It’s almost impossible to pass through Barcelona without setting foot in the Barrio Gótico, a warren of narrow, winding streets and medieval buildings that is the historic center of the old city. It’s also the epicenter of Barcelona’s tourist trade, which means that amongst all the Zara window displays, souvenir shops and tapas joints of questionable quality, it can be difficult to catch a glimpse of what the neighborhood once was. One lucky day, however, as we made our way through this touristic mishmash, we stumbled upon La Pineda, a true gem of old barrio authenticity.

Dear Culinary Backstreets, Where can I go in Barcelona when I'm tired of sightseeing and I just want to sit down and relax with a cup of coffee? Visiting museums and landmarks can be a lot of fun when you're a tourist but sometimes you can learn more about the life of a city by sitting in a chair in a café than you can by reading any guidebook. In Barcelona, there's no shortage of cafés but like anywhere else, it can sometimes be a bit tricky to find one that has just the right ambiance.

Editor’s note: This feature from Barcelona is the third installment in our series this week devoted to the top street foods in each of the Culinary Backstreets cities. In Barcelona, a great deal of eating is done in the streets. Sidewalk cafés line the plazas and paseos, often to the point that it’s difficult to tell which tables belong to which establishment.

Located on busy Carrer de l’Escorial on the edge of Gràcia, Vermuteria Loú is a tiny, cozy venue that is exactly what we look for in a neighborhood place. The little terrace out front, with just four tables and a bar that opens to the street, encourages patrons to sit and take refreshment while observing the local street life. Inside, the scene might consist of individual drinkers slowly savoring a glass of cava at the bar while a group of men sit at the tables in the back, talking and eating one dish brought out from the kitchen after another.

As a child, Manel Palou spent hours playing in the kitchen of Andorra, his parents’ restaurant in Barcelona’s Barrio El Born. Later, as a teenager, he helped out behind the counter while his brother Miki cooked in the kitchen. Originally bought by his grandfather in 1952, the small restaurant had been around for as long as anyone could remember; even the old-timers in the neighborhood can’t remember where the name comes from or who the previous owners were. Then in 2004, Manel’s parents decided to sell Andorra and retire. Within six years, the restaurant went from being a neighborhood favorite to a mediocre Italian joint with few clients and little charm.

With its high walls lined top-to-bottom with a colorful array of bottles, the tiny Quimet & Quimet, a charming tapas bar in El Poble Sec, could easily be mistaken for just another wine shop. But step inside this culinary cabinet of wonders, one of the most famous and beautiful bodegas de tapas in Barcelona, and you will be magically whisked into another world of edible and drinkable delights.

In Barcelona, Valentine’s Day is no big deal. On the other hand, on April 23, you had better remember to buy a flower for your sweetheart. La Diada de Sant Jordi is one of the most important holidays in Catalonia, honoring its patron Saint George. The Catalan tradition – inspired by the legend of Saint George’s chivalrous slaying of a dragon to save a princess – is for men to buy roses for women and, in return, for women to buy books for men.

Dear Culinary Backstreets, We will be visiting Barcelona with our children. Do you have any good recommendations of places in the city to eat with kids?

Editor’s note: We regret to report that El Jabalí de Ronda has closed. Barcelona’s Avinguda del Paral·lel was, for the first half of the 20th century, a bustling boulevard of theaters, cabarets, circus shows and risqué nightlife. Nowadays, most of the grand buildings and the glamour of the thoroughfare have been erased by the rapid changes that have taken place in Barcelona, with just a few theaters and old bars from the glory days still open. Thankfully, one of the holdouts is the quirky El Jabalí de Ronda, a combination delicatessen, butcher shop and tapas bar, which still welcomes customers with its signature legs of acorn-fed Iberian ham and its cozy terrace and vases of freshly cut flowers.

Dear Culinary Backstreets, I hear that Spaniards take their dinner very late. Are there any good restaurants in Barcelona that start serving dinner before 9 p.m.? Indeed, Spaniards are notorious for eating late. Even when dining at home, the typical Spanish family doesn’t eat their dinner until around 9 or 10 p.m. – or sometimes even later! The main reason for this is that for most people in Spain, lunch – which usually consists of at least two courses and is eaten at some point between 1:30 and 4 p.m. – is the most substantial meal of the day. It makes sense, then, that nobody has much of an appetite again until late in the evening.

At first glance, Restaurant Roma doesn’t appear to be anything out of the ordinary. The nondescript brown tiles covering the floors, the dark wood bar, the vaguely Mediterranean-inspired wall décor and the rectangular paper Ikea lamps are similar to those at hundreds of other midrange restaurants throughout Barcelona. Situated on a quiet street in residential Sant Gervasi, Roma isn’t somewhere you’d be likely to come across accidentally, nor is it the kind of place you’d happen to hear about, unless you (or your aunt, or coworker or a friend of a friend) lived nearby. And that would be a shame because the food at Roma is good – ridiculously delicious, in fact.

Once a mostly beer-free country, Spain – traditionally a land of wine drinkers – has recently started to develop a taste for the sudsy beverage, and Catalonians seem to have been the main pioneers behind this growing trend. The number of local craft breweries is increasing and so is the number of beer fans, who are also learning how to brew the drink at home. Put it all together and you have a young and adventurous market that is ready to experiment with tastes and textures to create stellar new beers with a distinct Mediterranean flavor.

Dear Culinary Backstreets, I’m traveling to Barcelona and I love visiting food markets. I’ve heard a lot about La Boquería, but are there any other markets that might be worth visiting?

Editor's Note: Sadly, this spot is now closed. Mercè Vins is exactly between two worlds, located on the quiet, narrow and dark Carrer d’Amargós, close to the shopping area of Portal de l’Àngel, near the Cathedral and Plaça de Sant Jaume, and on the border between the Barrio Gótico and Born neighborhoods, where there are numerous offices and public institutions, filled with employees looking for a breakfast that goes beyond a sad, ersatz “croissant” or for a lunch that approximates the kind of meal they would get if they were able to sneak back home.

At Culinary Backstreets, we are all about seeking out backstreets eating at venues serving authentic cuisine and frequented mainly by locals – an approach that usually leads both to delicious food and to prices that won’t break the bank. But how about underground dining, where even locals themselves aren’t always in on the secret?