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Pago Yo
by Allison Kent & Jake Nash
Sometimes you don’t realize how hungry you are
until food appears right in front of you. If alcohol
is being consumed, this sensation is automatically
heightened. Hence, the phenomenon of the tapa. If
said nourishment comes with no price tag, all the
better. The following places understand this philosophy,
and generously offer a free tapa (of, admittedly,
varying quality) with the purchase of a caña.
And, while some of us are inclined to take anything
that’s free (T-shirt 3 sizes too big? Yes, please.
Sample of anti-balding cream? Don’t mind if I do.),
many of these morsels do exert a respectable effort
in the taste-bud-pleasing department. So gather a
few Euros, a couple of amigos, and your anti-balding
cream, and experience the unique satisfaction
of sinking your teeth into something that didn’t cost
a dime.
Atatapa
C/ Comte Urgell, 77
 At most places, the official policy regarding free tapa selection
seems to be “We’ll bring you whatever happens to be lying
around.” But not at Atatapa! Here, you are proudly shown the
array of available tapas (which, notes the bartender, increases
substantially as the evening progresses) and allowed
to choose from a tantalizing selection of…whatever happens
to be lying around. If you prefer your tapas fresh from la
cocina, however, the patatas bravas are well worth the 3€
that they’ll set you back. Still ravenous after our two-bite selfselected
tapas, we caved to their marketing, and the bravas
made their debut at the table so beautifully arranged that
it was difficult to bring ourselves to destroy the display.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, we got over it.
Els Tres
C/ Muntaner, 55
 If presentation (and by that we mean the flat modern style
that passes for classy in Barcelona) is the name of the game,
this place has it locked - right down to the toilet brush holder.
The free tapas arrived looking rather pleased with themselves,
too: cute sliced tomatoes elegantly covered in melted cheese.
Those bitches were tasty, though. This place definitely pushes
towards the upscale side of the spectrum, so don’t expect to
stroll in here tracking in sand from la playa. Still, prices are
reasonable, and a few drinks won’t leave you without money
for a proper dinner which, by the way, can be found on the
spot, if you don’t want to break away from the hip artwork on
the walls, the chic numberless clocks, and the sea of red and
black décor.
Ambiente del sur
C/ Viladomat, 85
 Sometimes we find ourselves sharing an experience with a
complete stranger, and it’s often these moments that help
restore some basic faith in the human race. If you’re in need
of a similar emotional pick-me-up and/or a delicious (and
free!) Andalucian tapa, make your way down Viladomat and
look for the unassuming Ambiente del Sur. Within seconds
of entering, we became the proud owners of two Estrella
Damms and a generous plate of sautéed potatoes, leaving
the entire population of the bar (us and the bartender) free
to become collectively engrossed in a documentary on sea
turtles that was playing on the clunky, pre-flatscreen-era TV.
Every now and then, we would look up from our greasy
goodness, and he from his slow, deliberate cleaning, to share
a smile as the baby turtles braved the dangers of the ocean
and arrived back safely to their native beach.
Café de los Angelitos
C/ Almirall Cervera, 26
 They don’t have Estrella Damm de barril? We’re probably too
close to the beach…it’s Heineken instead. But the beer selection
wasn’t what struck us most about this seaside cove: it
was the just-right feeling of plopping down upon a deep
mahogany bench with plushy red cushions after a day at the
playa. Visual delights accompany corporeal comfort; there’s
a mélange of photographs, paintings, and sculptures. Waiting
for our tapa (an underwhelming scoop of (maybe?) pasta
salad mounted on an equally underwhelming slice of stale
bread), our eyes drifted towards the collection of liquor bottles:
Jack Daniels, Grey Goose, Jäger, scary shrunken head,
Bacardi… wait, what? Though apparently the booze shelves
also double as a tribal relic exhibition, the late-day sunshine
pouring in and the luxurious yet unpretentious feel made us
more than willing to overlook the lackluster food offering.
DeDues Café
C/ Torrent de l’Olla, 89
 First and foremost: DeDues boasts the cheapest cañas of the
bunch. Damms are only 1 Euro before 20:00h. The waitress
told us this, by the way, with a knowing, juicy-secret kind of
a wink that immediately elevated a standard promotional
strategy to an in-club exclusive offer. Cheap beer is enough
of a draw, but the free tortilla de patatas put us over the top,
writhing in culinary delight. The setup here has an elevated,
spacious area in the back for lounging and sipping, and handpainted
orange swirls adorn the walls, a charismatic motif
that is consistent throughout. Circular mirrors and metallic
tables join the mix, too. The service is friendly and personable
while staying true to the place’s hip vibe, as if the employees
and the décor all came from the same trendy batch
of primordial soup.
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