Market in Madrid, where you got a small little cup of paella for 10EUR). read more

Poor service: not attentive to customers, waited 40 minutes for the food. When inquired about the long waiting time, no responses were given. Waiters just walked away after hearing our question. Food taste awful: paid over 70 euro for the awfully salty paella for 4 person and we were not even full. read more

I read about this place for top rated paella and it was worth the nearly two mile walk to get here. The service was wonderful, the atmosphere was lively and the food was unparalleled in taste and quality. The paella rice was cooked to perfection, the sauce was flavorful and there is plenty of seafood to go around. From the very first bite my husband and I were impressed and we rated the paella top two meals we had in Barcelona, and we ate A LOT! If you get a chance to eat here, get the Paella! read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Seafood paella for two - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

This place is rocking ! The sausage was delciouso and the fresh water was cold water! Delicious five stahs would reccomend. read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - My friend very happy with his meal - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

It's the first meal we had in spain, and it's an absolute winner. We had the patatas bravas, scortched pepper, imberico ham, fried baby octopus, grilled red prawn, and the seafood paella. All were delicious even if the paella lacked sacarrat. The service was super friendly as well. Highly recommended! read more

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We went here twice during our visit. The food overall was decent, some really good. Paella was excellent Love the crispy French fries Love the fried baby squid Lamb was not the greatest Overall the service was decent but lack attention to details and way too understaffed. They don't offer suggestions so if you order red wine, they just give the cheapest glass even though they have other options. With that said, it is a great casual place to eat good food and have good conversation. We really like the atmosphere and it's a great value. YOU MUST HAVE RESERVATIONS read more

Top notch tapas, great prices, fabulous sangria, cool atmosphere, friendly service and best of all a stellar air conditioning system which at times in Barcelona can be a sorely lacking but desperately needed! I am in Barcelona quite often and have been here multiple times and it's been consistently great. Highly recommend for locals and tourists alike. Only caution: ordering specialty cocktails (e.g. caipirinhas) may take an few extra minutes to get to your table but they were excellent! read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Pimientos de Padron, a must and a pitcher of sangria! - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

Bodega Joan was such a delight! My sister and I were trying to find some authentic paella and Bodega Joan exceeded our expectations. Outside of the 'touristy' areas and frequented by locals, Bodega Joans' paella de mariscos is designed for two people and is so tasty and reasonably priced (~16 per person). In addition, we got a jar of sangria which was the best we had during our visit to Spain. The service was great - the waiter warned us our paella would take at least 20 minutes to prepare and made himself available for questions and to make sure we had everything we needed. Couldn't recommend visiting enough! read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Seafood paella and (half finished!) pitcher of sangria - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

I was in Barcelona 6 months ago. All I can think of is the Seafood Paella at this restaurant. It was simply amazing. Another night during my stay we went to another restaurant that focused primarily on paella, but it wasn't like Bodega Joan. A MUST Taste! read more

Amazing little cafe/restaurant. Brilliant service with friendly staff. The food was out of this world along with the price. Also offers cash back so you don't have to go to a cash machine and get charged which I found useful. Would recommend this place if you're looking for breakfast, lunch or dinner. 5 star for me!! read more

TOURIST TRAP - expensive paella, definitely not worth it. It costs €14 per person and you have to buy two portions, so we ended up spending €30 just on paella when you can get paella for €10-15 down the street. The flavor was great, but definitely not worth the price! read more

We stay near the area and read in a blog that Bodega Joan had good paella in the neighborhood. we ordered seafood paella and it was not bad. Personally I found it too wet and it would have been better if they had dried it up a bit. There was enough seafood in it which was a thumbs up. The wait for the paella was only 15 mins even with a lunch crowd. read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

Went with a friend of mine. Was sat immediately. We had sangria which was great and the mixed paella which was also great. Staff was also very friendly read more

Wonderful little Bodega with delicious food. My brother and I enjoyed the meat paella and the entire family came together over their coffee and pastries. The service was great; we were treated as if we'd been customers for decades, though we'd only been in attendance for a week. Alex was one of the best servers we had, but in all truth we were content with each of the servers we came to know. Eating at Bodega Joan was a great experience. I highly recommend! read more

If you like moody waitresses, wobbly tables, small potions, soggy fries and green tomatoes, you might like this place. If your standards are higher that than, it's best avoided. I'm not a big eater and I left still hungry. This is basically a rowdy bar that serves food as an after-thought. read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Small portions, soggy fries and green tomatoes. - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

The best paella in Barcelona!! We also tried their mushroom risotto, the kebab, and their pizza (three cheese and bacon) and they did not disappoint as well! We came back twice during our stay in Barcelona! read more

Visited Barcelona with my family this summer and we of course wanted to try traditional paella. We yelped for restaurants that served paella in Barcelona and came across Bodega Joan. We were not disappointed! The service is great and the food is out of this world! The paella was more than I expected it to be and their tapas were delicious as well. (My family's personal favorite tapas plate were the patatas bravas, would highly recommend!) So, if you're in the Barcelona area and are looking for a great restaurant with traditional Spanish dishes, Bodega Joan is the place for you!! read more

Restaurante Bodega Joan - Top photo: Paella Mixta- with seafood and meat Bottom photo: Paella with seafood only - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

I've been twice during my stay in Barcelona (second time to try the paella) and the service has not been good. Staff was not helpful. Paella was okay. Garlic shrimp was delicious. read more

I am not sure how this restaurant got 4 stars. The taste/quality of the food is just okay. I came to try this restaurant because I wanted Seafood Paella. The seafood paella was over cook and the shrimps were not fresh, 14.90 euros per a person. Two of us costed about 30 Euros...over priced. Sorry to say that I had eaten better seafood paella in SAN Francisco. The seafood paella was disappointing. The veal was over cooked. We order medium rare but got medium. Service was good but will not come back cause I know there are better paella places out there. read more

This place has the best sangria and the paella I've ever had... I must stop when you're in Barcelona. The staff was extremely nice, menu in English and everything was perfect! read more

We went to this restaurant for it's famous paella. We ordered seafood paella for 2. When they brought our dish out, the rice was almost uncooked. We decided not to complain, but after other tables complained, the restaurant offered to fix the dish for us as well. This time, the rice came out starchy and overcooked. Also, the rice was too salty. We found paella in some other places salty as well, but this was the worst. read more