As a budget traveler, I try not to eat out for all of my meals. That’s why staying at hostels or airbnb with access to kitchen or at least refrigerator and microwave is a really good option for budget travelers because we can shop at the grocery store for cheaper meals. All of the grocery stores that I’ve went to so far, in Spain, have pre packaged refrigerated meals that you can just heat up and the cost is minimal. I can get Spaghetti Carbonara for 1.99 euro and other things in the range of 1.99 – 5.99 euro. Sometimes you can even eat them for multiple meals.

When I eat out, I also try to find places that pretty affordable but not fast food like McDonald’s. Nothing wrong with McDonald’s but I think when you are in Spain, you want to try other type of food especially Spanish food. Most of restaurants in Spain offer Menu Del Dia (Menu of the day) either for lunch, dinner, or both. This is usually the best deal because you will get an appetizer, entree, dessert or coffee, and a drink (beer, sangria, soft drink or water). It depends on the restaurant sometimes they charge as little as 7.50 euro to 14.95 euro for lunch and more for dinner.

Out of everything I ate in Barcelona, I think my favorite meal is this simple lunch plate from a neighborhood cafeteria. The place doesn’t have a name. Inside the restaurant there are lottery machines and guys from the neighborhood sat around drinking beer at 2 in the afternoon.

I ordered a rice plate came with steak, eggs and salad. All for 7 euro. Not only that, they gave me a small plate of olives, potato chips, and a basket of bread. I was stuffed and the food was really good. It was comfort food for me. I definitely recommend a random trip to a restaurant where you don’t know anything about it and locals are the customers there. It might just surprise you.

If you have sweet tooth, you are definitely need to make a pit stop at Chok! It’s a bakery with so many delicious baked goods. They are famous for their cronuts and they were not disappoint. I had the Matcha cronut and it was really good. The cronuts have filling in them and I love baked goods with fillings so it was a delightful treat for me.

I don’t drink alcohol much, but I love to have a drink with a beautiful view. Hotel Colon in Barcelona situated across from Catedral of Barcelona, has one of the best rooftops. You will get view of the Catedral and part of the city. It’s one of the best in my opinion because their tapas are pretty affordable and also their drinks prices. The rooftop bar access is for everyone, so you don’t need to be a guest to access it. I enjoyed my Aperol Spritz and croquettes there.

If you loved Japanese food, there are so many Japanese restaurants in Barcelona. I tried three places while I was there because I needed some Asian food. One place that stood out for me is Kanada-Ya on Carrer de Valencia. They made their own noodles and you can choose if you liked your noodles hard, soft or medium. I picked hard and it was just perfect. It was Al dente and the whole bowl was so delicious. Definitely a must try if you are in eIxample area.

In Barcelona, there’s also a tapas chain restaurants called Tapa Tapa. Some people frowned upon on this place because it’s a chain restaurant. I actually like it. They have a fun menu, affordable, and they have FREE WIFI which is very important for budget travelers. If you scanned their QR code menu, you can access the menu in English. They are definitely located near touristy areas, so if you are at a touristy area and not sure what to eat, Tapa Tapa is definitely a good choice.

There are so many delicious restaurants in Barcelona and you can’t definitely go wrong with any of them. If you are in doubt, check the google reviews of the place. Also another tip, they don’t serve tap water there (like how it is in USA). So if you asked for water, they will bring you bottled water and it cost you money. I am a big water drinker and I kinda missed the free tap water in USA.

Let me know if you traveled to Barcelona before and what were your favorite restaurants there?