Never got to eat after being told to sit at the table and he was coming...after 30 minutes, I left. If you're not sitting at the bar and/or don't speak Spanish, you're wasting your time. Very disappointing. read more

I had high hopes for this place because I normally love octopus. However after eating here I realized I really loved eating grilled octopus. This was my first experience with boiled octopus and hopefully it was my last m. The texture of the octopus meat from boiling just turns unappealingly gelatinous and the paprika sprinkled on top, while appreciated, was not enough to salvage the dish. The rest of the restaurant was enjoyable as there were a lot of different local options to choose from for affordable prices. Overall a fine experience. read more

Celta - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

Very nice, casual, diner-like setting for the best pulpo (octopus!) prepared Galician style. A variety of tapas is also offered in the counter display and is also tasty. A lot of items though are [lightly] fried (good in flavor and execution, but bad for heart). The prawns on this visit were not that great, seemed a bit dirty (black on the inside). Razor clams were good but skimpy. Spend your time and money to enjoy the octopus instead. read more

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Did you know octopus can melt in your mouth? Well, the ones here can. This was actually the best octopus I've ever had in my entire life-- and I've had fresh octopus cut in front of me in Japan. It was dressed with a simple touch of olive oil, salt, and some paprika which made it even better. Definitely would recommend stopping by just for the octopus. The other tapas seemed great too. read more

Celta - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

The Quick: Seafood lovers only. The boiled octopus served with paprika, sea salt, and olive oil is a must try. The Details: The boiled octopus is so fresh and simple, we had it every day in Barcelona. The sangria is good, the croquettes are also worth a try, but the star of the show was obviously the octopus. The "small" portion (pictured) was a good tapas size for two. The Damage: About 10 Euro.. SO worth it. read more

Celta - Small portion - Tapas Bars Near Me - Barcelona, B

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This tapas bar specializes in tapas from Galicia, and they serve their wine in bowls! They pour the first bowl and you refill as often as you like (they will tally up the total at the end). There are three long counters with choices of traditional tortillas (in Spain this is a potato quiche), sausages, fried fish and seafood like calamari or shrimp,potatoes, croquetas (fried potatoes with crab, cod, ham, or cheese), razor clams, langoustines, and the best baby octopus, all grilled to order in garlic and olive oil. The razor clams were tender and fresh, but only whetted my appetite for more,like the grilled baby octopus, which was the best version I've ever eaten. I love smelt but these were too big and fishy (I found much better ones a block away). Of the croquetas, I preferred the cod to the ham, even though both were good. The total for two of us sharing four tapas with four drinks (the sodas cost twice as much as the wine which was only 1.20 Euro a bowl) was 36 Euros or about $42 USD. The plates here are fairly large portions, so order as you eat, or just get a plate of the grilled octopus. read more

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Small, unassuming eatery with great tapas. I had the Galician octopus because everyone on here recommended it. It was flavored well but the boiled texture just wasn't for me. I'm very glad I ordered the grilled baby squid - that was awesome. They had a crispy texture like I prefer. Also tried the green peppers - very good too. There is a menu in English on the wall. Friendly service. Large portions for an affordable price. read more

Stopped by on a whim since the original place we were headed to was closed. Turns out, this place is in the Lonely Planet book! Here's what we ordered: -octopus: didn't try but it was the most expensive item on the menu and it was quite chewy and "not worth it for the price" -mussels: delicious and in a spicy sauce with diced onions -chorizo: tasty but overly cooked and salted -olives: too salty -shrimp: fresh -tuna empanadas: okay... wished it was served a bit warm rather than cold -bread with tomato: delicious when dipped in the mussel broth -croquettes: don't know what was inside (cheese?) but I could have ordered more! The bar is in the front and I guess you go around the bar looking at what they have. We sat in the back room (non-smoking area). For those doing tapas in Barcelona for the first time, they don't offer wines by the glass so when we ordered their popular white wine (Reboreda), we were presented with the bottle and even though we only wanted a glass and told the waiter, we were still charged for the entire thing. Service was a bit gruff. Not sure if that's a European thing and/or because we were tourists. The price for all that food was about $71 EU including drinks. read more

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Was close to the hotel, so we tried it on a whim (usually I plan things out fairly carefully, but didn't expect so much down time before we could check in to the hotel). I suppose there is a reason I try to plan things out ... to avoid places like this. The servers were very friendly. But the fried items were too oily (calamari and chipirones, the octopus was bland. The tortilla de patatas was good, as was the grilled langostines. read more

