A menú del día is a weekday lunch menu: several courses at one price, from the same kitchen that cooks dinner. Expect just over thirty euros for the bistro lunch at Contracorrent, and a fraction of the evening price at higher-end kitchens like Nectari and Caelis.
The short list
7 places, in the order they appear below.
- 01Bar del PlaMarket cooking on a terraceEl Born
- 02ArumeGalician fish and riceEl Raval
- 03CaelisFrench classical cooking at a lunch priceCiutat Vella
- 04NectariSeasonal Catalan food at a high standardEixample
- 05Contracorrent BistróBistrot cooking with natural wineGràcia
- 06MaeCatalan and Latin American cookingSarrià-Sant Gervasi
- 07Porco PretoPortuguese food on a budgetSant Andreu border
What do you get with a menú del día in Barcelona?
How far the idea stretches depends on the kitchen. At Nectari it means two tapas, a first, a second and dessert. Caelis serves three courses from the team that works the evening service, and Contracorrent runs to three appetizers and four courses.
How much should a menú del día cost in Barcelona?
At Contracorrent Bistró, the lunch menu costs just over thirty euros. Nectari and Caelis, at the top end, both serve weekday lunch menus priced well below their evening tasting menus. Porco Preto sits at the other end, and its weekday lunch is among the better values in its part of town.
The table below sets each address beside its neighbourhood and the style of cooking its lunch service offers.
Where do locals eat a menú del día in the old town?
In the old town we’d send you to three places.
Bar del Pla keeps its daily menu short and its prices low enough to fit a bottle of wine into the bill. Regulars return for the croquetes and the salt cod. The blackboard additions tell you what the kitchen picked up that morning, and the outdoor terrace suits a slow lunch.
Bar del Pla
Hours: Mon–Sat 12:00–23:00 · Sun closed
Address: Carrer de Montcada, 2, Ciutat Vella, 08003 Barcelona
Arume occupies the building where Vázquez Montalbán was born. Its Galician chefs cook Atlantic ingredients with ideas picked up abroad: a ceviche of wild corvina, scallops with corn cream, rice with duck and Padrón peppers. The lunch menu is well-priced for the quality of the kitchen.
Arume
Hours: Mon–Thu 13:00–22:30 · Fri–Sat 13:00–23:00 · Sun 13:00–22:30
Address: Carrer d'En Botella, 11, Ciutat Vella, 08001 Barcelona
Romain Fornell has been the chef in the Caelis dining room since 2004. His menu pairs French classical method with dishes like eel with beet and caviar.
Caelis
Hours: Mon–Tue closed · Wed–Fri 13:30–15:00, 20:00–23:00 · Sat 13:30–15:00, 20:00–22:00 · Sun closed
Address: Via Laietana, 49, Ciutat Vella, 08003 Barcelona
Where to find a lunch menu in the Eixample and Gràcia?
One pick in the Eixample, and one over in Gràcia.
Chef Jordi Esteve cooks seasonal Catalan food at Nectari, and he cares more about pleasure than technique. The aged ox with vegetables and beet is the dish people talk about most, and the clientele tends to come back rather than move on.
Nectari
Hours: Mon 13:30–15:00, 20:00–21:30 · Tue 13:30–15:00 · Wed–Sat 13:30–15:00, 20:00–21:30 · Sun closed
Address: Carrer de València, 28, Eixample, 08015 Barcelona
Sicilian chef Nicola Drago and sommelier Anna Pla run Contracorrent Bistró. The cooking moves between France and the Mediterranean, from oysters gin fizz to bigoli with chanterelles, and the natural wines lean on small Sicilian and Catalan producers. The room is small, so book early in the week.
Contracorrent Bistró
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Thu 20:00–22:30 · Fri–Sat 13:00–15:30, 20:00–22:30 · Sun closed
Address: Carrer de Sant Domènec, 14, Gràcia, 08012 Barcelona
Which neighbourhood lunch menus are worth the trip?
Two more sit further out, and both run a weekday lunch menu.
At Mae, Germán Espinosa and Diego Mondragón let Catalan and Latin American ingredients cross over without forcing a fusion. Mondragón’s training comes through most clearly in the desserts. Leave room.
Mae
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Thu 20:00–22:00 · Fri–Sat 13:00–15:00, 20:00–22:00 · Sun closed
Address: Carrer de Sant Elies, 22, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, 08006 Barcelona
Porco Preto opened in late 2024. The two chefs who run it trained in high-level Barcelona kitchens, and their francesinha comes reworked with touches from the grill. Desserts are by Sofia Da Costa Moura, a trained pastry chef, and her section changes more often than the savoury side.
Porco Preto
Hours: Mon–Tue closed · Wed 13:00–17:00, 20:00–00:00 · Thu–Sat 13:00–17:00, 19:30–00:00 · Sun 13:00–17:00
Address: Carrer del Clot, 191, Sant Andreu, 08027 Barcelona
These are midday menus, so plan around the weekday. Book the smaller rooms a day or two ahead and get to the busy bars near the start of service. Leave the afternoon loose.
