Casa Almirall

El Raval, Barcelona –

A local favorite for more than 150 years – making it the second-oldest bar in town – Casa Almirall is a cozy bar that appears to have changed very little since it first opened in the 1860s.

Cool Modernista-styled doors and windows beckon to inquisitive tourists to drop in for a drink after visiting the nearby Museu d'Art (MACBA), after which they quickly catch glimpses of the impressive selection of wine and spirits gleaming on the shelves behind the solid marble bar.

Cream-colored walls feature a few vintage posters of Spain and even a retro Campbell’s soup ad, but the space remains largely undecorated save for many of the original iron light fixtures, a large art nouveau mirror, and a cast iron statue from the ’88 World Fair.

That’s 1888.

Congenial groups of friends take over the brighter café-style front room for quick drinks to prime the night, while couples and artsy Catalans proceed further back, traveling beneath the beautiful dark wood beams that line the ceiling and into the sultry and romantic rear space.

A soundtrack of light jazz adds to the relaxed air, while tightly spaced tables encourage strangers to become friends as they share an impromptu bottle or one of the joint’s strong classic cocktails.

Warm and welcoming, Casa Almirall is the kind of historic watering hole where time seems to stand still – something altogether obvious when one round seamlessly becomes many more.