Bar Central

We picked the central bar, and honestly — I’ve never had sardines this good in my life. Crispy, juicy, and so fresh they probably swam here themselves this morning. On a quick pit stop, we also tried the super-sized, super-tasty oysters. You simply point at a mountain of them, and the guy opens them right in front of your eyes, adds lemon and spices, and voilà — straight into your mouth, sea breeze and all. Worth the crowd, the noise, and the smell of a thousand fish — enlightenment tastes like grilled sardines and salty oysters.

Marcos and Rafael were excellent service staff. I had a hidden dish called seafood mixed plate. Fish, mussels, clams, razor clams, scallops and shrimp. It was outstanding. Client loved it. Outstanding

Great atmosphere inside La Boqueria, with fresh seafood and delicious tapas. Prices are fair for the quality. Special thanks to our waitress Carme for her excellent service—she really made the experience memorable!

Katy was an amazing server she recommended awesome dishes and helped us navigate the menu. Great start to our Barcelona stay!

Had the chorizo, grilled sardines and grilled octopus with cold San Miguel beer. Excellent food - fast and fresh. A great experience.

Manchego board and scallops. Delicious. This manchego was such good quality. You can’t go wrong with a board full of quality cheese. The scallops were cooked perfectly. Covered in garlic and lemon and with a smokey taste. It’s also great to see your food cooked right in front of you. The staff were friendly here, and gave some good suggestions. I had a lovely time here.

Found a spot right away, and was serviced with a big smile by Cathy! She was friendly and helped us select a great platter to sample all the delicious food. Highly recommend and definitely a must try.

We stopped here solely to try fried anchovies made to order. They were okay, but they lacked that umami flavor you get with anchovies so I would not get these again.

Amazing lunch. It's worth walking thru the market just to see all of the many stalls of different foods. We had such an incredible meal. The sangria was just right, flavorful and not too sweet. The best were the prawns and fried baby calamari. Also take good we're the potato frittata. R sardines were good, but to me, the least excellent. Gotta check the market and this place out.

Food was ok. Nothing special. Mostly fried. Manager was so rude! Asking us to move to accommodate a large family getting wasted. They had several young adults. All needed extra chairs for backpacks. Spilled beer. Rude bald guy in charge.

Good spot for seafood in La Boquería market to have a quick bite or a full meal. I tried the fried chipirones (small squid), the shishito peppers and beer. Food was good, beer was cold, place is chill and the waiter was charismatic and friendly. Everyone around me seemed to be enjoying their time at Bar Central, I would go back and try other things on the menu for sure.

I was walking through the market and walked past Bar Central. I looked over at the mixed grilled seafood plate a couple was sharing and almost tripped and fell on my face. In that moment, I know I needed to try it. Went back later for dinner with one thing on my mind. The mixed grilled seafood. I started with some pan con tomate and cheese which made for a delicious appetizer. Their pan con tamale had a thick layer of tomato and a wonderful drizzle of olive oil. I ordered the mixed seafood grill for one and at first, thought they misheard me and thought it was for 2. It was huge. Very tasty. I've never had razor clams before and that is in the list of what I wanted to try here. They lived up to the hype and were my favorite things on the platter. I'd like to come back and try their grilled lobster. That sounds incredible.

Really good food, it's for sure a place where I will go back again. Totally recommend.

Lucky to grab 3 seats at the bar to dine on some yummy seafood. First things first, started with the beer, which was refreshing. Second, I ordered the fried platter, parents ordered the fresh seafood platter. Food came out quick enough, and we thoroughly enjoyed our food. Although it is a tight space and busy, the workers are lively and it's fun to watch your food being prepared that close and personal.

Mercado la Boqueria is great! If you can please go and explore it. It's fun and full of options mostly finger foods like empanadas, cured meats and cheeses, vegetables, fruit and fruit juices, seafood and quite a few restaurants within. Don't expect these places to be your average sit down restaurant because the space here is limited so they have to crank them out pretty much. Do your part and wait in line and you'll be ok. Barcentral is not a bar as some people were thinking.. just because it says bar it doesn't mean that's what it is. You can't just come out and sit down and drink; you have to have food also. Food was good; the prices very high for the portion sizes but I guess the high demand is there also. We had the cod and the parrillada de mariscos (all seafood) to share. In Barcelona don't expect to go to a restaurant and leave stuffed because that's not how it goes.