If you want delicious, local food, this is the place to go! We pulled up seats at the bar, ordered some beer and started ordering! First, the pulpo a feira. This was the best octopus we have ever had! It was tender and flavorful and worth every euro. Next, the razor clams. These had wonderful flavor (caramelized with lemon and herb) but we chewed a lot of sand with the clams. Then, the mussels which were in a fantastic red pepper sauce which had the perfect balance of sweet, salty and spicy. We tried to drink the leftover broth because it was so good! We ended our meal with peppers and iberico ham. The peppers were charred with sea salt and olive oil and were fantastic. Now the ham is what took this place from good to great! The iberico ham was soft and salty but so sweet and rich at the same time. The fat coated your mouth so the flavor lasted a long time! They but it off the leg right there at the bar so it doesn't dry out at all. Overall the place was wonderful. We haven't had better tapas yet and we will be back! read more

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This Galician restaurant was delightful. A couple of my friends went for a group project on Galician food, and we found the food and experience to be very authentic. The waiters were very nice and took the time to explain the dishes even though they had a full house and were constantly on the run. They were friendly and courteous even though there were only 2 men for the entire swamped restaurant. The food was extremely fresh with minimal seasoning, just enough so that you could really absorb the natural flavors of the seafood/dishes. We had tapas of pulpo (octopus), peppers, calamari, and Galician empanada (which is actual in the shape of a pie filled with tuna and baked), and for dessert the Torta de San Sebastian. We were all fighting for the last piece of each dish because they were all so tasty. I highly recommend all 4 small plates to share with friends. I also recommend the house wine. We got the house white wine, which is very typical from Galicia. (Galicia is best known for their white wine, and produce the most within Spain). If you're looking for fresh seafood and some good wine to pair with it, I recommend Bar Celta Pulperia (make sure it's the one on c/merce, 9). read more

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Recommended by Rick Steves, at the corner of Mercè and Avinyo. We were delighted with the service, the prices and the tapas. We sat at the bar and could easily see the tapas offered, many fish. We had clams, calamari, patates, and very good wines. Very clean and well lit. Not a dive. The staff all friendly. There was a large birthday party of locals having lots of fun, else no crowd for a Sunday night. Now I recommend it. NOTE: Some of the reviews here and many of the photos are of the older location. read more

Came here on the recommendation of her air B&B host for late tapas. Their wine recommendation was really good and we drank a whole bottle of house red quickly. We ordered a few things wanting to try a variety but they only ended up bringing out three of the four. This place is a little tough for tourists because there aren't really table menus so you have to know what the items on their counter are. Plate of croquettes was decent. Potatoes brothers were okay, but the pulp octopus was really good for me. Very tender, big pieces-friend had a hard time getting past the suction cups but I thought it was very good. So good wine, good octopus, not ideal for tourist tapas destination. read more

Recommended by a friend who lives in El Born. It was a pleasant surprise. The Galician style octopus, fried baby squid and the green pimentos are all delicious. This is a must if you're in town and want some authentic, affordable and tasty spanish food read more

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If you find yourself in Barcelona all of a sudden, this is the one tapas bar you should not miss! Barcelona has many, and most are mere overpriced tourist traps. But Celta does Tapas like John Holmes did aspring actresses... Deliciously hard!? Anyway.... Get the Octopus! Eat the Octopus! Wash the Octopus down with a refreshing Estrella Damm! At the heart of every great city is amazing food. Bar Celta Pulperia does not disappoint. And, it didn't give me diarrhea! read more

This was the gastronomic highlight of my trip to Barcelona (trip on a budget). Sit at the counter and order a pitcher of red sangria (or a bottle of something) and point at what you want. The baby octopus is excellent, as are the adult octopus, but my favorite by far were the fried piquillo peppers -- a small crispy bundle with just the right amount of salt and just the right amount of heat. Reasonably priced tapas in a tourist area are hard to find! Dishes were in the 3-5 euro range (compared to 8-15 euro) at the other places that we checked out on Las Ramblas nearby. read more

Amazing seafood. One of my favorite meals in Spain. First , get the octopus (I had the large octopus). Served with oil and a bit of paprika. It was delicious, I think there are some pictures of it on yelp. The razor clams were also terrific, cooked in oil, garlic with herbs, served with lemon. Love those. Patatas bravas was good, and something that should be a staple in every meal. The chorizo was good, but not my favorite sausage of our travels. I would recommend eating anything that came out of the sea here. This place is super relaxed, they left us the bottle of wine and just asked how many glasses we drank at the end. No real menu, just pick from what is on the bar, and it all depends on what was available that day. Service was friendly. This place gets packed (with locals), so you might need to sit at the bar or wait for a table. I'm disappointed that we didn't eat more meals here. read more

