Dancing Egg: Fine Restaurants Barcelona

What Makes L’Oucomballa One of the Best Restaurants in Barcelona

L’Oucomballa is one of the best restaurants in Barcelona because of the décor, intimate atmosphere, soft lighting and low jazz music, but especially because of what culinary historian Teresa Ferri has collected: authentic international Mediterranean recipes that she serves with inspired twists to delight the senses. When we say that L’Oucomballa serves fusion-style international Mediterranean dishes we’re not trying to make this Barcelona restaurant sound more chic than it is, just explaining that the recipes come from places situated around the Mediterranean which include Spain Barcelona - Catalonia, France, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Lebanon, Israel and Morocco to name a few. These diverse culinary cultures have provided Teresa Ferri with a unique edge to make her delicious hideaway stand out from other romantic restaurants in Barcelona.

The Menu at L’Oucomballa Restaurant Barcelona

Not all Barcelona restaurants can boast a menu like the one Teresa Ferri has put together which includes distinctive Sephardic dishes meaning the cuisine is derived from recipes of the Sephardi Jews who inhabited Spain, Portugal and other Mediterranean regions like Turkey and Greece. Depending on the season you’ll find a variety of meat dishes on the menu such as: marmalade seasoned Boeuf à la Bourguignonne (a type of beef stew), Gayina Guizada Sefardí (Sephardic stewed hen), Cérvol amb Xocolata Negra (deer with dark chocolate) and various fish dishes such as the baked cod served with honey-brie sauce. In summer the menu includes lighter fare such as eggplant, zucchini and ricotta cheese au gratin; mixed berry salad with mint & olive oil and cheese mousse; scrambled eggs with catalán-style caramelized onions, spices & nuts served on brown toast; fillets of veal or Iberian pork with a choice of sauces like spiced cream of mushroom, peach cream, port or grape marc (orujo) sauce. It’s not difficult to taste why L’Oucomballa is one of the restaurants Barcelona residents suggest for romantic dinning or intimate gatherings, although it’s not suitable for large parties because there are only a few tables; another reason it’s so charming.

Geting Around: Barcelona Restaurants & Tapas Bars in El Born District

Getting around in Barcelona’s Ciutat Vella, which means Old City, isn’t straightforward if you don’t know into which labyrinth some funky meandering alley might lead. Although Sambawalker and friends enjoy aimless walkabouts while discovering new places, if you’re meeting friends, have a dinner date or happen to be starved hungry, it’s not much fun getting lost in El Born. In the vicinity of L’Oucomballa Restaurant, use the church of Santa Maria del Mar and the Picasso Museum as guide points. The Passeig del Born will take you to and from many of the popular Barcelona tapas bars in the Born district right up to Santa Maria del Mar. Carrer de Montcada is one of the streets that leads from the church straight up to the Picasso Museum, but along the way you’ll find some of the best places for tapas Barcelona is famous for, including El Xampanyet on Carrer de Montcada, 2.

El Xampanyet is one of the top stops for tapas Barcelona residents suggest to visitors, not because of the décor or service, but because it’s authentic with cava and Catalan tapas in an atmosphere that’s vibrant and packed to overflowing from about 11AM onward. In Spain Barcelona residents drink cava in the morning, not everyday but often enough, nevertheless many of the top tapas Barcelona bars and restaurants are filled early in the day with thirsty international travelers.

Getting Distracted but NOT Lost: Sambawalker Barcelona Map & Sambamaper

One of the keys to not getting lost while making your way to Barcelona restaurants in El Born is to keep in mind that from Carrer dels Banys Vells, where Restaurant L’Oucomballa is located, you can walk northwest toward Carrer de Rossic, then turn right onto Carrer de la Barra de Ferro toward the Picasso Museum, which will be at Carrer de Montcada. It’s just a big square with the church sitting between The Passeig del Born at one end and the Plaça de Santa Maria at the other on Carrer dels Sombrerers which leads to a crossing with Carrer dels Banys Vells, or you can walk northwest and it’ll turn into Carrer de l’Argenteria…and along the way you may find yourself pleasantly distracted by….wonderful bizarre places to eat and drink like Gaelic La Fianna, also on Carrer dels Banys Vells, a restaurant Barcelona has been fortunate to receive from Robby Dunne who offers an eclectic international menu that includes cuisine from Thailand, Morocco, Japan and five other countries. Yes, Sambawalker often gets distracted on the way to dinner, especially when a colourful cocktail bar with chill out beds and plush sofas serves Thai food, but the point is that it’s Sambawalker’s job to ramble the Ramblas of the world getting meaningfully distracted so Maps & Apps can be made to help you get to a specific Barcelona restaurant on time!

We suggest a Sambawalker Barcelona map, using the online Sambamaper (Sambawalker Map App), or getting a Sambawalker mobile application to guide you to restaurants in Barcelona. Use the Sambawalker online map of Barcelona to show you the route to WALK so getting to the best restaurants in Barcelona is less frustrating. The restaurants Barcelona has in the Born district are best reached on foot, and you probably won’t be driving anyway because the streets are really narrow and intended for pedestrians (or horses with teeny medieval carriages), so let’s not even mention parking. Walking is the best way to get around Barcelona’s Ciutat Vella and the surest way of making it on time to dates at the best restaurants Barcelona has in El Born.

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