Tapas place inside the Mercat de la boqueria. It had maybe 12 seats total and serves a lot of seafood. We ordered king prawns, Spanish sausage, mussels, and fried baby squid. Overall a good experience

I would give this five star except except two things: 1 I order 3 fish and they cooked all 3 of them the same time which means I have no place to put all 3 of them and 2 by the time I get to eat the fish it's cold. I think they need to wait and give me one by one and it's not like they are super busy, need some work there. 2: the fish was not good, it's super boney which I usually don't mind but you can taste the scales which is kinda disgusting. But the giant prawn and also the razor clam is literally the best I have in my life. It's also not that expensive, totally I spend 68 euro with two wine. Just amazing. Staff also super friendly!

Fresh seafood. This is one of the business stall in the market. We ordered: -mix seafood platter for 2 people includes mussels, clams, squid, baby octopus, fish, razor clams, prawn and langoustine. (4 stars) -seafood paella for 2 people is tomato based and was very good. (4 stars) Total bill came to $100.5€ including drinks. Rating: 1 - Poor, 2 - OK, 3 - Good, 4 - Very Good, 5 - Excellent

Food: very tasty and good portions. Drinks are cheap. If you are a seafood lover, you must try razor clams! Super flavorful. We had fried anchovies, razor clams, gambas, and sardines. Everything was super tasty. Atmosphere: in the la Boquiera. The market opens from 8-3pm so go for lunch and it's always busy. Just look around for an open seat or ask the waiters. Price: good for the value. It's worth the visit when you are in Barcelona. Closed on Sundays.

Wanted to eat at the Market one last time before we left Spain and decided to try this place out! Everything we ordered was delicious. We got the clams, scallops, sausage, and calamari. Can never go wrong with seafood I tell ya! Definitely recommend getting the scallops. Soo freakin good. Clams were A+ as well. The sauce with them is everything. Really glad we ate at the market again. For 4 items, the bill was about $70.

We picked this restaurant because everywhere was already filled up and we got lucky with seats at this place on a Monday afternoon in the summer. We ordered the paella with seafood. It was my first time having the paella and it wasn't bad. I'm use to my rice being cooked just right and I felt the rice was undercooked but I'm not sure if that's how the rice was suppose to be served. The paella dish took forever to cook since they only had one burner dedicated to the paella dishes. This dish was 17.50 euros. It came with one shrimp, two mussels and one lobster/shrimp looking thing. Be careful to not leave your bag(s), purse or anything you have valuable hanging out or else it will get stolen from you.

This hidden spot at the back of la boqueria was a GREAT find. The food was absolutely amazing! We waited in lin for about 30 minutes but very well worth it. We had to order seconds and thirds of certain plates. The service was good as well especially considering how busy they were. Friendly and fun! A must try when in Barcelona!

It was neatly tucked in the far back of the market, but great things come to those who wait right? So you can imagine my taste buds into the first bite of food, MAGICAL. There is bar stool counters that serve as seating, but there is also a side area with a few tables. We waited maybe like 10 minutes before we were seated at the bar, which was nice because you are able to see your food being prepared and are able to talk with the staff. We decided to start off with the snails (my best friend 1st time), and two glasses of cava. Our main entrees were the fish & seafood assortment, and the grilled salmon. First, the snails were cooked into a spicy, creamy sauce sort of, and it was delicious. My girlfriend had no regrets and actually said "Why haven't I tried this sooner?!!". Next, my fish and seafood assortment was actually, and truly magical. It came with one fillet of fish (I completely forgot which), mussels, prawns, razor clams, regular clams, and squid, and it was topped with an oil, pesto sauce of sorts. The butteriness of the sauce, combined with the seafood, actually to die for. And both my fillet of fish, and the grilled salmon were both perfectly cooked, it literally felt like it was melting into my mouth. After each bite, my mouth was watering, for the next, so phenomenal. Service was superb! Not to mention, we ended up getting some free cava, no complaints here. But no really, the staff were super attentive, and polite, we were able to speak to our one waiter, and he was telling us where he came from and such, it was honestly a super positive, fun experience. The prices were decent, but for the quality and quantity of the food, it was well worth it. 1000% will be returning when I am back in Spain. Happy eatings!