Very nice octopus/ squids specialty casual restaurant recommended by locals. Order the signature dish- Pulpo (octopus tentacles). We tried the a la plancha (grilled version). It was fresh, tender slices of octopus pieces cut from an entire big octopus, tossed with Olive oil. We also order fried baby octopus (pulpitos) which was equally nice. Highly recommended read more

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The Bar Celta Pulperia was recommended to us by a couple we met in Avignon. Went for lunch yesterday. Had octopus Galician style, grilled baby octopus, and razor clams. All were delicious. Also, took a tour of the bar's draft beers and sangria...each was a perfect accompaniment for the food. The waiter was particularly helpful teaching this gringo all things octopi. Great local place in a city overrun with tourist-oriented restaurants/cafes. read more

My favourite tapas bar in Barcelona by a mile. It may not look anything special from the outside but the range of top value tapas is absolutely superb. You enter the place and sit around a large U shaped bar with all the food layed out and protected by glass (imagine being in a butchers shop). You then simply keep on ordering and ordering from the chap behind the bar until you're full and wash the whole lot down with a caña. This tapas bar always has a large number of locals using it rather than posher looking places in the tourist traps. They do so for a good reason. read more

More than happy to recommend this tapas Bar as one of the best in Barcelona. Food excellent but also has a great proper tapas bar atmosphere, often with a mix of locals and tourists. read more

The service looks arrogant but I don't think they are rude maybe just busy and typical Barcelonians? Usually the experience we had was warmer. Looks chaotic but everything arrived quickly, we were just unsure did they understand us due to very limited English. The place was packed and for a reason! Octopus was great as were the shrimps and peppers! Great value for money read more

Bar Celta is where I would eat 2-3 times a week if I lived in Barcelona. This is crazy - I don't even eat seafood! It's small and authentic with an eclectic local crowd. I loved the red wine and the small plates- the cheese, the patatas bravas - with extra bravas and hold the aioli, and always 2 orders of the pimientos del padron. I am not one for the eggy tortilla thing but my husband enjoyed it. I love this place for a simple easy meal without a lot of fuss. read more

Walking through a small alley and my husband spotted this bar/restaurant opening. Decided to give it a go and it was a great decision. Tapas everywhere! We ordered tortilla de patata (potatoe omelet), patatas bravas (potatoes with spicy sauce - best we've had here in barcelona), salchichas (sausage), & cod crocuettes. Since it was just opening it was pretty empty but the food was good and the guys behind the bar tried to communicate in English as much as possible! Very fun way to end our trip in Spain. read more

A cafeteria-like bustling tapas bar where there's no such thing as a menu and if you don't know Spanish, expect to point and nod and deal with what you get! It's a fun environment but you need to be assertive and loud enough to make your order. The food is all in a glass-encased window at the counter and you can select what you want, it gets piled on a plate, set at the kitchen window and comes back cooked/fried. We tried the potatoes topped with a red spicy sauce, croquette's, sardines (or other small fish as I don't really know what they were), some sort of fried pig skin/fat, and calamari. When ordering such food, the best way to wash it down is with a beer. If you have a weak stomach, this may not be a great place to eat as the food is, as mentioned, deep-fried (needless to say, I wasn't feeling the greatest the next day). Although, that could be contributed to lack of water, sleep and too much to drink mixed with fried/greasy food. Regardless, I still recommend going there and yes, I would go back. read more

We all loved the speciality of the house -- octopus. Also, we enjoyed the carne (beef), calamari, shrimp, Patatas bravas, potato croquet ( some with a little bacon) sardines and charizos (a bit greasy). The wait staff was very friendly, but with almost no English. Also liked the Sangria. read more

Stumbled across Celta's 2nd (newer) location, on the eastern edge of Bari Born at Calle Princesa, #50. Very happy to have made the discovery on a Saturday night. Good affordable wine and solid fare, plus a great atmosphere. read more

Unexpected surprise while walking around and seeing the line for Paradeta. This place became one of my favorites. Navajas (razor clams) were the cheapest and most tasty we came across. The octopus was tender and flavorful. Pimientos were charred perfectly. Pan was the crustiest and the staff was so friendly. I loved it!! read more