Barcelona Wine Bar — Restaurant in Washington

First time dinner on 17 May 2018. We arrived at approximately 5:30 on this Thursday, had called ahead with a reservation and a request for one of their booths which are located adjacent to the bar. I rarely give out a 5 🌟 rating and most I read do not describe their claim adequately! This rating should be in the range of (4.5-4.8); which is fair and doesn't "cheapen" the rating system. We were greeted in a friendly manner and shown to our booth; a crowd had already began to build in the bar. The server (Allison) introduced herself and answered a few questions and took our drink orders. I had two of the Lucy B's as the drink described the liquor as Rhum, as in the authentic type you see rarely on the menu. My dining partner had the sangria. I very much enjoyed the cocktail; light and refreshing which was not overpowering yet instilled the feeling of underlying potentcy. The sagria sip I tasted was just sweet enough with strong tones of spice and fruit. The main course included these tapas: mixed salad, pork belly, spinach and chickpea, spring chicken, albondigas, indulgence (dessert) and I ate a beet salad. I've included pictures of almost ecah of these except the spring chicken (eaten before I realized it was too late.). We very much enjoyed the food! All presentations were great and warm/hot enough. The quality of the food will stay with you hours after a meal, not only the taste in your mouth but in the digestion. Fresh food/taste and colors are very much centric to the offerings here. Clearly Barcelona cares about their product! The atmosphere is trendy with heavy influences of natural colors, wood, metal and ambiance lighting which all helps to lend comforting aesthetics you find yourselves in. The manager stopped at the table during dessert and we chatted for a few minutes; it was a nice personal touch. The restaurant was clean and neat from our vantage point and the srevice reflected this as well. Well done Allison! Bon...

We hosted our companies holiday party for around 60 people here recently and the whole experience left much to be desired. There is a lot to unpack here. The party was set up through Barcelona’s corporate team in New York and their “miscommunication” is the reason we were given why our party was not properly set up on time. We were promised three long tables but when we got there nothing was set up, leaving us to help the staff rearrange the whole dining room while our guests were already arriving. Half of the tables had tablecloth and half did not (for the entire party). The staff at the restaurant thought we had a “standing” party so they had one table set up with appetizers (the best part of this meal) but the layout was so poor and the space so tight for everyone to move around and mingle if that was the case. Because they thought it was a standing event, none of the tables were set up with dishes and silverware. Once seated, everyone scrambled for utensils. We had a bunch of small plates brought out family style but it seemed like they were short on certain items (shrimp, croquettes). The one thing they were not short on was the chicken which they brought out a ton of and unfortunately a lot of it went to waste because it looked gross. We had an open bar with sangria, it was set up in the front of the restaurant and because of the table set up it was so tight and awkward getting/waiting for drinks. Once seated, no one came around not just to offer more sangria but we never even got WATER. Finally, they set out horrifically cut up dessert on boards where the appetizers initially were. After the event was over more than half of our staff went next door to Cactus Cantina for a second meal. I typically love Barcelona and recommend it often. I even planned on hosting a happy hour here in the next few months but now I am...

I would rank Barcelona as …drum roll please… my (and my fiancé’s) overall top pick of best restaurant in DC! Yes, I said it and I stand by this pick for a few different reasons. I do not think you can beat the quality of their food, super reasonable prices, friendly and professional staff, SUPER fast service (food is usually out within a few minutes of ordering it) and overall vibe/ambience with another white table cloth restaurant. For how packed they consistently are, Barcelona is quite impressively managed. Their wait staff and employees are very intentional and attentive (e.g., as soon as a tapas plate is finished, we blink, and it is off our table lol). My fiancé and I come to Barcelona at least 2x per month (cathedral heights location) either eating in or ordering to go. I do wish they delivered :( !

With regards to their food - - I do not think I’ve been to any restaurant in DC (apart from a few Ethiopian spots) that highlight vegetables as well as Barcelona does. My ABSOLUTE favorites are their eggplant caponata (yummy yum yum), their fried cauliflower(my fiancés favorite), Brussels sprouts (our favorite), mushroom croquettes (yasss), whipped honey sheep cheese (wildly delicious), and of course the whole roasted branzino with broccolini (soooooo delish). You must, I mean absolutely must try their almond chocolate cake. I could not believe this was made with almond flour - - and literally melts in your mouth.

I highly, highly recommend you try their restaurant. We usually reserve when we remember but haven’t had a long wait time (maybe 5 minutes)...