Guy Fieri Takes Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives to Spain

Guy and his Triple D crew head to Barcelona to get a taste of authentic Spanish food. Go behind the scenes of the shoot and discover the eateries they visited.

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Photo By: Citizen Pictures

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Belly Up to Barcelona

Guy's in Barcelona, equipped with a sweet vintage ride and on a mission to check out restaurants offering unique foods you won't find anywhere else.

Find the Restaurant: El Figaro

Can Conesa

At family-run Can Conesa, which has been open since 1951, husband and wife Josep and Marta Conesa, the second generation, run the sandwich shop. Marta, the self-professed sauce maker, demonstrates how to make the carn d'olla sauce for one of the sandwiches.

Find the Restaurant: Can Conesa

Bocadillo Carn d'Olla — Can Conesa

This sausage sandwich features Marta's caramelized onion sauce. Josep grills each sausage and bread on a super-hot panini press before assembling. "I've never seen one that hot," Guy says of the machine. Guy also tries the calcotes sausage with romesco sauce sandwich.

Find the Restaurant: Can Conesa

Pulperia A Gudina

Although Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia, you can find Galician cuisine at Pulperia A Gudina, run by owners Jose Luis Sierra and Andres Florez. Jose shows Guy and footballer Marcel Reese how he prepares octopus, after which the eatery is named.

Find the Restaurant: Pulperia A Gudiña

Galician-Style Octopus — Pulperia A Gudina

"It's like the most-tender lobster you'll ever try," says Guy of the octopus, which is boiled before being sliced with scissors and dressed in salt, olive oil, and sweet and hot paprika. The Galician soup made with jamon iberico is also a must-try dish. "In essence it's Spanish soul food," says Marcel.

Find the Restaurant: Nazdarovie

Cal Boter

Started by husband and wife Toni and Encarna Navarro, Cal Boter specializes in Catalonian cuisine and the family recipes of Encarna. Toni has since passed away, but now the couple's son helps run the kitchen along with Chef Guido Donatelli.

Find the Restaurant: Cal Boter

Snails in Hot Sauce — Cal Boter

Guy tries the special-occasion snail dish, which is boiled twice, then cooked with a sauce that includes ham, chorizo and almonds for a thickener. "The broth itself is dynamite," says Guy. Even-more-adventurous eaters should try the rabbit dish served with gravy made of its own liver.

El Pacifico

In the area of La Barceloneta, once a fishermen's port that was redeveloped for the Olympics, Guy visits El Pacifico, a restaurant that specializes in tapas and paella, unlike the usual beach fare. Chef Ramiro Rodrigues prepares their popular surf and turf paella, which he begins with cuttlefish.

Find the Restaurant: El Pacifico

Surf and Turf Paella — El Pacifico

The dish also includes rabbit, chicken, prawns, mussels and clams. Guy says he can't get over "the depth of the flavor of the sauce." Ramiro also prepares the squid ink paella, which is served with allioli, a garlic sauce. "It's way different," Guy says when he tries the allioli stirred into the paella.

Can Vilaro

For traditional Catalan dishes, Guy heads to Can Vilaro, run by Sisco Vilaro and his three daughters, Anna Maria being the chef. Guy calls her beef's head stew "a little freaky at first but well worth trying."

Find the Restaurant: Can Vilaro

Meatballs in Mushroom Sauce — Can Vilaro

A customer favorite is the pork-and-beef meatballs served with mushrooms, peas and a sauce thickened with garlic, almonds and hazelnuts. "I want all these meatballs just on one big hoagie roll," says Guy.

Find the Restaurant: Al Carbon

Wine Aplenty

Sisco offers Guy a drink out of a paron, a traditional Spanish wine pitcher. "I didn't know there was going to be booze in that," Guy says, joking with Sisco.

Bar Morryssom

At nondescript Bar Morryssom, you'll find traditional Spanish tapas and Mediterranean dishes. Owner Pedro Salsor and his wife, Alba, met while working at the restaurant, which they eventually bought in the 1970s. Their sons and daughter-in-law also work in the restaurant.

Find the Restaurant: Bar Morryssom

Quail a La Vinagreta — Bar Morryssom

"It makes you want to dance," Guy says of Pedro's quails cooked in vinegar, a recipe that's at least 100 years old. Guy also tries the prawns with chickpeas. The menu includes more than 70 items, all cooked in a tiny kitchen.

Find the Restaurant: La Catedral