Cafe Suec

Carrer de les Tres Senyores 1 : Fontana : Joanic
:
A slighty 'out of the way', yet chilled out Swedish abode - hidden behind the popular Pl. Virreina. This is a low-lit, pretty and mellow bar that you'll find intoxicated with local art work. If you're looking for something a little different, they also specialise in mulled wine. Music is nicely inconspicuous yet it's enough to fool the sub-conscious that you're spending your leisure time more than wisely. The bar staff are English speaking and more importantly friendly and this is the type of bar that you might find yourself popping into for a swift drink and end up staggering out of at 3am, wondering if you can yet again phone your boss in the morning for a well-deserved 'sickie'. Don't say I didn't warn you!
ZeroZero

Raim

Carrer del Progrés, 48 : Fontana
:
I can't guarantee that you'll love this particularly old, dark Cuban haunt but in my case it's the perfect place to go if you're tired of the glut of trendy, projector filled bars that dominate this part of Gracia. Think dank, dusty and other adjectives in this vein and you'll be on the right track to picturing this rather wonderfully down-to-earth and lively bar, located just off the slightly more intrusive and seductive Torrent d'Lolla. Although it's not rammed with seating space it's definitely a bar rammed with peeps whose idea of a night out needs nothing more than a bench to park on, a kicking atmos and plenty of cheap, good booze. A place for those (like me!) who just wanna cut to the chase and forget all the stresses of yet another monotonous week of slaving for the 'man', whoever that man might be!

ZeroZero

Andu Bar

C/ de Correu Vell 3 : Jaume
Tel. 646553930 & 637746411
:
A lovely, cosy, wine orientated bar tucked away in the barely lit streets of the Gothic neighbourhood. This is definitely a place to come, kick back and drink some quality beverages without completely annihilating the entire contents of your wallet. Low lit yet sizeable rooms, plenty of quaint tables and chairs and a jolly, busy atmosphere make this is a place to bring your annoying relatives or drunken excitable pals for a debauched yet respectable evening of chatting, flirting and knocking off a few brain cells along the way! The music here is 'backgroundy' enough to not get in the way of the all important conversational process that you'll inevitibly be having and you never know, you might just meet the infamous drinkBarcelona crew chattering away in the corner and putting the world to rights! Either way this is highly recommended.
ZeroZero

Liadisimo

C/Guillermo Tell 23-25 : Fontana
:
Fascinating Fact: in Spanish, the word "bar" can mean both "pub" and also "coffee shop", and it's under the cover of this dubious linguistical ambiguity that I'm going to attempt to squeeze unnoticed into our bar guide a place which is quite flagrantly a coffee shop, not a venue for late night drunken debauchery at all. I'm going to justify this off-topic choice on two grounds: first of all, it's right by my flat, and anybody who thinks this isn't a good reason to review a bar should check out the disproportionately large number of bars we have covered in the Plaza España area - no prizes for guessing where ZeroZero lives! ; ) Secondly, it is the only place that I'm aware of outside Starbucks that serves my favourite coffee variant, the frappuccino, which has all the benefits of a cool drink with an added caffeine boost! Of course, you can also drink alcohol in here just as you can in any bar in this great country of wonderfully relaxed drinking laws. They also have a tasty and reasonably healthy food menu with pasta, tapas, bikinis (if you don't know what these are, let's just say that they're not as good as they sound), etc. It's a nice place for lunch, elevenses, a morning coffee, or even an intercambio, a bit like DosMilTres in fact, but without the racy art.
Paul

Continental

C/Providencia 50 : Fontana
:
The major selling point of this trashfest was always the sexy barmaid clad in a Tron style outfit. Sadly those halcyon days are over and there's not much left to recommend Continental. It's one of the worst places to play pool, although not quite as bad as the Bristol Blue, where the craters in the wall testify to the frustrations of playing pool in a shoebox. The decor is reminiscent of Nos Vemos and Distrito Cinco and not, as they say, in a good way. At weekends there is a DJ who pumps out a musical selection which veers chaotically between "so bad it's good" and, more often, "so bad it's bad". I once saw a group of young Catalans do the hokey cokey here, a sight I would not wish on anyone. If you lack taste and have more money than sense, I can heartily recommend this overpriced dive.
Paul