Stumbled across this gem at the market on my first night, and my instinct told me that I have to have it. Well, I sure did. The owner recommended us some fresh sea bass for us to try, and I couldn't resist. Had it with roasted veggies (eggplant, roasted red peppers and roasted poblanos), and the dish was drizzled with garlic, olive oil and balsamic. Can't get any more Mediterranean than that! IT WAS AWESOME! had the shrimp was well with the same Style, and it was as well delicious. If you haven't been to Barcelona before, make this place one of your places to try!

Bar Central in the marketplace is an average tapas bar, surrounded by fantastic restaurants in Barcelona. By itself, it is great. However, within its surroundings, it does get watered down. I ordered the meat platter, which came with fries, beef steak, various sausages, and lamb chops. The lamb chops were my favorite of the bunch. We ended up here because all other popular places we wanted to eat at were full or did not take credit cards.

AMAZING GRILLED KING PRAWNS. Suck the juices from the head and order bread to dip into the rest of the sauce that drips out. Best I've ever had. Lobster was great, mussels were very good, clams were good. We came at 3:15pm on a Monday, waited about 15-20 minutes for two seats. The host who was taking orders for people waiting in line was funny and friendly. He kept joking around with us through eating. I think he spoke three languages: English Spanish and Italian and he said he came here from Poland! But basically he gives you a menu, then he takes your order while you wait for your seat. The food came out at a good time, the king prawns were absolutely delicious. They were kind of expensive but THE BEST prawns Ive had in my life. You have to suck the juice from the head- that's the best part. The flavor was AMAZING, so good that we ordered bread to salvage the rest of the juices and garlic olive oil sauce that they drizzle on top. The garlic olive oil sauce here was better than all the other restaurants i've tried. We also got the lobster which came with mussels and clams. The mussels were good, I think it's hard to get mussels wrong and no matter how well you cook it, it's rare to have amazing mussels- as far as mussels go. The clams were really salty but lemon juice helps make it taste better. The lobster itself was very good, tasted fresh and hot off the grill. But after the king prawns, nothing was as great comparatively. Our neighbors ordered small shrimps and it also looked amazing and drenched in garlic oil (which I love), I almost wanted to order it. I would say if you don't want to get your hands dirty, order the small shrimps but trust me, getting your hands dirty for the king prawns are worth it. That brain juice was orgasmic. Price wise, I think it's a bit expensive but it's located in la boqueria so I would expect it too be more expensive. I was pleasantly surprise by how delicious it was though, for a touristy place, it was great.

It's located inside of the well known touristic market place. We came to the place after short visit to Sagrada Familia on a Thursday afternoon, luckily got 4 seats. We ordered Seafood Platter, Fried Platter, Veggie Platter. We were so satisfied that all veggie and seafood were very fresh with no salt or little bit salt, we could even taste sweetness of the vegetables, seafood was also very tasty. It's Mediterranean style cooking, roasted seafood with no or little bit salt, one can actually taste freshness of the seafood. We ended up with coming back twice.

Our last day in Spain meant one last trip to the market for breakfast. This time we a busy spot that we spied some good looking seafood at the day before, Bar Central. We started off with a little avocado salad that we spied being made as we sat at the counter. Filled with avocado and other goodies and topped with a thick balsamic and a plump shrimp, it tasted as good as it looked. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/ptCgvDYyOHAWClnvMSFcdA?select=jixEcR8-GMAGTiAY2yYtig#jixEcR8-GMAGTiAY2yYtig We then moved on to what has become our favorite shellfish, razor clams. These lil' buggers were so sweet, so tender, so perfect, we were smitten. I would have eaten dozens of these on my own given the chance. Oh and the giant prawns weren't half bad either. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/ptCgvDYyOHAWClnvMSFcdA?select=QGrXDu2JgSfhlTbXx7D0WQ#QGrXDu2JgSfhlTbXx7D0WQ And lastly some sausage. I was feeling meat deprived so an okay sausage hit the spot. http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/ptCgvDYyOHAWClnvMSFcdA?select=vXJkyb0vbF-hdnRTXYZfPg#vXJkyb0vbF-hdnRTXYZfPg Definitely a place worth trying if you have more than a few meals to kill at the market. I would go back.

