Liadisimo

C/Guillermo Tell 23-25 : Fontana
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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
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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
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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
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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