Travel on the cheap

From “Hostelworld Guide to Barcelona”:

Travel Bar, C/ de Boqueria 27 If you’re really broke, but still want a decent meal, locate this bar. Every night at either 7.30pm or 8.15pm you can get a particular meal (pasta, curry etc.) for a mere €1 (once you buy a drink to wash it down with). Open daily from 9am-3am.

Fresco, Ronda Universidad, 29 Specialising in ‘all-you-can-eat’ buffets, Fresco is great value for money. For €7.40 you can choose from an wide range of salads, while if you’re looking for something a bit more substantial you can stuff yourself with pizza and pasta to your heart’s content. Open from 12.30pm-1am; buffet €9.20 after 8pm/weekends.

Bar del Pi, Plaça Sant Josep Oriol 1 Even though the selection of tapas here is limited, this is one of Barcelona’s most famous tapas bars. Most tapas are under €3 and if you’re lucky a pianist will be tickling the ivory keys of the downstairs piano. Open Mon-Sat 9am to 11pm; Sun 9am to 10pm.

Can Paixano, C/de la Reina Cristina, 7 Going for a bite to eat in this small champagne bar in La Barceloneta is extremely enjoyable but equally challenging. Specialising in cheap tapas and meat-filled bread rolls, hardly anything costs more than €3. Better still, they sell bottles of champagne for €4! Get down early. Open dailyfrom 9am-11pm.

Primer Express, Ronda de Sant Antoni, 32 When you’re looking for a quick breakfast in nice surroundings you can’t go wrong in this small eatery five minutes from Las Ramblas. For just €1.60 you can get a white coffee and a croissant/donut. For an extra €3 you can get tea and traditional Spanish sausage. They also have tapas from €1.50. Open Mon-Sat from 8am-10pm.

A Canadian teacher living in Barcelona, Spain named Monna blogged about five restaurants in Barcelona where you can eat for less than 15 euros:

1. Can Punyetes
The first time I went to Can Punyetes I walked with friends and had absolutely no idea where we were. When I asked them the name, they told me “the toast place.” So that’s how I met Can Punyetes. When they said toast they meant bread toasted with something wonderful on top: jamon Iberico (ham), queso de cabra (goat cheese) or pimienta negra (green peppers). On my first visit, I thought there was only one toast place but there are actually two in Barcelona and the second is just a couple of blocks from my favourite plaza, Rius i Taulet. The Can Punyetes in Gracia is the least pretentious place to eat in all of Barcelona. For example, when you order fruit for dessert, they bring you a whole fruit. The waiter will place an orange on the table in front of you. No bowl of delicate orange slices… not even an orange on a dessert plate. Just the orange. While several of my friends remain faithful to the tostada, I prefer the grilled chicken and baked potato with alioli – a powerful garlic sauce that takes no prisoners. Remember that in Catalunya, if you want vegetables with your meal, order them. They won’t come with your entree. The waiters at Can Punyetes are tolerant of foreigners and, over time, downright friendly.
Getting There: Carrer Francesc Giner, 8-10. Neighbourhood: Gracia. Metro: Diagonal.

2. El Laurel
We recently went, for the first time, to watch a movie at Cinema Renoir Floridablanca on a street called, what else, Florida Blanca. After witnessing Indiana Jones save the world (again), we went across the street to a restaurant which is a tried and true favourite of a good friend. She said it was all about the empanadas. As DP and I have both lived in South America and have eaten empanadas in Colombia, Ecuador and Chile, we were dizzy with anticipation. The restaurant/bar was long and narrow, filled with smoke and so packed we could hardly navigate our way through to the back room. In Barcelona, this usually means that the place is GREAT. It was a Saturday night and the wait was about 20 minutes which is not at all bad. We ordered four different kinds of empanadas (at two Euros each, they were a steal), two big salads with nuts and goat cheese and an order of chicken with four cheeses to share. Everything was cooked to perfection. The bill for six of us came to 60 Euros. Woo hoo! We have decided to go the movies at Floridablanca more often… and to then hop across the street for empanadas at el Laurel.
Getting There: Carrer Floridablanca 140. Neighbourhood: Sant Antoni. Metro: Universitat. Telephone: 93 325 62 92

3. Bar-Restaurante Rodrigo 
This popular budget restaurant is located beside the Basilica Maria del Mar in the Borne neighbourhood. It is a Catalan version of the greasy spoon but what a wonderful spoon it is. This is a family owned place that serves traditional Catalan food including tapas. You can sit at a table or stand at the bar where you will pay less for your food and drink. This is true of most of Europe. My favourite meal at Rodrigos is pinxo and fried eggs. Make the owner laugh and he’ll always take good care of you. When you are done your meal, you should definitely check out the Basilica!
Getting There: Carrer Argenteria, 67. Neighbourhood: El Borne. Metro: Jaume 1. Telephone: 93 310 78 14

4. La Pizza
On Wednesday nights, I tutor late after school and by the time I get home around 8:30, the evening is pretty well shot. So it’s pizza night. DP goes down to our favourite little pizza joint for authentic, thin crust pizza made by two Italian guys who now call Barcelona home. The pizza I love best is called the “Calabacin” and is made with mozzarella, goat cheese and zucchini. There are just a couple of tables so most people take their pizza to go. Two medium sized pizzas cost us 14 Euros.
Getting There: Carrer Penedès, 9. Neighbourhood: Gracia. Metro: Fontana (L3), Diagonal (L3)(L5). 

5. Cerveceria Catalana
This is my favourite tapas restaurant in Barcelona and the place I first tasted sangria made with cava which is like a Spanish champagne (just don’t call it champagne… your waiter’s head might explode). When we meet friends at the Cerveceria, we order a number of platos and share them. Here’s a typical order for six people:
2 order of patatas bravas
a plate of manchego cheese
2 orders of pan con tomate (bread with tomato and garlic)
an order of pimientos padrones (small green peppers with sea salt)
a plate of Spanish tortilla (eggs with onions and potatoes.. more like quiche without the pie shell)
a plate of jamon Iberico
an order (or two) of escalivada with goat cheese
When we’re feeling nostalgic for all things North American, we order the gourmet mini-hamburguesas (min-hamburgers) with caramelized onions.
For dessert we share a triple decadence: chocolate cake, lemon cake and Santiago cake.
Doesn’t that make you want to eat there right now? Me too! (Please note that this is our big splurge at 20 Euros per person).
Getting There: Carrer Mallorca, 236. Neighbourhood: Eixample. Metro: Diagonal or Provenca. Telephone: 932160368