I got to the Boqueria late in the afternoon, starving out of my mind. A lot of the food stands were closing up shop, but luckily Bar Central was still packed and churning out delicious plates. They're located towards the back of the market, past the seafood vendors. There was a bit of a wait, but I was able to get some seats after stalking some of the other customers, which seemed like the norm here. Since it was near their closing time, they were running out of some of their items, but there was still plenty of fresh seafood to feast on. The grilled prawns were huge, super fresh, and were freakin delicious. The same went for the razor clams and the salmon w/ mussels. All were grilled to order and seasoned with a simple olive oil/herb mixture. So simple, so so freakin good. I ordered similar dishes at some of the other tapas joints in the market, but none were as delicious. I surely haven't tried them all, but this place was definitely my favorite out of the ones I tried.

Terrible advice from Yelpers! We were wandering the Boqueria and saw the huge line. This must be good! We saw the fresh seafood on display and what other people were getting. So we got in line and ordered the gambas with garlic. On the menu, gambas is translated as prawns. However, we got shrimp instead. Okay, fine. Our mistake for not asking the waiter that the gambas with garlic dish is just shrimp in a skillet. Then we waited another 15 minutes and our other dish never arrived. We asked and it turned out they forgot about our octopus. We happened to sit in front of the bar and the microwave. They microwaved our octopus for 3 minutes and it spilled so they had to remake it. No worries, only 4 minutes later our octopus came out fresh from the microwave. Thanks.

We have been in Barcelona for 9 days and found this place in day 8. It was the best food we've had hands down. Instead of tapas, we actually were able to order fresh grilled fish that came with delicious grilled vegetables on the side. We both selected sea bass but I have to say that everything that came out looked absolutely fresh and lovely - the hake, mussels, prawns, etc. It is fresh and fantastic and priced right. You'll prob have to wait in line but well worth it!!!!

For a fresh and well prepared meal at the market, look no further. The menu includes several unique delicacies, cuttlefish being my dish of choice. Tasty and tender, just make sure you don't eat the beak. It's very hard and you will break your teeth.

Landed early in Barcelona and couldn't check into our hotel yet so we decided to walk the Ramblas and ended up at the market place! The market is so colorful! With chocolates and olive oils and fresh produce, meats, hams, and seafood - we decided to have a seat and try the fresh seafood!! Cerveza at 10am! Yes please! This place is so lively and everyone is drinking at this hour! They have fresh seafood on display and they pick it and cook it right in front of you! The lobster was definitely still moving before it hit the grill! I ordered the baby octopus in a olive oil pesto sauce and it was definitely fresh! I wish there was a little more flavor to it though. Good experience but not the best food I've had in Barcelona! Definitely fresh though. The couple next to us said their prawns were undercooked and could be better.

Wonderful fresh... No need for lots of added sauces or seasonings- this place celebrates the deliciousness of fresh, well grilled food. The baby squid were the best I've ever had and the plate of grilled veggies was huge!! I loved them so much I asked for a 'cuadro' to take away the rest to eat for breakfast. Kind, helpful staff and quick service!!

During our walk through the Mercado de la Boqueria, we stumbled onto this place which caught our eye from the filled seats and crowd that had gathered. Looking to see what the excitement was all about, we were amazed by a large plate of prawns and calamari that some of the patrons were enjoying. Looking at the bar with a large variety of seafood food they had displayed, we decided to give them a shot. There were about 8 people ahead of us and it took about half an hour before were seated. Instead of ordering the prawns and calamari which caught our attention, we ordered the escargots and scallops. I can't say enough how disappointed we were. There were no flavor in both dishes and probably the worse escargots I've had ever! My wife caught them heating them in the microwave. We didn't see how the scallops were prepared but in looking more deeply at the display counter, it appeared all their food were precooked with the exception of the steak and lamb meats. The only thing I enjoyed was the beer. I have to admit we got caught in a tourist trap and should have ordered the items that caught our attention. However, seafood shouldn't be so hard to prepare. I'm not sure of all the hype and high reviews but spend your money at a reputable seafood place. The two items we ordered along with two beers cost us 30 EUs.

