Tasty, healthy, and plant-based
Eating healthy in Spain, difficult? Not in Barcelona. In fact, you can hardly avoid the juice bars and healthy hotspots. Gabriëlle went to Barcelona for 4 days, rented a bike, and zipped through as many healthy hotspots as possible. Here they are.
Surf House Barcelona – Carrer l’Almirall Aixada 22
At the beach and set up like a little beach house with tables shaped like surfboards: that’s Surf House Barcelona. The staff here are very friendly and the menu made me happy too. Not everything is vegan, but they indicate with symbols what vegan is. I chose the Buddha Bowl and the Spring Rolls, not only photogenic but also delicious.
Quinoa Bar Vegetarià – Travessera de Gràcia 203
Reasonably close to La Sagrada Familia is the Quinoa Bar. A small restaurant that mainly serves as take away. A funny fact: the wifi password is ‘meatismurder’. Besides dozens of juices, they have burgers, hot dogs, and tasty salads. And everything is vegetarian with plenty of vegan options.
DosTrece – Carrer Carme 40
I happened to pass this restaurant when my eye caught ‘Vegan Pancakes’. DosTrece seems to be a club on weekends and a restaurant during weekdays. Besides regular lunch and brunch dishes, they have Vegan French Toast, Vegan Pancakes and more. One little thing: the maple syrup is not real maple syrup.
Teresa Carles – Carrer de Jovellanos 2
If you are looking for tasty and healthy food, you should visit one of Teresa Carles’ branches. From a juicery to a take away, but Flax & Kale is also part of this healthy company. I didn’t have time in four days to visit all the branches, but I went for a take away meal at Teresa’s Stairway to Health: vegan burgers (the Best Veggie Burger and the Incredible Buckwheat Burger – on a gluten-free bun) with dessert being the (gluten-free and vegan) rainbow pie! Delicious!
La Boqueria – La Rambla 91
On the famous street La Rambla, you will find – among the lunchrooms and large retail chains – a genuine food marketcalled La Boqueria. Here you can eat typical Spanish tapas (often not so vegan), but you can also get fresh fruit or fruit in a cup.
Veggie Garden – Carrer dels Àngels 3
From freshly pressed juices to the most delicious Thalis (Indian dish): you have to visit Veggie Garden! Tip: if you order a menu for €8.50(!) you get an appetizer, a main course, a drink, and a dessert. All for €8.50.
Flax & Kale – Carrer dels Tallers 74B
If you love things that are well-cared for, you are in the right place at Flax & Kale. On Sunday morning, it’s packed here and I understand why: the menu offers fantastic things like vegan yogurt or bagels with vegan cheese. Not only is the food tasty, but attention is also paid to details (read: benches with floral upholstery and menus with floral and fruit illustrations). Drawback: the tea I was served was cold. Very hungry? Choose something else. My (very tasty!) vegan yogurt was a tiny bowl (but cost around 8 euros).
La Vegetalia – Carrer dels Escudellers 54
In the Barri Gotic district, you’ll find La Vegetalia, a vegetarian restaurant with many vegan options. The restaurant is a bit the opposite of trendy and the staff who helped me that day were not very welcoming. Everything here is organic and much even comes from their own garden. On the menu? From tofu nuggets and shiitake mushrooms to vegetarian paella. I went for the miso soup, patatas bravas (vegan, of course) and tacos with soy. And that was fine. If you are traveling with someone who has never eaten vegetarian or vegan before, you might not want to take them here; the flavors are not very convincing.
The Coconut Club
At the very end of the boulevard by the beach is The Coconut Club where you can get fresh coconuts and sweet potato fries.
Playa de Barceloneta
At the beach of Barcelona, you will find quite a few restaurants and bars where you can healthy, vegetarian, and even vegan food.
Teresa’s
The perfect spot for juices, but they also have very tasty vegan cakes and pastries!
Location: Carrer de l’Argenteria, 31, 08003 Barcelona
Parc de Montjuïc
Three cool things in one go: taking cable cars to the top, an amazing view, and the super photogenic cactus park (Jardin de Cactud de Montjuïc).
Rent bikes
At various locations, you can rent a bike (starting from 5 euros a day!) so you can cruise around the city or the beach boulevard in nice weather.
Finally: watch your belongings
Barcelona is known for bag snatchers and during the four days I was there, someone also tried to steal my bag. From the airport bus to the city center, the luggage of a British couple sitting behind me was also stolen. So, be careful.