Barcelona s 5 Best Kept Vegan Secrets

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1 Barcelona s 5 Best Kept Vegan Secrets Barcelona has grown increasingly vegan-friendly in the last few years back in 2011 when I first visited, the only completely vegan restaurant I could find was Gopal (they sold vegan cheese at the restaurant because it was one of the only places in town where you could buy it), and I was delighted to find falafel. Fast forward five years, and it s full of vegan delis, shoe shops, bakeries, cosy cafes and upscale restaurants. Whether you live in Barcelona or are just a sun seeker visiting for a long weekend, you won t have trouble finding vegan food. But what about the vegan secrets you won t find on HappyCow or Tripadvisor, that only locals come across? Here are my favourites, which I ve discovered by happy accident and want to share with you: Barcelona s best kept vegan secrets.

2 Vegan Croissants in Gracia (Approved by a Parisian) Sure, everyone knows about Santoni Café s vegan croissants, but the best vegan croissants in Barcelona are found at Knella Café in the bohemian neighbourhood of Gracia. Flaky, (faux) buttery and oozing with chocolate, the chocolate filled croissants are my favourite, but Knella s croissants also come in plain or spelt varieties. I took a non-vegan Parisian who was visiting for the weekend there to test the croissants veracity and she said they tasted just like the croissants back home and gave them her stamp of approval. Knella Bakery (Omnivorous with vegan options - ask) facebook.com/knella.es Call for opening hours Carrer Milà i Fontanals 9 Barcelona Metro: Verdaguer

3 Burgers on the Beach The Barceloneta area around the beach in Barcelona is generally touristy, overpriced, and not vegan-friendly. The only vegetarian restaurant in the neighbourhood is the vegan sangria bar Bar Celoneta. But what if you want to eat on the beach? Lined with paella and seafood restaurants, it doesn t seem like the best pick. Enter: Surf House. Part surf school, part juicery and restaurant, The Surf House does delicious juices and smoothies, salads and also a vegan burger with homemade cashew cheese. All clearly marked as vegan on the menu! Pick a table outside and overlook the beach while you enjoy your burger, juice and even vegan cake. Surf House (Omnivorous with vegan options marked on menu) surfhousebarcelona.com Call for opening hours Carrer l'almirall Aixada, Barcelona Metro: Barceloneta

4 Tapas in a Traditional Vermouth Bar Visitors to Barcelona often ask me where to get vegan tapas. Unfortunately there are no dedicated vegan tapas bars (yet!) and most vegetarian and vegan restaurants do an eclectic mix of international food. But if you want a traditional experience, check at Lo Pinyol, a vermouth bar on Travessera de Gracia. The bar is lined with barrels of vermouth (no word on which if any of their vermouths are vegan, but at least one waiter is knowledgeable about vegan wines) and the chef is happy to veganise any of their pintxos (a Basque version of tapas, which usually come on bread). They also have a vegan chocolate chestnut cake. Lo Pinyol (Omnivorous with veganisable dishes speak to chef) Facebook page Carrer del Torrent de l'olla, Barcelona Metro: Diagonal Tuesday Saturday 12pm 4pm. 7pm midnight. (Closed for siesta from 4pm 7pm). Sunday 12pm 4pm.

5 Costa Rican Coffee, With a Side of Vegan Cake More and more hipster coffee bars are popping up around Barcelona, and filling with people working on their Macbooks. One of the best is Onna Café, in Gracia, whose owner visits Costa Rica every year to personally assess and source coffee beans. It s also one of the few nice coffee shops to offer clearly-marked vegan cake. Take your latte with soya milk or almond milk, and a side of vegan carrot cake. Or try something different like the cold brew coffee and tonic (pictured). Onna Coffee (Omnivorous with vegan cake marked on menu, soya and almond milk available for coffee) onnacoffee.com Calle Santa Teresa Barcelona Metro: Diagonal Monday Thursday 8am 8pm Friday 8am 9pm Saturday 9am 9pm Sunday 9am 7pm

6 Feast on egg-free vegan Spanish omelette As it s listed on HappyCow, vegan takeaway Vegetart is one of the least secret on this list. However, not many visitors seem to frequent the place, as it s slightly hidden in a tiny shop in Gracia, and most customers are locals. But it s well worth the trip up to Gracia (a bohemian neighbourhood worth exploring anyway), because at Vegetart, you can get the best vegan tortilla (potato omelette) in all of Barcelona for just 1.50 Euros. Vegetart (100% vegan) vegetart.es Carrer Torrent l Olla Barcelona Monday Friday 12pm 8:30pm

7 want to find out more Barcelona vegan hotspots? The Vegan Word on Barcelona, my vegan guidebook to Barcelona, will be out soon. Pre-order your electronic copy now and get a 20% discount with the code sbscrb20 at: theveganword.com/vegan-barcelona-guide/ Out in July 2017, the guide will not only tell you what to eat vegan and where in Barcelona, but also eco- and vegan-friendly hotels and apartments, activities, tips on staying healthy plus accidentally vegan local dishes. Can I share this? Yes, please share with anyone you think could use it whether they re an expat relocating to Barcelona, a native of the Catalan capital or just planning a holiday there. who wrote this? Caitlin Caitlin Galer-Unti is the vegan food and travel writer behind theveganword.com. She is originally from the U.S. and has lived in Barcelona, Spain and London, UK. She's traveled to 30 countries (and counting) and blogs about the vegan food she finds around the world at theveganword.com, which has been featured on The New York Times and Yahoo!. Her first book, The Essential Vegan Travel Guide, a guide to finding vegan food anywhere in the world, was an Amazon bestseller.