There are bars that are part of Barcelona’s DNA, and Bar La Plata (Mercè, 28) is one of them. This small temple of the Gòtic turns 80 years old and will celebrate with a big party on Saturday November 1, from 13:30 to 15:00, with open bar of food and drink for everyone who comes to toast.
Founded in 1945 by Josep Marjanet and Joaquima Planas, La Plata has survived eight decades without transfers or modernizations. It is still in the hands of the same family, today the third generation, with Anna Marjanet and her son Roger Pascual at the helm, faithful to its four traditional tapas: peixet fregit, tomato, onion and olive salad, and the barquetas de butifarra or anchovies.
The place is a rarity in the tourist trench of the Gòtic: it maintains popular prices (a portion of fried fish costs 7 €) and a mixed clientele of locals, curious and chefs from half the world. Pepe Gómez, its legendary waiter, has been behind the bar since 1972, and is now as much a part of the landscape as the bottles of vermouth that decorate the walls.
The secret is to maintain the essence and prices that people can afford,” says La Plata. And that popular, local and generous essence is just what they will celebrate on November 1: eighty years of history served in wine glasses, beer glasses and brown paper.