Elche

We went to Elche based on online recommendations for great paella. The atmosphere was upscale but still comfortable. Our tapas starters were tasty, we got fried artichokes which we really enjoyed. We got the cod and mushroom paella, and the (no shells) seafood paella. The cod/​mushroom had a better flavor in my opinion. However, as other reviews have said the paella was very salty. On top of that, it took 30+ minutes and multiple requests to get the bill… which left a bad taste in our mouth.

ElChe Restaurant
After leaving Plaza España, we walked all the way down the Paralello towards the port and the main tourist haunts. We decided to stop inside this place for a nice lunch after so much walking. What lured is in was the clad of the joint. White linens, well dressed waiters in white coats. Fancy. But the menu on the door showed low prices. Good combo.
Elvis (his real name) was our waiter and attended to us very nicely. Very much a professional. If you’re in Barcelona, I recommend this as a place to eat and have great food. I had the seafood paella and cannot say enough about how tasty it was. Hubby and our friend both had the seabass and loved it.
The only issue, which wasn’t really a downside, was the lack of wifi. It made us talk & enjoy the food.
Come check the place out and ask for Elvis.

Fuimos a comer una paella.
El sitio tiene mucho estilo y la professionalidad destaca.
Camareros muy buenos, muy atentos.
La comida rica a precio correcto.
Unos vinos muy accesibles de precio.
No la mejor paella que he comido, pero sin duda esta buena y merece la pena pasar por allí.

4 people looking for a nice sit down. 2 dinners were WRONG– it was incredibly awkward when half of us had our food waiting for the rest which we had to reorder — the paella was a little flavourless but ok — my husband ordered medium veal it came less than rare with no apology as they forgot his meal — they brought me the wrong dinner but I liked mine when it did arrive, cod but it was a long tasteless meal for 75% of us with classical music Ill fitted and if you are in the area… Skip it

Located in El Poble Sec, a few minutes off Parallel, Elche is a great little
restaurant with amazing Paellas and great wine. It’s a bit on the higher end of the scale and altough you don’t have to dress up to eat here, you’ll feel better if you do make an effort cause this place is just nice.
We had paprika and garlic Paella with crayfish and langoustines to share for
21Euro each. All Paellas are freshly
made from scratch and take about 20mins.
Whether you want it or not, they serve two appetizer options: one basket woth different breads and a small plate with paté and crispy bread. Both are charged at 1.60Euro per person so if you nibble on both that’ll set you back an additional 3.20Euro per person.
As dessert we shared a cheesecake with mango coulos which was too cold when it was served and very cheesy altogether. I wouldnt recommend it but I’d recommend the main course without a shadow of a doubt.

Ok so not just 3 stars but 3.5. Overall solid. Good ambiance. Prompt and friendly service. Bread and pâté given right off the bat and drinks served asap.
Drawbacks: A bit pricey for some of the dishes. The paella is good, but too salty. Also in my opinion it could have used a fee more peppers and peas (i do paella at home; grew up with latin mum who has Spanish ancestry and i learned her recipe).
Ok so whats the deal then? Go here for a fancy time if you don’t mind splurging on a fancy/​classy atmosphere with friendly, accommodating prompt staff and a clean, classy decorum in Barcelona. Definitely worth a try.
The cheapest wine is good and a decent amount for the price.
Thurr tis yo!

Four of us had dinner last evening. The service was exceptional especially due to our lack of speaking Catalonia. The food was great — the grilled squid was outstanding. The waiter recommended some Catalonian wines that were a perfect match with our dinner and were priced very reasonable.
Recommend you visit when in the El Ravel section of Barcelona.

The food was pretty good but that’s about as much as I could say about it. If the price was much lower the rating would be significantly higher. However given the price I think there are better restaurants.

Food is decent but not a very friendly place. Ate there 4 times because it was close to my hotel but for the money they are pretty damn unfriendly. I have seen three sets of people walk out over 4 visits.

The place is very warm and inviting, and the service excellent. Delicious breads and a light pâté are quickly brought to the table and drink orders taken. But the Paella is unbelievably bad. To start with it’s too salty. The saffron, garlic, parsley, and pepper should not be covered up with salt! But worse, the seafood elements are truly sub-​par in quality, size, and number. For about $ 18 Euro you get 1) two medium shrimp with heads on, but they have big heads so if you are not one to suck their brains out, you’re left with two medium tails, 2) two calamari rings with virtually no flavor and as chewy as your shoe might be, 3) one small mussel which would be okay for a bird’s dinner, 4) three small clams that were tasty enough, and 5) one crab leg that was so skinny you could barely open it, then only to find a tiny sliver of meat inside. Must have been intended as decoration.