Barcentral is located inside the St. Joseph's market (La Boqueria). They offer variety of tapas mainly seafood based. The food was good. Our table was for party of two and ordered 4 items, including paella for one person. We were able to finish most of everything except a bit of paella.

It's a testament when they have 2 different locations within walking distance at the market. Prefer this one if you want less action but still busy anyways. As usual, it's first come, first serve so be smart and watch for the seats that are either ordering dessert, or asking for the bill, there's no wait list like the Kiosk Universal. Anyways, ordered the usual tapas: razor clams and some big shrimp. Clams were great, shrimp while good, but Kiosk much better and moist. In terms of hygiene, I liked how they covered their food with plastic, as per pic. There were too many bees/flies in the market for my liking. Ppl talk about high prices, sure, but hey, this is a touristy area though lots of locals here too. It's a place of action.

Bar Central in la Boqueria was one of the busiest business in the market, since there is not much seating space we had to wait in line for about 20 minutes to get seated and we were able to put in our order while we waited. I ordered Gambas al ajillo and they took an awfully long time to cook, they were extremely small, didn't come with a side and were relatively pricey for market food which honestly disappointed me. My friend ordered the salmon and got a huge plate with two sides for a portion of the price, so I guess depending on what you order it can be a hit or miss. The highlight of our meal was one of the girls in the kitchen, Jenny from Ecuador, even though I wasn't completely pleased with my meal, Jenny made our time very enjoyable and even treated us to some Spanish Cava!

This is one of those sit down bars in the Mercat La Boqueria. I had just came back from Salobreno where the Paderilla (3 fish, 1 large calamari, clams) costed EUR12. Bar Central's Paderilla (1 slab of fish, 3 small calamari and handful of asari clams) costed EUR27. The salad was excellent fresh crispy salad with olive oil, good balsamic vinegar and salt but at EUR10. I also had this red sauce, olive oil octopus with fried potato. Total cost EUR55. Cost is not worth the food but being able to sit and dine at Mercat makes it a fun experience

This place was the business. THey were super busy but very attentive. Pricing seems high for the seafood but the portions are HUGE. We got the razor clams, a bite of spinach tortilla tapa, and the grilled vegetables (after seeing many of them come off the grill!). All the seafood (and the veggies) is cooked to perfection on the grill with an amazing grill/char flavor. Our portion of clams was HUGE...if there was more than 2 of us we would've ordered other seafood to try but this was perfect for what we needed.

This is one of the more upscale places in la boqueria. There was a line when I got there, and it took about 10-15 minutes to get seated. On a recommendation from the waiter, I ordered the seafood platter. I didn't think anything was particular flavorful, but the it looked gorgeous and it was very fresh.

Great food ! Service was prompt and friendly. Located at la boqueria off of Las Ramblas. We sat at the counter and ate tapas. The shrimp is amazing!!cuttlefish was good as well!

I was at the food market, although it is all very colorful and amazing... but this place was the most attractive. Fresh seafood, in the middle of the market. I ate the best prawns in my life.. atmosphere is amazing. Very recommended.

We stumbled upon this place while wandering the market. Razor clams, clams, and shrimp were freshly grilled and coated with a delicious green sauce. They also have a full size restaurant a few feet away (walk out of the market). We came back and ate there for dinner a few days later, the seafood paella is amazing. Service was also great. Highly recommend!

Excelent ambience, great service and awesome crew. Fresh food straight from barcelona coast, Danny the server and Danny the chef were outstanding, great food. We ate at many places in Barcelona and this is by far the place that we ate fresh seafood and at affordable price, Highly recommended.

