We kicked day three off with tapas in Lizarran, a popular tapas franchise here in Spain. The drinks are cheap and you take whatever tapas you fancy yourself. When you’re done, the waitress will count the sticks on your plate and bring you the bill. It was good to put something in our bellies but they weren’t the best tapas I’ve ever had, but still pretty good!
The one on the left was my favourite, spicy sausage with aioli. The one on the right – I have no idea what the white stuff was. It didn’t have any taste!
We went to see some of Gaudi’s work, first the Casa Batlló and then on to Casa Milà. We didn’t go to the top of Casa Milà unfortunately. There was a huge queue for tickets and because it’s peak season, it was €26.50 each just to go up to the top!
Around the Casa Milà there’s a lot of fancy pants stores. Dolce & Gabbana, Mont Blanc, Chanel, Cartier, YSL, Louis Vuitton, Valentino…you get the idea. As for the little guys above on display…can you guess what brand they’re from?
I stopped in Kiehl’s, Brandy Melville and Topshop, as Salamanca is home to none of these and Dublin doesn’t have a Brandy Melville yet so I wanted to have a nose around.
After reading some reviews about two bars in the city; one called ‘Milk’ the other ‘Marmalade’, we knew we had to stop by at least one of them. These are particularly popular hotspots at the moment and both are located in the centre of the city (very close to Las Ramblas) and not to far from another if you feel like checking out both! I was also pleasantly surprised to find that both establishments had Irish owners. *proud tear*
In the end we chose Marmalade, the newer of the two.
Their own website‘s description of Bar Marmalade:
‘This beautiful space is split into four distinct areas and nods its head to its 50 years as a furniture store, with beautiful sofas, hand carved black matte billiard table, copper clad antique walls and of course the four meter tall chrome art deco bar back have given Marmalade a swinging 1950’s Havana/New York edge.’
Right on the money. Marmalade has a fantastic atmosphere, wonderful music, comfy seating, high ceilings (something I always adore in a building and adore cooing over equally as much) and very quirky decor. When I saw the pool table all lit up and pretty, I switched automatically to comfy, relaxed holiday mode because I knew I wouldn’t be leaving this place anytime soon.
Marmalade claims to serve the best chicken wings in Barcelona. So much so that they have fluttering illuminated wings hanging over the bar. I wouldn’t mind having those wings for my very own. Aside from wing lusting, I was instantly intrigued by this statement and I don’t even eat chicken wings! Voodoo.
The beautiful billiard/pool table, old school lightening and a very funky rug. 
We sat down by the pool table and got down to business. We were greeted by a very friendly and warm waitress named Elena. She was a very sweet Italian girl and like the waitress in yesterday’s bar, she told me to look out for my phone. D’oh. I really need to listen! We ordered a cocktail each, it took me a little longer though as they have a great selection.
I took a break from my mojito madness (for now) and went with the Berry Caipiriña in all it’s glory. Isn’t it a beaut? As far as cocktails go, obviously. Knowing the rest of the cocktails would be just as good, I knew I was in to try a lot. I planned on staying for the evening anyway. Sure it’ll be grand.
Niall went for the mojito before spending the night on pints of Estrella Damm, which were at a very good price indeed, same goes for the cocktails. The mojito was really good, so naturally I had some of those later.
Marmalade’s menu – good honest food with most of the ingredients made from scratch. Even if you bring picky friends here, they’ll find a lot to choose from.
Naturally, we started with the best chicken wings in Barcelona. These wings were battered, which wasn’t what I was expecting at all but something I personally would prefer. they were lightly spicy, the right amount of crunchy and very tender inside. Strong tastes are something I love so I was particularly impressed with the blue cheese sauce but I don’t think it would be to everyone’s taste, which might be their only drawback.
After cleaning our chicken fingers we ordered another round of drinks in preparation for our burgers. The variety of the burgers was great too – everything from beef to chicken burgers, to veggie burgers. Niall went for El Classico – A locally baked artisan bun, tender juicy beef supplied by a family run butchers, lettuce, tomato, red onion, mature cheddar and mayo. This was served with twice cooked french fries and Marmalade’s homemade ketchup.
I went with the Mexicano burger – Same deal but topped with jalapeños, avocado (need my daily dose), chipotle mayo, sour cream, lettuce and tomato. The burger was heavenly and everything tasted fresh, punchy and juicy. The price was very reasonable too at €8.95.
We took some time to chill out, let our food go down and enjoy the atmosphere and have a look through our Barcelona map to see how much of the city we covered since our first night. Maps in all different languages are available at a kiosk at the Plaça de Catalunya at €1 each.
Next I ordered a Bleedin’ Belini, which was cava mixed with peach and a slice of orange, while I booked the pool table. To use the pool table it’s €5 for an hour, the staff give you a ticket and take a form of identification. We got the equipment and became rather competitive.
Niall won the first game, I won two in a row but then he bounced back for the last three.
We returned everything, I got my license back and decided to finish the evening with one last cocktail, a Long Island Ice Tea. Hi Mam! Aren’t you proud?
We gathered all our things, satisfied and happy with our evening at Marmalade, and settled the bill. For food, all the cocktails (including many mojitos) the total came to just over €70. A bargain in my opinion for a relaxing final night in Barcelona.
We walked in the balmy weather to the Liceu metro station, closer to the bar than our usual Catalunya stop after a very satisfying day. Goodbye Barcelona!
♥ ♥ ♥
P.s. Marmalade are also famous for their mighty brunches, which they serve every Thursday to Sunday between 10am and 6pm. Perfect for the morning after an eventful night out in the city. Their brunch menu can be found here.