The most succulent rice dishes on the Barcelona coast

The gastronomy of the Barcelona coast enjoys good health and is probably the oldest and best known in the city. For example, visits to Barceloneta for "sea baths" are more than a century old, and more recent ones are for a more rogue and nocturnal moment, in the beach bars of Somorrostro, where wealthy Barcelona would go to go unnoticed. There were also family moments on a Sunday, with popular overtones.

It is clear that food by the sea tastes better. And rice is the star. It may be because of its powerful flavors, its tasty ingredients or the beauty of its presence, but without a doubt this effect is multiplied if you can glance at the sea while enjoying the aromas that emanate from the table.

L'Estupendu

We begin this rice route in one of its meccas: L'Estupendu, in Badalona. This emblematic restaurant occupies the old Pleamar baths, built in 1958 and which in 2015, when L'Estupendu opened, was recovered from a terminal decline to return to that coast the marine essence on the table, together with its white walls and blue doors and windows.

Priceless sea views to enjoy excellent quality grilled fish and seafood tapas (mussels, squid or clams) or fried, as well as classic high-summer flavor starters such as Russian salad with breadsticks, tuna belly and Xillu olives.

This is the essential prelude to the fantastic rice dishes and fideuá that will preside over the table, specifically an assortment of six to choose from between loose grain or soupy ones. Or the solidarity initiative that L'Estupendu has supported for years: for every serving of seafood rice that is served, they donate one euro to the Aspanin Association.

A well-chosen selection of wines on its menu also offers the option of finding a good wine affordable for all budgets. With a glass in hand, the experience is rounded off, whether from its terrace, its more informal vermuteo or snacking area, or its charming air-conditioned interior. L'Estupendu is, in short, a great restaurant with a seafaring character and a place to enjoy the sensations of the immediacy of the beach due to its frontline location, obviating the inconveniences of beach bars on the sand.

Can Fisher

Like a breath of fresh air, Can Fisher enjoys a beautiful location on the Passeig Marítim, on Mar Bella beach, with the incomparable backdrop of the beauty of the Mediterranean Sea. With a venue that opens to the outside, it recreates a garden with a profusion of plants and cheerful colors, very pleasant.

The name is already a declaration of intent: here fish (which comes from the market) is taken very seriously, cooked whole on its wood-fired grill, or wood-fired or salted, according to the client's preference and with market price, as it should be. For those who miss Formentera, their (national) lobster with Calaf eggs and potatoes will provoke more than one sigh.

This lobster is also found in their rice, one of the most demanded, as well as the creamy carabinero rice (both prepared in a wood-fired oven) or a creative seaweed and cockle rice with green alioli, deep sea flavor. These rices, made with grain from local suppliers, can be preceded by any of the numerous starters offered on their menu, such as fish and meat carpaccio, or an unforgettable salad of various organic tomatoes, mint and basil with kimchi vinaigrette, lighter.

Sal Mar

Sal y Mar, or Sal al Mar. Either version fits this new opening by the Ca la Nuri family, rice growers of lineage whose third generation has joined the management and kitchen. At Sal Mar, the best version of having the sand almost under your feet is offered: elegance and comfort on Somorrostro beach, one of the most charismatic in the city. It is located at the bottom of the La Barceloneta promenade, past the Hospital del Mar and is easily recognizable by its orange outdoor parasols.

From their menu, it is essential to try the Andalusian-style calamari that grandmother Nuri popularized in her Ca la Nuri more than 50 years ago. Crispy and light batter accompanied by a mayonnaise with a touch of wasabi, very refreshing. There is no shortage of seafood starters, nor playful crispy prawn skewers with Asian tartare that are a delight.

In the menu, in addition to fish, five succulent rice dishes are offered. For those for whom peeling seafood from paella with their hands (or with cutlery) is a hassle, here they can taste a fantastic classic "señorito" paella. Flavorful, cooked to the perfect point so that the grain is loose and silky.

Can Ramonet

Moving a little away from the sea, but without leaving behind the hustle and bustle of the fishing district, we go up to the height of the Mercat de la Barceloneta: there you will find one of the oldest taverns in the city, Can Ramonet. With nearly 250 years of existence, in this establishment that opens to the outside with a dynamic terrace, traditional seafood dishes are served, not only for being based on fish and seafood, but for offering that stew cuisine with an accent on mar i muntanya, which they call "Grandma Ramona's recipes" such as a veal fricandó with prawns and mushrooms.

That essence is also found in one of their rice dishes, the creamy oxtail rice with green sauce and mussels "a la marinera". In their varied offer of eight rice dishes, you can also find the one that has made many Barcelonians pilgrimage there, the soupy lobster rice. Succulent, powerful in flavor, and with a lot of work ahead to quietly enjoy this delicacy… Always with a spoon!

Speaking of the idiosyncrasy of La Barceloneta, its menu also includes one of its gastronomic icons: the "bomba". Trying the "Dúo de Bombas", the classic and the garlic prawn one, is to transport your palate to a time when nets hung from many of the small houses and everyone knew each other by name. That same sensation is provoked by the fried beach sand shrimp or the grilled sardines with garlic and parsley.

Can Solé

What began as a modest tavern in 1903 to feed sailors is today an emblem of the neighborhood (of Barceloneta). For its magnificent building (how beautiful it looks with the night lighting) and for its strong family character, as four generations of the same family have left their mark behind those stoves and that bar. At Can Solé, tradition is served in its purest form, both in its recipes and in the robust quality of the raw materials used to prepare its gastronomic proposal.

From its imposing headquarters, practically on the seafront, the pulse of this neighborhood is perceived through its windows. And when you don't look through them, it's fun to be distracted by the profusion of graphic and artistic testimonies that populate its walls. Throughout its almost 120 years of existence, celebrities such as Santiago Rusiñol, Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, Joan Miró or Antoni Tàpies have enjoyed its tables, as well as numerous personalities from different fields.

28 proposals of rice dishes and fideuás, no more, no less, are found in this house: from an affordable "arroz a banda" to proposals with more expensive products such as "arroz a banda" with Norwegian red king crab legs or creamy rice with sea cucumbers. One of the most complete specialized menus in the city, without a doubt. And if immersing yourself in this rice festival is not enough, it is important to try spoon classics such as the exceptional stewed grandmother's squid, stuffed with meat, with its own legs, hard-boiled egg and poached onion.

La Mar Salada

We finish the rice route at La Mar Salada, with a proposal of seafood cuisine imbued with the personality and extensive career of chef Marc Singla, visible in seasonal dishes such as the tasty market fish suquet with Vilanova prawns and its picada or cod cheeks with ganxet beans, clams and ceps pilpil.

Its rice dishes, always in an iron pot and cooked with bomba rice, are impeccable in technique and flavor. They also get an excellent thanks to the raw material that their partner Albert Enrich (together with Marta Cid) brings to the kitchen from the nearby fish market, specifically four times a week. Two exponents of Singla's cuisine stand out: the rice with Norway lobster, squid and Iberian jowl or the one with squid, free-range chicken and ceps, two wonders of mar i muntanya.

Its starters seek to please all palates: from those who seek classicism in rock mussels or very good croquettes, to those who let themselves be seduced by marinated anchovies with romesco emulsion and pickles, or razor clams with flame-grilled eggplant, Iberian bacon and roasted sauce. The homemade desserts are pure succulence that should be accompanied by a small glass of sweet wine, as tradition dictates.