We had lunch there on a recent trip to Barcelona. The food was so good, we returned the next day. Razor clams, octopus with potatoes, scallops, clams and sole were all outstanding. The only thing that was a bit of a letdown was the shrimp with garlic sauce. We would've eaten there more often if we were in the neighborhood more. Very satisf

Great paella! Loved it! Plus a beer or two! Definitely go!! Walking through the market and being able to grab some food after seeing everything wonderful... it was delicious!

Fresh seafood. Great service. They don't rush you to finish your food like the other stand. The chef and servers were all friendly and quick to get out orders. Razor clams were fantastic! Ended up coming back here on my last night in Barcelona. The seafood salad was also delicious!

Fresh grilled fish with grilled peppers and zucchini. Awesome dish at La Boqueria market. The seating is in the market street, a special experience.

Food quality was so nice and fresh. They did not salty. I enjoyed my lunch in this restaurant with my family.

This is the most unprofessional, discriminatory and disrespectful place I've ever been! I tried to eat there after reading a recommendation somewhere on the internet, but after waiting for more than 40 minutes to get a seat when I finally got a place to seat, the woman behind the counter told me to leave that seat because other people would sit there. When questioned, she yelled "This is my place so I can do what I want". Other clients tried to intervene in my favor, questioning that they do not operate on "First come, first serve basis", but all that followed was pure display of rudeness, ignorance and swearing. I've truly never been so mistreated as client anywhere in the world!

Bar Central is located in the Mercat de la Boqeria and has excellent, fresh seafood. Most places to get food nearby are standing only, but this location has bar seating, which is appreciated after a long day walking the city. Try the grilled vegetables!

I hate to say this but Bar Central has gone downhill since the last time we were here in Sept 2015. The seafood platter was definitely not fresh- the shrimp was off, the muscles were overcooked and scrawny. The bread was old! omg really? you dare serve old bread?! And they admitted to the bread situation wow! I hope they decide to do better for their patrons. Just because it's a big tourist spot, being it's in the boqueria, doesn't mean Bar Central should decide to be complacent. Get it together.

Very greasy food. Vegetables were soft (over cooked) and omelette was blah. This was our only bad food experience in Barca.

Friends of friends told us to "Go to the market and eat razor clams." So we did. There are a few stands in the market that serve them but we saw a bunch of locals sitting at Bar Central so we ended up here. First off, the servers were very accommodating by making room for us at the bar among the locals. They talked to us throughout the meal, asking where we were from and suggesting food options. We obviously ordered the razor clams as well at the "Market Fish" dish. Both were SUPERB! The salmon and the squid served on the market fish plate were by far the best cooked salmon and squid I've ever had in my life. All the seafood was grilled and seasoned so deliciously. My friends also devoured the fish eggs (I wasn't a fan but it was definitely a hit with the others). But make sure there is salmon and squid on your plate!! Must go! Because it's seafood, the meal is pretty light but also easily shareable between a few people. It's the perfect afternoon snack and worth the price!

My friend and I stopped by the Mercat de la Boqueria to look around and stumbled upon this place. We didn't get a chance to Yelp it but by the looks of the ever growing line and the packed seats at the counter coupled with the fresh seafood laid out for your visual enjoyment and the MANY MANY MANY happy faces of their customers, how do you NOT stop and find out what the fuss is about?! We ordered calamari, HUGE prawns, mussels, oysters and everything came out fresh, hot and fast!! My favorite by far was the prawns and no joke, would've swapped out the other 3 dishes and ordered ONLY the prawns. They were sweet, juicy and melt in your mouth. I loved the fact that most of their dishes were seasoned with olive oil and sea salt as to not muddle the freshness of their main focus - the seafood! Be prepared to shell out a few euros cuz fresh & delicious ain't cheap!

Was originally looking for pinotxo but ended up here instead.I had a seafood salad (32 eur), which came with razor clams, clams, squid and around 6 pieces of decently sized shrimps, all grilled. As with other bars in the market it's pretty cramped and youre sitting elbow to elbow with the patrons beside you. It's very busy and they don't have the time to go over the menu if you don't speak Spanish, and I just ordered the first thing they recommended. Overall the food was good and service was fast.