Picnic - El Born, Barcelona

Barcelona in reality only has one park of a respectable size called Parc de la Ciutadella, situated in El Born. It's a rather odd park with little signs telling you not to walk on the grass. However, everyone seems to be ignoring this fact and since no one is trying to enforce the rule just get on the grass with everyone else. When here you are right next to the labyrinthine El Born district full of little surprises. One such surprise came to our attention only recently and it's in fact very easy to find since it is very close to the Arc de Triomf. It is a small place called Picnic and if you are yearning for a brunch this is the place to go. The Picnic version of brunch is awesome. It has a bunch of classics on the menu such as pancakes with syrup and Eggs Benedict but in between there are a some very Catalan brunch concepts that will be new to many. For example you really should try the sobrasada toast with honey (a so called bikini). The set up of the place is very similar to a bar so you can keep a close eye on everything that goes on in the very, very busy kitchen. New guests are constantly waiting in line by the door in the hope that they might get a table so remember to book if you don't feel like lingering around for 30 min.

Most of the seats in the restaurant are bar stools but there are also quite a few regular tables. Picnic is easily missed when walking down the street so judging by the number of tourist making an appearance the place has clearly been mentioned in various guidebooks, websites etc. However, for a change it is actually quite nice with all the tourists. The place has its own unique atmosphere because of the blend of Catalans, Germans, Americans, Scandinavians, French etc. As a added bonus the staff we spoke to were all very good at English which helps things along. The place is relatively inexpensive. We went nuts and ordered too much of everything and we payed 45 euros. Considering that that was our breakfast and lunch it is quite affordable. So next time you are in the neighborhood drop into Picnic for a brunch and afterwards head to Parc de la Ciutadella for a nap under one of the palm trees. DC!