Barcelona has a new number ten. He doesn't play at Camp Nou or San Paolo, but he has the soul of both. His name is Número Diez and he is the new restaurant by Emmanuele Stevanato (Grupo Dolcevita Gusto Italiano), a passionate tribute to Maradona's Naples and to authentic Neapolitan cuisine, the kind that is cooked amidst the hustle and bustle of markets, the smell of basil, and the sound of a radio that never turns off and plays in the mamma's kitchen.
Located in the heart of Sarrià (C/Capità Arenas, 62), Número Diez is not just a pizzeria, nor just a trattoria. It is a declaration of love for a city that lives intensely every bite, every goal, and every day.
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Here, Neapolitan pizza is the absolute queen, but it shares the throne with the homemade dishes of mamma e la nonna, with that simple, tasty, and characterful cuisine that turns a meal into a memory.
Naples, football, and wood-fired oven
Nothing at Número Diez is casual. Neither the name —a nod to the number immortalized by Diego Armando Maradona— nor its atmosphere. The walls tell football stories, the tables smell of San Marzano tomatoandmelted mozzarella, and from the wood-fired oven come pizzas that are pure round poetry.Chef Luigi Marcato masters the dough with the precision of an artisan and the patience of someone who understands that Neapolitan pizza, like the most authentic and traditional recipes, cannot be improvised. Long fermentation, high hydration, and live fire. This is how his pizzas are born—classic, fried, or calzoncellate—honoring tradition and elevating it a little further.
But Número Diez doesn't stop there. Its menu features dishes that taste like home: the reinvented Figliata Napoletana, eggplant rolls with pancetta, grandma's meatballs, Parmigiana, gnocchi alla sorrentina, or spaghetti al cartoccio di mare. Honest, direct cooking, without artifice. The kind that makes you smile without quite knowing why.
A cuisine that is experienced with all five senses, in a place that transports us to 1980s Naples, and that, in each of its corners and walls, winks at the carefree and vital character of Neapolitans.
Emmanuele Stevanato: the Italian who cooks concepts
Behind this project is Emmanuele Stevanato, a Venetian with a restless soul and a vocation for creating experiences. He arrived in Barcelona three years ago with a clear idea: to bring the true Italy to the city, the one eaten in homes, in squares, in small places where everything is cooked with love and without haste.
"Número Diez is our homage to 1980s Naples, to the neighborhood, to the hope that Maradona brought to a poor but vibrant city," says Emmanuele. And one only needs to cross the restaurant's door to understand that he is serious: this place breathes street, passion, and faith.
For him, each restaurant of the Dolcevita Gusto Italiano Group is a piece of a large gastronomic theme park. "Each place is like a different attraction, a part of Italy turned into an experience," he explains. And he doesn't exaggerate: in 2023, he opened the first Dolce Vita in Les Corts, followed by a second next to La Boqueria. Both with their own soul and their own accent. Now, with Número Diez, comes his tribute to the south, and he is already preparing new concepts dedicated to other Italian regions, such as Sicily, which will see the light in 2026.
Travel through Italy without leaving Barcelona
For Stevanato, eating in his establishments is "getting on a time and teleportation machine". Everything—from ingredients imported directly from Italy to the close treatment of the staff—seeks to recreate that Italian warmth and energy that spread joy.
In a world of soulless franchises and recipes adapted to global taste, Emmanuele is clear: "Here there are no concessions. We respect recipes, processes, and ingredients. Our cuisine is homemade, but with a modern and, at times, counter-current touch."
And so, with the aroma of the oven and Neapolitan music in the background, Número Diez vindicates something that seems simple, but is not: authenticity. The kind that cannot be copied or improvised. The kind that is born of passion.
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