There are dining experiences that are relaxing, there are those that are deliciously tasty, and there are those that are fun…. Macchina pasta bar was all of those combined! Although here at OntheQT we love to wander and stumble upon somewhere new ourselves…. everywhere was new to us in Barcelona and so we decided to ask a local what their favourite restaurant accompanied with directions there! What an excellent decision that was!
Following our directions we arrived at a hip and trendy neighbourhood (always a good sign when looking for somewhere to eat!) . Lovers of authentic Italian food… we knew we would adore Macchina pasta dishes as soon as we walked in the front door! The aroma of thick juicy tomato sauce filled the air, the staff working there were as Italian as could be, and neither of us could stop admiring the chic décor!
As we approached the pasta bar… we watched in awe as the chef created a multitude of pasta dishes right in front of our eyes! He cracked an egg on the pan, and as it sizzled he added cream and cheese some freshly chopped bacon and sprinkled it with garlic to make a delicious homemade carbonara sauce… my absolute favourite… he then turned and grabbed another sizzling frying pan to make a classic tomatoe sauce.. it was fascinating to watch the speed at which he was working with such perfection!
Much to our delight we soon realised each customer customised their very own pasta dish… hence making it a very fun dining experience! Thankfully they passed us a menu in English as we began to make some of the most important choices of the day so far! First we chose our sauce from a long list of very appealing options, we then chose the type of pasta. There were several different types from fresh egg pasta such as tagliatelle, to dry pasta such as penne, to filled pastas such as ravioli and others such as gnocchi. Next decision was to decide which toppings we would like… there were so many options I thought I would never be able to make a decision! Who knew a pasta dish could be so elaborate!
After a long thinking process we both decided on similar dishes! Great minds think alike eh? We chose a pesto rosso sauce which was made with sun dried tomatoes, basil, pine nuts, parmesan, garlic + virgin olive oil…. my mouth is almost watering thinking about it! Stef chose to combine this with fresh tagliatelle, while I decided a spinach and ricotta ravioli would be a good match. It was genuinely one of the tastiest dishes I have ever had… so flavoursome and so so fresh the pasta almost melted in my mouth. I found myself in one of those predicaments whereby I wanted to eat quickly as it was so delicious… yet wanted to eat slower so that it would last that tiny bit longer!
The atmosphere was relaxed, the entire interior was made from timber, and it was exceptionally reasonable…. infact it was such good value and so tasty we may have gotten a second dinner that day! We decided between the two of us that we would ask the owner to set up a branch in Cork so that we could visit it everyday on our lunch break! It was THAT good!
Next time you’re in Barcelona, be sure to take a trip to this fabulous restaurant – the address is: Carrer Astúries, 17, 08012 Barcelona, Spain
Be sure to tell the staff there we say CIAO! 🙂 Enjoy x