My partner and I came to Elche for lunch. The food and service were both excellent. We has two delicious appetizers (a very tasty salad made of a variety of Mediterranean vegetables, eggs and fish a bit like a Salade Niçoise and some very tasty cheese and ham coquettes) and we shared a typical rice, chicken and sausage dish (a bit like a paella). The lunch was not cheap but was amazing and quite filling. We go the sense that the place used to be less fancy than it is now, but that it has gone more upscale sometime recently.

Despite its popularity, i was very disappointed from the visit to Elche. My friend and I were the only customers at the restaurant. We first assumed we might have arrived early — 7:30PM. However, by the time we left, there were two more tables being served. I had a glass of house wine which was decent, not amazing, and the squid and artichokes black paella was a total disappointment. Very salty and barely any squid or artichokes were added. There was no host, just one waiter multitasking. He was not friendly nor helpful. And last of all, they charged us for the bread that he served us at the beginning… Wtf? If you are looking for a good paella experience, I recommend going to a place called Xiringuito Escriba by the Xiringuito beach.

Barcelona ist eine tolle Stadt. Aber wenn man nicht weiß, wohin man zum essen gehen soll, kann man sehr viel Pech haben. Uns wurde das Elche empfohlen. Es sieht sehr schick aus, so dass wir uns erst nicht reintrauten. Am zweiten Abend aber wagten wir es. Die Bedienung sehr freundlich, der Wein sehr gut, aber das Essen enttäuschend. Frittierte Tapas, sehr fettig und wenig schmackhaft. Die Preise naja. Aber immer noch eine der besseren Adressen.

Yum!
Came here for dinner with my sister after reading a review in our guide book. We ordered the pâté to start, got paella for our entrée, and a weird Spanish version of crème brûlée for dessert.
The pâté was decent. The paella was really salty. Granted, my whole family has a low tolerance for salt, but this was insanely salty. We drank a few bottles of water to keep from shriveling up and dying. Okay, okay, I exaggerate, but the deliciousness of the seafood was definitely overshadowed by how salty the rice was. The dessert was interesting. It reminded me of flan because the custard was so thick. I definitely appreciated the bruleed sugar on top of the custard.
The staff was friendly and helpful and we enjoyed our meal.

Sin duda, a finales de los 90, este restaurante del Poble Sec fue un referente en lo que a arrocerías se refiere. Allí solíamos ir el 27 de Diciembre, para bajar las comidas de Navidad y San Esteban.
Aquí encontrarás arroces, fideuás y paellas sin grandes pretensiones ni innovaciones, al más puro estilo tradicional.
Quizás los del Elche no son los mejores arroces de Barcelona, pero sí son un ejemplo de profesionalidad y del trabajo bien hecho, cosa que hace siempre recomendable dejarse caer por su local y disfrutar de un arroz como se hace en Elche, la tierra del arroz.

Hay muchos sitios donde comer un buen arroz en Barcelona, pero con el Elche tengo cita obligada como mínimo una vez al año. Durante un tiempo fue un lugar de celebraciones (hubo épocas que tenía muchas cosas que celebrar) pero incluso en malos momentos se puede encontrar motivos de celebración. Al grito de Albert Pla «¡que mal que estamos pero qué bien que lo pasamos!» hay que ir al Elche. Eso hacían y siguen haciendo los artistas que triunfan en los teatros del vecino Paralelo. No es extraño toparse con alguna cara conocida aquí.
¿Y qué pasa en el Elche? Pues un festival de arroces y paellas levantinas. ¿Cómo te apetece el arroz? Lo tienen. Y bueno. Y lo vas a comer con doble mantel, servilleta de tela y copas relucientes. El precio también reluce, claro. Pero se deja pagar. Al menos de vez en cuando.
Mmmm… Creo que me voy al Elche a celebrar este comentario.

Viva paëlla !!
Le temple de la paëlla à Barcelone… ! Un accueil courtois, des serveurs et serveuses en costumes noirs, des paëlla à tomber, et une addition toute douce… bref, le pied !!! Courez-​y !!

La paella est très bonne pour un prix raisonnable (de 16 à 20 euros par personne). Certains diront que le chef est avare en fruits de la merLe service est un peu lent. J’ai malgré tout passé un excellent moment. A conseiller à ceux qui veulent absolument manger une paella à Barcelone.

Super adresse
Le quartier est un peu surprenant (bcp de bars et salles de jeux) mais le restaurant est super. Super service, très bonne cuisine. La paella catalane (les pâtes remplacent le riz) vaut d’être essayée. L’addition toute à fait correcte, le métro tout proche, en fait tout est ok. Allez-​y !

An intimate but friendly place. Looks quite exclusive, however, Rioja is just EUR10 a bottle. Had a paella wich was with chicken, chorizo & black pudding, topped with an omlette and it was excellent value at EUR11 per person. Most diners had some sort of paella dish. The place has been there since 1959 and is situated just below the Montjuic Park. There is a sister restaurant in the touristy Maremagnum area.