For a night of cocktails in Barcelona, start with the classics at Boadas and Dry Martini. Book ahead for Paradiso in El Born or Sips in the Eixample. Then leave room for the Raval, where Two Schmucks and Caribbean Club make drinks with less ceremony and more personality. Further out, Casa Figari in Gràcia and Dreamboat in Poblenou pair good drinks with music.
The short list
12 places, in the order they appear below.
- 01BoadasA Dry Martini standing at the barCiutat Vella
- 02Dry MartiniThe city's reference Dry MartiniEixample
- 03Caribbean ClubClassics from a single bartenderEl Raval
- 04ParadisoA booked showpiece nightEl Born
- 05Sips Drinkery HouseThe Esencia tasting menuEixample
- 06Dr. StravinskyHouse-distilled spiritsEl Born
- 07El ParaiguaCocktails with live blues and jazzCiutat Vella
- 08Ly Brothers Cocktail BarOff-menu drinksEl Raval
- 09Two SchmucksA menu that changes monthlyEl Raval
- 10Casa FigariLive music and natural wineGràcia
- 11Bar 64Chess with your cocktailDreta de l'Eixample
- 12DreamboatHappy hour and DJ setsPoblenou
Where can you drink classic cocktails in Barcelona?
The best classic cocktail bars in Barcelona are the ones that have refused to change. Boadas, the oldest cocktail bar in Spain, still has bartenders in bow ties working a small triangular room. Behind the bar at Dry Martini, on Carrer d’Aribau, the choreography is still old-school. In the Raval, Caribbean Club makes Daiquiris and gimlets with no shortcuts, in a room that holds about fifteen people.
Boadas opened in 1933. When the founders of Sips took it over, they kept the portraits, the room and the service as they were. Its classic Dry Martini still meets the 1930s standard. Arrive before nine, while there’s space to stand at the bar.
Boadas
Hours: Mon–Sun 17:00–01:30
Address: Carrer dels Tallers, 1, Ciutat Vella, 08001 Barcelona
Dry Martini is run by Javier de las Muelas, who introduced author cocktails to Spain, and the drink it’s named after is the city’s reference. Order one on a first visit and say how you like it. The staff will mix it to your specification without turning it into theatre.
Dry Martini
Hours: Mon–Thu 13:00–02:30 · Fri–Sat 13:00–03:00 · Sun 15:00–01:00
Address: Carrer d'Aribau, 162, 166, Eixample, 08036 Barcelona
Caribbean Club looks like a ship’s cabin, with tropical posters and one bartender, Juanjo. There’s no printed menu. Let him choose the second round: the drinks he makes for regulars are the most interesting ones.
Caribbean Club
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Sat 17:00–02:00 · Sun closed
Address: Carrer de les Sitges, 5, Ciutat Vella, 08001 Barcelona
Which Barcelona cocktail bars are worth booking ahead?
Two Barcelona bars sit near the top of the most referenced world bar rankings, and both repay a little planning. Paradiso in El Born has placed at the top of those lists since 2017 and treats each drink as a multi-sensory object. Sips Drinkery House in the Eixample reached third place in 2024. It runs Esencia, a tasting menu of eight cocktails.
The way into Paradiso is a fridge door in a pastrami shop. The current menu plays with scientific and cosmic themes, and every drink comes in a vessel made for it. There’s also a rooftop on the Rambla del Mar, good for an afternoon with views. Book the Born bar, though: that’s where the bartenders do their full work.
Paradiso
Hours: Mon–Wed 17:00–02:30 · Thu–Sun 16:30–02:30
Address: Carrer de Rera Palau, 4, Ciutat Vella, 08003 Barcelona
Sips was founded by Marc Álvarez and Simone Caporale, and the room has no traditional bar counter. Esencia arranges eight drinks in a sequence with olfactory elements. If it’s full, the walk-in section runs separately. Weeknights give you the best chance of a counter seat.
Sips Drinkery House
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Sat 18:30–02:00 · Sun closed
Address: C/ de Muntaner, 108, Eixample, 08036 Barcelona
Where to drink cocktails in El Born and the Gothic Quarter
Some of Barcelona’s most inventive bars are in the old streets around El Born and Plaça de Sant Jaume. Dr. Stravinsky distils its own spirits among alembics and glass flasks. El Paraigua serves classic drinks with small live sets of blues, jazz and comedy, in a room below street level.
