One of our stand out dinners in Barcelona, Spain was at Martinez Restaurant.  I chose this place because of the high recommendations from several sources regarding their paella.  It also would be the only time we could get to the high hill on the southern end of town, Montjuic.  We took a cab here as it was much too far to walk, and we were dropped off right next to the restaurant.  We were a bit early, so we took advantage of the extra time to admire the views of Barcelona and the sea below.  It really is a great view from up there!  

When it was time for our reservation, we were met by a kind hostess who brought us to our table, which, unfortunately was not overlooking the city, but had nice views of the sea in the opposite direction.  We were actually a bit cold there, because it was quite breezy up on the terrace.  This is not a true complaint, though, as feeling cool was definitely a change from the norm – sweating our faces off!  

The ambiance is pretty easy-going.  There were a bunch of larger groups that seemed like business dinners as well as some tourists and locals as well.  The place was airy, due to the light wood accents everywhere, and the fact that the whole place was open to the views below.  It was a cool atmosphere, not too stuffy, but not too casual either.

We were brought menus and were greeted by our server, who stuck with us the entire meal!  This was a pretty big deal since we were ditched by servers at two other dinners in Spain.  So, right off the bat, the service was far above and beyond most of the other places we went to in Spain, so this was a nice treat.  He was attentive, poured the wine, and made sure to ask the kids what they wanted to drink.  The dinner was also paced pretty well, and considering we ordered the prix fixe dinner, this was important.  

The food there was also top-notch.  We went for the “Formula Martinez” which was a prix fixe dinner for the whole table.  We started with delicious bread service, a few salads as well as ham croquettes.  This was followed by a massive pot of mussels in a vermouth, orange and rosemary sauce.  I have got to find a recipe for orange mussels, because that sweetness and tang really went well with the seafood.  There must have been about 5 pounds of mussels and we were practically full after this course! 

We opted for the more traditional paella with rabbit and chicken.  It was a massive dish of paella, almost comical, but it was incredibly delicious and we ate the whole thing.  It had some of the socarrat (the crust on the bottom of the paella) that is so absolutely necessary for good flavor. The spices used were excellent.  I wish there was a little more protein in it, as it really was mostly rice, but it was honestly very very good.  Plus, we already had all of those mussels, so more rabbit and chicken was probably not super necessary.  

Finally, we all got crema catalan for dessert, which was included in the price of the meal.  It was fresh and delicious and even though none of us were hungry anymore, we managed to eat most of it.  

I should note that a bottle of “recommended wine” is also included in the meal, and we were served a delicious and fresh Verdejo.  It was so good, that we ordered a second bottle, and they actually brought it!  

The price of the prix fixe was 59 euro per person, which, considering all of the food that you get, including an excellent paella, a ton of mussels as well as tapas and dessert, as well as the bottle of wine, I think was a really great value.  You are paying for the view as well, and considering the service up here is some of the best you will get in Barcelona, the price tag is truly worth it.  

We had a really great experience here at Martinez, and if you are looking for a little something different besides tapas bars in Barcelona, I would highly recommend hopping in a cab up Montjuic and grabbing some excellent paella with a view.