Barcelona's oldest bar — serving absinthe since 1820 in a room where the dust on the chandeliers is itself a heritage feature. Hemingway drank here. Picasso drank here. Gaudí may have drank here. The room is dark, the mirrors are clouded, the bottles behind the bar have the particular patina of things that have been standing in the same place for two centuries, and the absinthe is served the traditional way: sugar cube, water, spoon, flame. The Raval location on Carrer de Sant Pau places you in the neighbourhood that was once the Barrio Chino — the red-light district that produced Genet's writing and Picasso's early paintings. Bar Marsella has outlasted every attempt to clean up the Raval, which is both a miracle and a testament to the stubbornness of a bar that predates modern Spain.
Location
El Raval, Barcelona
Map
Insider Intel
Absinthe — served traditionally with sugar and water. This is the reason the bar exists. A beer if absinthe is not your drink. Do not ask for a cocktail menu; there isn't one.
Late evening (10pm onwards) when the Raval comes alive and the bar fills with the particular energy of a room that has been hosting late nights for 200 years. Weeknights for a quieter, more atmospheric drink.
Carrer de Sant Pau 65, El Raval. Liceu or Paral·lel metro. Cash only. Absinthe €5-8, beer €3-4. Open late (usually until 2:30am). The room is dark and the furniture is original — sit carefully. The Raval at night has its own character; be aware of your surroundings.