Els Quatre Gats

The Four Cats restaurant is a famous piece of Barcelona's folklore. Operating as a cafe, cabaret and all-round artistic space between 1897 and 1903, Els Quatre Gats was a centre of Modernista thought, and even hosted Pablo Picasso's first art exhibition - the legendary brush wielder was also partial to a tipple here. Reestablished in 1978, following the death of Franco, the Four Cats has since established itself as something of a tourist mecca, and certainly its vibrant decor and ambiance make the restaurant a deserving point of pilgrimmage. Tasty portions of Catalan and Mediterranean cuisine satisfactorily stave off the belly rumbles, whilst the coffee is some of the best in the city.

I just finished reading "the shadow of the wind" and then I went to Els 4 Gats to take a look at the place where the characters of the book used to go. I enjoyed it a lot!!! You really can feel the atmosphere of the past.

This place was absolutely horrific. DO NOT EAT HERE. I had the flu of the black plague for seventeen months.

I forgot to add that if you like this place, you must also see Cafe Jama Michalika in my home city of Krakow in Poland! It is smaller, but it also has a lot of history and great character like 4 Gats.

I have been here twice and always found the service to be very friendly. There are quite a lot of tourists, but the staff kept a smile on their faces (for me, anyway!). Amazing place.

A must-visit if you go to Barcelona. Full of character and totally agree about the coffee - tastes incredible!

The Four Cats also feature in Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona movie. And Picasso had his first exhibition here!

There are many tourists here, but many locals as well. Els Quatre Gats is part of Barcelona's history and some of the dishes are very good. The service can differ.

The place looks nice, and the food is ok, but felt like a bit of a tourist trap when I was there... maybe because of the big group of Germans. We found better places in Barcelona

Yes, I agree fantastic coffee. Which is not always easy to find in Europe in my experience. There's a wonderful atmosphere to the Four Cats

This is great restaurant, with superb food and atmosphere. I highly recommend it to all tourists coming to Barcelona