There are things that are not discussed. The sky is blue, the sea water is salty and the sandwich is perhaps the best gastronomic invention of this country. That is why it is normal that there is a championship dedicated to it and to find its best version. That is the Spanish Championship of Bocatas, which has started this April with a second edition where more than 30 locals from all over the country participate.
In Barcelona there are four of them that stand out with proposals that are a reflection of the complex identity of the city: from Italian schiacciatas with ventresca, reinvented omelettes and banh mis that transport you to the heart of Saigon.
Remember, by the way, that this championship was already won by Barcelona last year, when a sandwich from Vilafranca del Penedés emerged as the best sandwich in the country.
How does the championship work?
The dynamics is simple and very tasty. You can vote for your favorite through elmejorbocata.com, using a code that you get when you try the sandwich in the store. The 60% of the weight of the vote is popular, the other 40% will be decided by a jury of experts in a final blind tasting on May 12, at the MOM Culinary Institute in Madrid.
Among the voters, in addition, an iPhone 16 will be raffled, in case you needed an excuse to go on a bocatera route through Barcelona.
Barcelona’s sandwiches that seek the throne
La Tonnarella – Schiacciata Italiana (Kiena Kiena, Barcelona)
A crispy Tuscan schiacciata stuffed with tuna belly, sundried tomato pesto, cherry tomatoes, red onion and arugula.
📍 Kiena Kiena – C/ Pujades, 194 (Poblenou)
Tortizo – Tortilla sandwich with chorizo (Rebo Restaurant, Sant Boi de Llobregat).
A tortilla sandwich but elevated to the highest level: glass bread, Iberian chorizo omelette with caramelized onion, mayonnaise made with the oil from the chorizo and a creamy idiazábal cheese to top it off.
📍 Rebo Restaurant – C/ Pablo Picasso, 73, Local 1 (Sant Boi de Llobregat)
Roast chicken sandwich with mustard and fermented garlic honey (Gabatxo, Barcelona).
A sandwich with nostalgia: roast chicken with old mustard sauce, fermented garlic honey, celery, onion… A recipe that smells of Sunday under the pine tree and family memories. The madeleine in crusty bread version.
📍 Gabatxo – Carrer d’Enric Granados, 115, L’Eixample, 08008 Barcelona
Banh Mi Xa Xiu – Vietnamese Snack ( Banh Mi Club, Barcelona)
Marinated pork, pickles, homemade pate, kewpie mayonnaise, cilantro and more… A snack that tastes like Asia and that gathers the colonial heritage of Vietnam and France. Crunchy, fresh, umami and with a spicy option. A bomb.
📍 Banh Mi Club – C/ Llull 55 (Barcelona)