Bar Marsella Absinthe, Carrer de Sant Pau.

Bar Marsella

El Raval


Bar Marsella has been in business since 1820, and has served the likes of Dalí, Picasso, Gaudí and Hemingway. The latter was known to slump here over an absenta (absinthe) amid the tiled floors and glinting chandeliers. The bar still specialises in absinthe (€5), a drink to be treated with respect.

Your absinthe glass comes with a lump of sugar, a fork and a little bottle of mineral water. Hold the sugar on the fork, over your glass, and drip the water onto the sugar so that it dissolves into the absinthe, which turns yellow. The result should give you a warm glow.