Rita Rouge

Plaça de la Gardunya : Liceu
Tel. 934813686
:
Quite possibly one of the longest bars I've seen in Barcelona, this is a happening place for those with a bulging wallet in search of a touch of class. Think of modern dining, kitsche furnishings, artisan inspired cocktails and super cool music and you're half-way there. Rita Rouge has lots of nooks and crannies to park your alcohol sodden corpse in and a lengthy bar if you find that all of the seating has been monopolised by smooching couples in search of romance. There is also a terrace for those warmer BCN nights and fairly friendly staff. Unfortunately I was unable to sample the food here but judging by the faces of the diners (and my own quick gander at the menu), I'd say that I'm sure it would more than live up to even the snobbiest of culinary-expert wannabe's! Drinks are surprisingly well priced although I suspect that an entire night of 'wining & dining' could put a strain on your meagre finances!
ZeroZero

Nakupenda

C/Marques de L Argentera 7 : Barceloneta
www.nakupenda.com
:
This is a cool, little bar fairly close to the beach and the Borne neighbourhood. Its uniqueness is that it serves up a large selection of smoothies as well as the usual array of cocktails and standard beers that grace most of the bars in Barcelona. Sporting hippyish decor and a small but adequate terrace, it's a bar to pop in for a change of scene or to imbibe a fruity mixed drink to line the stomach before moving on to the more 'kicking' bars that inhabit the Borne neighbourhood that we all love so well! By the way, I have no idea what the name refers to.
ZeroZero

St.Pau 68

C/ de Sant Pau 68 : Liceu
:
Hmm, how to write up this one? On paper it's an average bar but I've really enjoyed my sourjourns here! I guess it's because this bar makes no claims to being anything else than what it is! That's to say it's a lively, slighty scummy, yet appealing bar in the Raval area. Music is loud and upbeat enough to add a little 'pep' to your night and there's plenty of room to sit at the - quite frankly forgettable yet functional tables and chairs. Space itself is a-plenty including an adequately sized bar with stools area. Not a bar I can recommend for any particular reason except that I've always enjoyed coming here and never fail to feel like I'm in a typical yet above average bar in the more gentrified part of La Raval!
ZeroZero

It Cafe

C/Joaquin Costa 4 : Liceu
Tel. 934430341
:
If you are wandering aimlessly (i.e. drunkenly!) through the lively and sparsely lit streets of the Raval and need somewhere to park your weary posterior, this place should please your desire to sit in comfort and quaff a reasonably priced beverage. Although this bar looks slightly menacing from the outside (in keeping with the street folk that inhabit this area), it's in fact rather cosy inside, pleasant and spacious. The genius of this bar is that the actual bar area is not overly big and this leaves a huge amount of space for the plethora of (possibly self-copulating) sofas that will give the lesser explored regions of your body a well-deserved rest. The music here is very good - in line with the ambience of 'slightly upmarket but not overly pretentious' and thus it is a pretty laid-back bar perfect for tanking up in before you go off disco dancing somewhere more upbeat! I'll see you there lurking in the depths of the cushions!
ZeroZero

Bar Muy Buenas

C/Carme, 63 : Liceu
Tel. 934425053
:
A lovely bar in this rather popular street in the up-and-coming Raval neighbourhood. Placed inside a beautiful old building, you won't have to jostle too much for space in here. At first you are graced by a large, stool-lined bar and as you wander further in there are an assortment of not overly comfortable but functional tables and chairs (think Pub not cocktail bar!) Like most 'cool' bars in Barcelona, an array of cocktails are served and the bar sports the usual assortment of beers, wines and spirits. Decor here is pretty down-to-earth (in a good way) and the music pleasing if you fancy checking out some latin vibes. Prices are normal for BCN and added to this is an extensive food menu. Overall you won't go wrong in here, whether stopping in for a 'refuel' on your travels or camping down for a long evening session!
ZeroZero