Quick bites: Barcelona's top three rooftops for dining

Following Barcelona’s second ‘Setmana de les Terrasses’ at the start of June, our hotel rooftops and terraces are buzzing. And, contrary to popular belief, it’s not all wannabe bling-bling (though that’s certainly out there if that’s what you’re seeking). A glass of wine or cava costs around €5 just about everywhere so far as I can tell—though cocktails fetch a whopping €15—and eating needn’t be prohibitive.

Menu at the Claris

The lunchtime ‘Factory’ menu (Monday-Friday, 1-4pm) at the Claris costs €25 for three courses of upmarket dishes such as date and fruit salad, fresh grilled squid on peas and potatoes, cherry panacotta, and a glass of wine. It’s a cut above the usual hotel restaurant offerings and although non-guests don’t get to cool off in the pool, the shady terrace still provides welcome respite from the heat of the street in a chic setting.

Hotel Claris: Pau Claris 150, tel. 93 487 6262. www.derbyhotels.com

Oysters at the Omm

This is the first year that the Omm has opened its rooftop to the public and thoroughly civilised it is too, mixing dining tables and chairs with more informal chaise-longues and sofas. Views across the street over Gaudí’s La Pedrera are lovely and the music hits just the right note with lots of Eighties and Nineties nostalgia. The night of my visit they were playing Talking Heads back-to-back, which was the perfect accompaniment to a round of oysters in four flavours: plain and unadulterated, spiked with lemon and olive oil ‘caviar’, swimming in Gin and Tonic and fired up with a Bloody Mary salsa (€20). Getting there around 8pm seems about right when it’s busy with folk having an apero before dinner.

Hotel Omm: Rosselló 265, tel. 93 445 4000. www.hotelomm.es

Barbecue at the Villa Emilia (main image)

Tucked away in the Eixample Esquerra is one of the city’s best terraces for low-key nights out. Wood decked, lushly planted and prettily lit, the Terraza del Zinc is as popular with its neighbours as it is with out-of-towners, especially for their Thursday to Sunday barbecues, where a selection of brochettes, a drink, pudding and coffee will cost you about €25. It’s not always the speediest of service, but such is terrace life; life is too short to sweat the small stuff. Kick back and enjoy the tunes of live, local bands and DJs with a cheeky copa de cava while you wait.

Hotel Villa Emilia: Calabria 115, tel. 93 252 5285. www.hotelvillaemilia.com

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