Passadís del Pep
Seafood Tasting · El Born, Barcelona · €€€€
Awards: Repsol Solete
Open since 1979
The unmarked-door seafood restaurant down a Pla de Palau corridor where Joan Manubens has run a no-menu kitchen since 1979. The room cooks whatever the boats brought in that morning — Palamós prawns, percebes, lobster paella, the fish of the day.
The Delekta Review
Opened in 1979 by Joan Manubens; now run by his son, also Joan Manubens, with longtime maître Modesto Baena overseeing the dining room (recognised in 2025 for service excellence) Frequented across the decades by George Clooney, Robert De Niro, Margaret Thatcher, Michael Douglas, Richard Gere, and Francis Ford Coppola; among Catalans, Antoni Tàpies, Joan Manuel Serrat, Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, and Gerard Piqué; Coppola recommended the room to Nicolas Cage and Spike Lee
No printed menu and no posted prices — servers describe what the boats and the lonja delivered that morning, and the kitchen sends what it sends Seafood-led Mediterranean — pricing in the €€€€ tier (around €90 per person before drinks per Macarfi)
Gambas de Palamós a la plancha Percebes gallegos when the catch comes in Almejas de Carril al vino blanco Suquet de pescado — fish stew Paella de bogavante — the dish George Clooney famously ordered late at night during a Hotel Arts shoot
Behind an unmarked doorway at Pla de Palau 2, a narrow corridor opens onto a high-ceilinged room — stone-arch architecture, painted walls in warm colour, round white-clothed tables
Quoted in
“Tradition and authenticity at their purest.” — Macarfi
What the critics say
- El Passadís del Pep Barcelona restaurant review - Food Barcelona
- Passadis del Pep - Xtreme Foodies
- El Passadís del Pep: Simple Pleasures
- Passadís del Pep – Macarfi
- Passadís del Pep – TimeOut Barcelona (ES)
- El restaurante en pleno centro de Barcelona que conquistó a George Clooney y a Robert de Niro
- El restaurante escondido en el corazón de Barcelona que no tiene letrero ni carta: conquistó a Robert de Niro
- Modesto Baena, el maître de un restaurante mítico en Barcelona premiado por su excelente servicio: Dedicación incomparable”
- El restaurante de Barcelona que Coppola recomendó a Nicolas Cage y también enamoró a Spike Lee: "Le habló de nosotros"
- Enamoró a George Clooney y es uno de los restaurantes más emblemáticos de Barcelona: cocina mediterránea en una ubicación privilegiada
Visit
- Address
- Pla de Palau, 2, Ciutat Vella, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
- Phone
- +34 933 10 10 21
- Website
- passadis.com
- Reservations
- Book a table
Nearby restaurants in El Born
- Orvay — Mediterranean & Wine Bar, €€
- Fismuler — Market-fresh Mediterranean, €€€
- 7 Portes — Catalan Seafood & Rice, €€€
- Llamber — Asturian Modern, €€€
- Cal Pep — Classic Tapas Bar, €€€
More Tasting in Barcelona
- Ona — Hyper-local Tasting Experience, Poblenou, €€€€
- Caelis — Fine Dining Tasting Menu, Barri Gòtic, €€€€
- Enigma — Avant-garde Tasting, Sant Antoni, €€€€
- Slow & Low — Creative Tasting Menu, Sant Antoni, €€€€
- Cruix — Creative Mediterranean Tasting, Eixample, €€€