Escriba, Barcelona

Right on the famous La Ramblas, this place caught my attention more for its lovely exterior than for what was on offer inside. Sure there was a lot to choose from, and most of them looked pretty tasty-my chocolate tart was easily above average. What I didn't like though was that they were careless about the food. Maybe I've been spoilt by San Sebastian, but I certainly wasn't happy when I was served re-heated pizza with once-melted-but-now-dried out cheese. Also, the mass confusion among the staff was quite a turn-off. At least 2 people in succession had had their orders mixed up or not taken down properly, and had to be appeased with freebies. I'd still come back here though, just to poke my nose about and maybe give the pastries another go. But I'd definitely do take-away, cos hanging around was just stressful.

Taller de Tapas, Barcelona

This place had garnered worldwide fame, or so it seemed from the endless display of articles on the walls and windows. Can't be bad I thought, even though there were tourists everywhere. The queue outside was always long-and that's usually a good sign, no? But it was expensive, and a complete waste of calories. The duck was overdone and therefore tyre-tough, the iberian ham was doused in pepper so you couldn't really taste the meat, Catalan creme brulee had a layer of caramelised sugar so thick you couldn't break it..I could go on. Maybe the chef was having a bad day, I can't be sure, but this was definitely my least satisfying dining experience yet.

H-Original, Barcelona

I didn't manage to veer very far off the tourist track while I was in Barcelona, so most of my meals didn't excite me much. H-Original in La Ravel was the only local-ish place I went to and it definitely stood out. I didn't have anything complicated, just Arroz con mariscos (rice with seafood). But the rice was cooked to perfection: moist, light with sweet undertones, and the seafood, the prawns in particular, had been marinated so well with spices and were so juicy i couldn't restrain myself from slurping once or twice (quietly of course!). Worth remembering.