Bohemian former village above Diagonal, narrow plaças, vermouth bars at noon and the Festa Major in August that fills every street with hand-decorated bunting.
La Pepita in Barcelona's Gracia is the writing-on-the-wall counter where the croquettes and the tuna tataki built a Friday queue that runs into Sunday.
Signature: Croquettes, Tuna tataki
Order: The ham croquettes and the tuna tataki with avocado.
Tip: No reservations. Pile in at 12:30 or 19:30; bar walk-up easier than table.
Bar Bodega Quimet in Barcelona's Gracia is a corner-bodega vermouth bar with tin sardines, anchovy boquerones and house draught vermouth poured cold.
Signature: Olive vermouth pour, Anchovies
Order: Vermouth on tap with two olives, anchovies on the side.
Tip: Open daily lunch and early evening; closed mid-afternoon. Cash easier than card on busy days.
Maitea in Barcelona's Gracia is the long-running Basque pintxos counter with a back-room txuleta-fire grill, popular for the after-work tapeo turn.
Signature: Pintxos counter, Txuleton
Order: Six pintxos and a Rioja Crianza by the glass.
Tip: Bar pintxos walk-up; book the grill room ahead. Closed Sunday and bank holidays.
Onna Coffee in Barcelona's Gracia is the Costa Rican-born roaster's first cafe: their own farm beans, filter setups and a small daily-bake counter at the front.
Signature drink: Filter coffee
Tip: Tue-Sun 09:00 to 17:00. Closed Monday. Outdoor terrace seats are quieter than the bar.
El Postre de Pere in Barcelona's Gracia is the family-run Catalan country-bakery: carquinyolis almond biscuits, mel i mato, traditional weekly bakes.
Tip: Closed Sunday and Monday. The carquinyolis go best with sweet wine; the mel i mato in summer.
Worth the queue: Carquinyolis biscuits
Right Side Coffee in Barcelona's Gracia is the Diluvi-corner roastery cafe pouring single-origin pour-over and espresso, with their own roastery a 10-minute walk away.
Tip: Open daily. The Diluvi corner seats four at the counter; the back wall has plug sockets.
Sources from: Ethiopia, Kenya, Guatemala
How they serve: Espresso, Filter, Whole bean retail
Onna Coffee in Barcelona's Gracia is the Costa Rican-owned roastery cafe pouring only their own farm beans: filter, espresso, and the seasonal natural-process rotation.
Tip: Closed Monday. The cuppings on Saturday morning are the way to see the full Costa Rica range.
Sources from: Costa Rica
How they serve: Espresso, Filter, Whole bean retail
Syra Coffee in Barcelona's Born is the takeaway-window specialty-coffee chain Yago Giner started in 2015: filter, espresso, mostly walk-up window service.
Tip: Open daily. Mostly takeaway windows; the Born flagship has six stools at the bar.
Sources from: Ethiopia, Colombia, Honduras
How they serve: Espresso, Filter
Mercat de la Llibertat in Barcelona's Gracia is the cast-iron-roofed market that anchors the neighbourhood: 60 stalls, mostly local trade, less tourist-heavy than the Boqueria.
Tip: Closed Sunday. The Saturday vegetable run is the busiest; mid-morning Tuesday is the quietest.
Festa Major de Gracia takes over the streets in Barcelona's Gracia each August: hand-decorated streets compete, every corner becomes an outdoor bar and grill.
Tip: Every street has its own decoration theme and bar. The Carrer Verdi and Carrer Joan Blanques are the food anchors.