Steam City Cocktail Bar (Orient Express) — Restaurant in Barcelona

The Orient Express is an original idea, but its practical execution suffers from excessive complication if all you want is to enjoy a good cocktail after dinner with your partner or friends.

The bar is divided (literally, with a wide street in between) into two: a regular bar (La Estación) where you can stay as long as you like, sometimes after queuing for a long time at certain hours of the night, and the Orient Express experience (El Vagón), in a very small space with a capacity for 24 people, where you can only stay for 1 hour and whose access you have to pay for at La Estación (here they give you original tickets, marking the time you can enter). In El Vagón you may also have to wait to enter, but at least you know what time to go and you don't have to queue.

All this is original, but in practice, at night, it is complex and somewhat confusing to understand how it works and what options there are. The girl at the door of La Estación in charge of explaining the system and managing the waiting list is overwhelmed and has to explain the system over and over again to customers who already have some alcohol in their blood. Unfortunately, there is no way to reserve a seat in either establishment (with quite large letters of "no reservations accepted" on their website), so you can even end up with the bad experience of having to abandon your plan when they tell you that in El Vagón you still have to wait 45 minutes to enter.

Once inside El Vagón, it is indeed a rather interesting experience with a very original decoration and treatment. The cocktails are offered with a curious method (The Book of Forgotten Jobs) and are quite good (some are very successful combinations). All while we are sitting in a small armchair of the Orient Express and we see through a video how the train advances. There is also the possibility of ordering something to eat (ham or cheese) while enjoying our drink. That said, we have a maximum of 1 hour of enjoyment, after which we are invited to leave the premises, which barely gives us time to finish a cocktail and something to eat calmly; we didn't order a second drink because we were going to have to hurry.

In short... it's an interesting idea but its execution has some flaws. Perhaps a reservation system would allow you to ensure that you enjoy the experience without the uncertainty of whether you will have to go somewhere else for a drink. The 1-hour limit, surely imposed by the tiny size of the premises, creates a rush that significantly reduces the...

Title: An Unforgettable Journey on the Orient Express Bar

Review:

From the moment I stepped into the Orient Express Bar, I knew I was in for an extraordinary adventure. The bar's unique concept of integrating a passport system for ordering drinks is not just innovative but adds an exhilarating twist to the evening. As soon as you find your seat, you're presented with a passport, launching you into an immersive experience where you order drinks by stamping names you acquire through an engaging phone game provided by the establishment. It's a delightful mix of technology and tradition that keeps you entertained throughout.

The excitement doesn't stop there; the drinks are delivered via a model train, making stops at tables based on the stamped passports. Watching the train make its rounds is a spectacle in itself, reminiscent of the golden age of rail travel. For those looking for a bite to eat, the off-menu ham and cheese offering is a tasty surprise that complements the beverage experience perfectly.

The Orient Express Bar shines not just in its concept but in its execution. The atmosphere is ideal for groups, offering a fun and interactive experience that's hard to find elsewhere. The staff's enthusiasm is infectious, with bartenders showing off their skills with flair and precision, adding to the overall enjoyment of the visit.

It’s worth noting the practical layout of the venue for the more tactical-minded patrons. The bar has a single entrance and exit at the front, with a possible kitchen exit that could serve as an alternative in an emergency.

I arrived right at opening time and was glad I did—within 30 minutes, every seat was filled, a testament to the bar's popularity and the allure of its unique concept. Given that it operates on a walk-in basis with no reservations, I highly recommend getting there early to secure a spot and fully immerse yourself in the experience.

In conclusion, the Orient Express Bar is not just a bar; it's a journey—an unforgettable experience that blends fun, innovation, and safety seamlessly. The staff's dedication to ensuring a great time for every guest is evident, making it a must-visit for anyone looking for a night out that's out of the ordinary. Five stars are hardly enough to capture the magic of the Orient...

I’ve been here previously a couple of years ago and it was MUCH better (before they introduced the smart phone aspect)

Recently though upon returning the wait time to get in was pretty excessive, to the point people were giving up and honestly I wish we had. I suppose this isn’t the end of the world though as its not the bars fault that its popular. However, the wait time for a drink was absolutely ridiculous. The place wasn’t even full at the time either (that little add on part in the corner was empty along with several seats)

The drinks that came were okay, definitely not worth the absolutely criminal €18 a pop though, previously when you stamped the passport to your own preference and a custom drink arrived in a cool glass they at least had an argument for charging so much, but now they just have vaguely interesting props to sit a glass on (?) with predetermined cocktails recipes that you could probably find in any bar in the city. It feels like the bar has lost the thing that made the place special?

Also, be sure to check your bill as we randomly had a charge for an extra drink that the waitress disputed, even though our 4 empty glasses were still on the table as evidence that we couldn’t have had 5. Because I noticed after paying we needed to have €18 refunded but, even though we had split the bill in half (as two couples would), the waitress just refunded the full amount to one card and said it was up to us to send the other couples money back to them.. absolutely shocking service and incredibly unprofessional considering it wasn’t our mistake! Also, there’s a literal train with pre-designated passports to bring the correct drinks to the right place yet, they were able to add on an extra drink somehow? I don’t want to point fingers but its not impossible that they could be doing this multiple times a night without people knowing.

But to conclude - its a nice looking bar and I’m sure there are people who will like the newer concept but the drinks are only okay, not great and feel incredibly overpriced. Add in the staff we spoke to were confrontational and unprofessional and its no surprise that we...