The area of Diagonal Mar is a zone currently growing at a rate of knots. It’ll soon be, if it weren’t already, more than just a place for hotels, offices and shopping centres – a key leisure area close to the beach. The restaurant options are still not very extensive, and generally you’ll need to put up with greasy spoons or franchises inside the Diagonal Mar shopping centre, which have a distinct lack of authenticity.
That said, there’s a ray of hope for lovers of good food in this area, which is emerging bit by bit: Sabor Mudéjar. In the future, this promises to be a go-to bar for tapas in an expanding zone like Diagonal Mar.
Sabor Mudéjar (Narcís Roca, 9) is an authentic Spanish tapas restaurant with very reasonable prices. Originally from Teruel, a town famous for Mudéjar (Moorish-style) architecture, the owners have worked out how to import the best of traditional Aragonese cuisine and consumables, while giving them a modern touch.
At first glance, the location isn’t great, given that the bar is found in a deserted area of a remote neighbourhood in Barcelona. That said, just a 5 minute walk from the Diagonal Mar commercial centre, you’ll find this restaurant, which, seen from the outside, might give the wrong impression, as it’s situated in between a cheap tapas bar and a kebab restaurant.
But if you’re curious and decide to go in, Sabor Mudéjar will leave you with a pleasant surprise, and, above all, a good taste in your mouth. Once you’re inside, the place has its charm, simply decorated in Mudéjar style and with wooden tables.
Home-made tapas with an Aragonese influence at Sabor Mudéjar
In terms of the food, Sabor Mudéjar offers and extensive menu of homemade tapas, produced from quality ingredients, as well as some excellent montaditos (delicacies on a slice of French bread). We tried the croquetón (a giant croquette of 100 delicious grams); the patatas bravas (correctly cut and dressed with three types of sauce to bathe as you wish); the crunchy artichokes; the choricitos “from hell” (a must for anyone who likes spicy food); and some tomato bread. All washed down with a tasty glass of red wine.
The tapas were spot on and the portions generous, although without many flourishes or excessively careful presentation. The best of it all: the price – the bill for all the tapas plus two glasses of wine wasn’t even 25 euros.
We weren’t very hungry that day, but we were also recommended and would definitely try the scrambled eggs with Spanish ham, the foie and mushroom cannelloni and a dish of cheeses from Albarracín, some of the stars of the menu.
Really, the price-quality ratio is highly satisfactory, allowing you to really push the boat out with a large quantity of dishes and a glass of wine for 15 euros per head. As well as this, add on the fact that our waiter effused friendliness right from the heart, making it a far more pleasant experience.
Sabor Mudéjar is a great place to go for tapas in the Diagonal Mar area, close to Fórum. It’s mostly orientated towards local people, although some of the tourists from the numerous hotels in the surrounding area also stray in. For me, it’s a great alternative to the franchises and fast food chains of the Diagonal Mar shopping centre, and I’d dare to say that it’s the best tapas restaurant in the who of this out-of-the-way area of Barcelona.
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