The house spirits and infusions at Dr. Stravinsky change with the seasonal botanicals. The Camp Nou is built on gin, dill syrup, lemon and chamomile. For a first round, ask the staff which batches are newest.
Dr. Stravinsky
Hours: Mon–Thu 18:00–02:30 · Fri–Sat 17:00–03:00 · Sun 17:00–02:30
Address: Carrer dels Mirallers, 5, Ciutat Vella, 08003 Barcelona
El Paraigua’s bartender has worked out personal versions of the standards, such as a tequila gimlet or a whisky sour with absinthe. Check the music calendar before you go, because the format sets the tone for the night.
El Paraigua
Hours: Mon–Wed 12:00–00:00 · Thu 12:00–01:00 · Fri–Sat 12:00–03:00 · Sun 12:00–00:00
Address: Carrer del Pas de l'Ensenyança, 2, Ciutat Vella, 08002 Barcelona
Which Raval cocktail bars should I try?
In the Raval we go to two bars. Ly Brothers is behind an unmarked door on Carrer de Lancaster, and its bartenders build drinks from rare small-batch spirits around whatever flavour you describe. Two Schmucks, on Carrer de Joaquín Costa, is casual and precise, with a cocktail menu that changes every month.
Ly Brothers is small enough to feel like a private room, and the counter fills fast at weekends. Skip the menu and name a direction (bitter, herbal, smoky). The team shows its range in the drinks that aren’t on the list.
Ly Brothers Cocktail Bar
Hours: Mon–Thu 20:00–02:00 · Fri 20:00–03:00 · Sat 19:00–03:00 · Sun 19:00–02:00
Address: Carrer de Lancaster, 20, Ciutat Vella, 08001 Barcelona, Spain
The mood at Two Schmucks is casual and anti-elitist, the technique precise. French bartender Pomme Modeste now leads the team. A new menu arrives on the first Thursday of each month, which is the best night to taste what the bar is excited about.
Two Schmucks
Hours: Mon–Thu 19:00–01:00 · Fri–Sat 19:00–03:00 · Sun 19:00–02:00
Address: Carrer de Joaquín Costa, 52, Ciutat Vella, 08001 Barcelona
Where to find cocktails with music or games in Barcelona
Outside the old town, a few bars serve good drinks alongside something else to do. Casa Figari in Gràcia runs live music, jam sessions and vinyl nights. At Bar 64 on Passeig de Sant Joan, chess boards are set into the tables. Dreamboat in Poblenou is a deli by day and turns into a disco bar with guest DJs after dark.
Record sleeves and instruments line the walls at Casa Figari. The natural wine list changes monthly, and the signature cocktails get as much care as the concert calendar. A live session and a DJ night make quite different evenings.
Casa Figari
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Thu 20:00–02:00 · Fri–Sat 20:00–02:30 · Sun closed
Address: Carrer del Torrent de l'Olla, 141, Gràcia, 08012 Barcelona
The drinks list at Bar 64 is laid out like a game, with sections for openings, gambits and endings. Cocktails such as the Fianchetto and Magnus’ Mule sit next to shared plates like grilled octopus. If you want to play, take a table on the second floor, where it’s quieter. The nights the bar runs with visiting grandmasters change the whole room.
Bar 64
Hours: Mon–Thu 16:00–00:00 · Fri 13:00–02:00 · Sat 11:00–02:00 · Sun 11:00–00:00
Address: Pg. de St. Joan, 23, Eixample, 08010 Barcelona, Spain
The owner furnished Dreamboat almost entirely second-hand. The hot sandwiches use meats roasted in house, and the patio is where the afternoon drifts by. Come for happy hour, four to seven, when the regulars turn up. Among the sweets, look for a lamington.
Dreamboat
Hours: Mon–Tue closed · Wed 16:00–01:00 · Thu 16:00–02:00 · Fri–Sat 16:00–02:30 · Sun 16:00–01:00
Address: Carrer de la Llacuna, 136, Sant Martí, 08018 Barcelona, Spain
Which Barcelona cocktail bar suits which kind of night?
Pick the bar to fit the night. Boadas and Dry Martini are for a classic done properly, and Paradiso or Sips for a booked showpiece evening. If you’d rather the bartender shape the round, head to the Raval. Music means Gràcia or Poblenou. The table below shows where each bar is and what it does best.
Most of these bars open in the evening and fill up as the night goes on, so the first hour after opening is the easiest time to get a counter seat. Several close on Sundays or Mondays; the cards show which.
