La Plata

"This small corner bar just one block from the old port of Barcelona has been serving the same four dishes since 1945. Though the salted anchovies, fried sausage, and tomato salad are all delicious, the floured and fried boquerones (anchovies) are the true star. Now run by the grandson of the original founder, Bar La Plata sells over 85 pounds of the little fishes per week. The place is nearly always busy and only has a few tables, so do as the crowds do and eat standing up at the bar or even in the street if no seats are available." - Sam Zucker

"If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? La Plata’s menu offers a choice of only four tapas: fried butifarra sausage, anchovies, tomato salad, and the star of the show, pescaditos—small fish, such as whitebait, breaded and fried. Their predictable, tried-and-tested approach keeps this tiny bar perennially packed from morning until night, and locals continue to flock to La Plata despite its location on one of the most tourist-trodden alleyways in the Gothic Quarter. It’s one of few places in the Old Town that still reminds them of how things used to be—and what they used to cost (a beer is just €2.50, and the pescaditos are a steal at €3)." - isabelle kliger

"You can get a great glass of local wine served directly from one of the three barrels that line the wall at this tiny Old Town bar. Located on a busy alley, La Plata is an institution that’s been serving the same four tapas since 1945, and is always packed with Barcelonians who are willing to ignore the touristy rush of the Gothic Quarter for the butifarra sausage, anchovies, tomato salad with raw onions and olives, and small fried fish known as pescaditos. The barrels of red, white, and rosé are from the Penedès wine region, while the house vermut is made just for them by Perucchi 1876, a Catalan hometown producer.  " - isabelle kliger

"If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? La Plata’s menu offers a choice of only four tapas: fried butifarra sausage, anchovies, tomato salad, and the star of the show, pescaditos—small fish, such as whitebait, breaded and fried. Their predictable, tried-and-tested approach keeps this tiny bar perennially packed from morning ’til night, and locals continue to flock to La Plata despite its location on one of the most tourist-trodden alleyways in Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter. It’s one of few places in the Old Town that still reminds them of how things used to be—and what they used to cost (a beer is just €2.50, and the pescaditos are a steal at €3)." - Isabelle Kliger

"No longer a secret, but that shouldn’t stop you from going. They do simple things like fried whitebait; eat it whole, head and all. Also a good place to try drinking from a porrón, a glass pitcher with a thin spout. You lift the porrón as far above your head as you dare and tip the contents into your open mouth. Pro tips include opening your mouth as wide as possible, opting for white wine, and wearing a busy top to hide any stains." - Suzy Taher