If you happen to be lost in the alleys and tiny streets of the Gothic quarter, as if you were looking for your way out of yarn woven across the warp in weaving, and after spinning around the whole afternoon you realized you were destined to enjoy sooner or later that sense of comforting warmth of a pilgrim shelter.

Yes, once in the back of the Palau de la Generalitat, the smell of incense, the wide range of teas, the really tasty pita sardos in any of their varieties and the charming music evoke the atmosphere of an old tea shop in any Mediterranean harbor and make you forget about that palace of politicians and their struggle to secure their welfare in order to perpetuate themselves representing simple pedestrians like us throughout eternity to try to return the favor for their wealth by making our pitiful fate a little less wretched.

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Salterio | Art & culture, Bars, Coffee & tea, Snacks | Turkish coffee € 2.50
Sant Domenec del call 6 | El Barrio Gotico | +34933025028
Sun – Thu 17:00 – 02:00, Fri – Sat 17:00 – 03:00

If you are a nighthawk, just wear your pair of vintage Chuck Taylor Converse sneakers and be yourself enjoying music with personality and other fellows willing to enjoy the black gold of the night life in Barcelona, dark atmosphere, drinks at good prices and keen bartenders.

The place to meet people and have short distance chats.

But if are looking for a more underground and dissolute atmosphere get down to the basement to see what surprise you might encounter!

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Manchester Bar | Bars, Music | Liquor 43 shot € 2.50
Carrer de Milans 3 | El Barrio Gotico | +34663071748
20:00 – 03:00 daily

The underground scene in any cosmopolis is most of the times full of dull and dreary places crammed with fortune tellers, care takers, dream readers and gate keepers.

Usually the shabbier the better… more trendy. But most of them lack blood, passion and off-kilter originality.

The real off stream current flows spontaneously, so you have to pull the right strings in order to experience an immersion in a heady clandestine bohemian atmosphere.

That’s the way I bumped into La nau Espacial, an alternative self-managed art center run by artists aimed to give a new zest to all those disciplines forgotten by the ambiguous and contradictory nature of the city council’s culture policies, the longstanding subservience of arts policy to politicians imperatives. A shift away from the real needs of culture producers and consumers alike.

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La Nau Espacial | Art & culture | Beer € 1
Calle Ávila 176 | Poble Nou
11:00 – 23:00 daily

Before 1985 there were the ugly railways, as if the city was stabbed to death and was losing its bowels, but then an enlightened and visionary soul started turning it into a relaxing space.

This piece of Gaudian art was finished in 1991 by Beverly Pepper, who achieved the harmonic coexistence of nature and manly intervention to create a magic atmosphere that exerts a strange influence over people that go there for a picnic.

Be aware that there is something in the air in this park and sometimes picnics might turn into a roll in the hay.

It is also said though, that there is a dark mob that operates in this park stealing dogs in order to sell them to some labs that need living victims for their sinister tests and evil experiments with chemical products. At least they tried to steal the front tire of my bicycle almost in front of my nose :-/

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Parc de l’Estació del Nord | Relaxing | Free
Napols 42 | Eixample
07:00 – 23:00 daily

Feeling down and need something to raise your soul above the social mall? Or just need a break from fashion cocktails, top 40 lousy music, fancy high heels and naughty party ragers?

Whether in spring, summer, autumn or even in some good weathered winter days, at the end of Portal del Angel when going down towards the Gothic Cathedral there is a magic corner with the proper acoustic atmosphere for street musicians to perform outdoors on any season without the need of expensive sound amplifying gear.

Be ready for getting enraptured by the groove of an authentic blues singer or the captivating tunes of a world music quartet. Well, perhaps at this time you would find musicians with heavier clothing but still… it’s a magic spot.

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Portal del angel Street | Music, Relaxing
Corner Carrer dels arcs & Carrer cucurrulla | El Barrio Gotico
From morning to late night

Actually this is more a club than a cafe.

A pleasure dome filled with cheerful black music that combines elements of house, disco, funk, soul, hip-hop and rare grooves.

It has the perfect atmosphere to reach the state of being completely carried away by unreasoned passion and unrealistic expectations of blissful rapture without positive relationship growth or development between an obsessor and an object of desire with a playful behavior intended to arouse the courtship dance.

As if there were not enough doomsday parties during the week, now Marula has just come up with their “My black is beautiful”, with soulful music and FREE entrance every Sunday!

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Marula Cafe | Bars, Music | Entrance (after 02:00) € 10.00
Escudellers 49 | El Barrio Gotico
Sun – Wed 23:00 – 05:00, Fri – Sat 23:00 – 06:00

Sleep 8 hours a day, cook healthy, do the laundry, clean your house, besides working 8 hours a day, and still have a life to live … bull shit!

Unless you can find a way to make the days longer than 24 hours, there is no way to have a healthy and organized life and yet have time to live it.

So forget about everything, just work to survive and seize every moment as if it was the last, and then rest and eat healthy during the weekends.

Just come to a jam session on any Tuesday or Wednesday and sing as if no one was hearing you (be aware that the musicians playing are usually really good), or come any other day to a concert and after live music, the venue turns into a den of iniquity with a dj to dance as if no one was watching at you until 6 in the morning and then love as if you haven’t been hurt.

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Harlem Jazz Club | Bars, Music | Jam session (includes a drink) € 5
Comtessa de Sobradiel 8 | El Barrio Gotico | +34933100755
Mon – Wed 22:30 – 03:00, Thu – Sat 23:30 – 06:00

Founded in 1969, Can Paixano still keeps the atmosphere of a traditional sailor’s tavern.

Its a place to enjoy a wide range of sandwiches and tapas as an excuse to drink the tasty rose cava (sparkling wine). They don’t serve you alcohol unless you eat something.

Anyway, you can always go to the store in the back and buy some bottles to take home. Just to take home, since they don’t sell you the cava at the proper temperature to start drinking it right away. They don’t want to be held accountable of any disturbance you might cause to the neighbors by getting drunk near the tavern with a bottle of their lovely rose cava.

Nevertheless, I wouldn’t miss the chance to meet others unconditional staunch cava lovers, and perhaps have a sip of some of that love.

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Xampanyeria Can paixano | Bars | Sandwich & Cava (3 cups) € 5.00
Carrer de la Reina Cristina 7 | Barceloneta | +34933100839
Mon – Sat 09:00 – 22:30, Sun 09:00 – 13:00

What you see is what you get! Nor fancy outfit neither gourmet extravaganza, just warm and family atmosphere, hospitality, gentle touch, interesting chat, contagious mood, great Mediterranean food and better prices.

It’s located in the heart of the Gothic quarter, at 3 minutes walk from the city hall and 10 minutes from the Gothic cathedral.

Don’t miss their falafel and humus wrap.

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El Cocinero de Damasco | Coffee & tea, Snacks, Restaurants | falafel / wrap € 3.50
Templers 2, corner with Palau | El Barrio Gotico
Tue – Sat 11:00 – 23:00

If you happen to be around, take a minute to go to Carrer del Bisbe – one of those typical narrow streets of the Gothic quarter, starting at plaza nova in the cathedral avenue.

If you are lucky enough and the weather is good, you’ll find street artists at the two alleys that cross the backyard of the cathedral (Carrer de Sta Ilucia and Carrer de la Pietat).

The best time of the day to get teased by the enticing sounds of a bandoneon or a harp player, the melancholic mood of an opera or tango singer, or the infectious melodies of a flamenco guitar player is the end of the afternoon.

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Carrer del Bisbe | Music, Relaxing
Carrer del Bisbe | El Barrio Gotico
Daily