XAMPANYERIA “CAN PAIXANO” IN BARCELONA

Feliz año nuevo everyone! That means happy new year!

I hope you had a lovely Christmas, I cannot complain myself, being in a gorgeous city like Barcelona is. I have been taking pictures like never before, my sister is suspicious that I am really a spy. Every picture I am taking is with this website in mind, for the people who has visited or is going or thinking or dreaming of visiting Barcelona at some point in their lives.

You might want to stay up to date with the pictures I post on Barcelonafrommyheart 's Instagram.

Yesterday, before the year ended, I did something that I have not done for many years, probably for around 25 years or so. One Summer I was pretty close to doing so, but it was closed. I am talking about going to a ”xampanyeria” a place that my dad used to take my brother and me when we were little. It was a very particular place, near the harbour, with ”bocadillos de chistorra” (sandwich of chistorra, and by sandwich I do not mean a boring sliced bread, I am talking about a tasty Spanish bread roll, and by chistorra I mean a special rather spicy thin sausage, typical from Spain).

I wanted to see if the place was still running, as I looked for them and read about them in the internet. When I asked my brothers what was the name of the place, they said “El Xampanyet”, but by looking at the pictures from the internet, it either seemed incorrect or refurbished. I was under the impression that the place we used to go to would hardly ever be refurbished. It turned out I was right!

The place dad used to take my brother and me was ”Can Paixano”. And still after around 25 years or so, it has the same look and feel. Perhaps a little bit smaller as there is a shop at the back with cava to take away and other stuff. But those amazing bocadillos were still there.

I went with my nephew, who is also the one who helps me make this website look so modern and pretty gorgeous too! He was never taken to this “xampanyeria”, so I had the pleasure to introduce him to this myself. We were hardly hungry as we ate earlier on, but it seemed like a must to have something there and feel the vibe.

2 cokes, I asked, the guy laughed at me, and he said it was only cava and water they served, for the last 45 years apparently! I was pretty sure I remembered to have Coke when I was younger, but who knows! Cava it is then. I am not a big fan of alcohol, as I have a sweet tooth, but being thirsty and the fact that the Cava was rather sweet, I downed the glass with an amazing easiness. We shared the bocadillo, but we will surely repeat the visit. 2 glasses of cava, a bocadillo of chistorra and a bottle of water, 4.75 euros. Bargain! We were having a rather early New Year celebration absolutely spontaneously.

I cannot believe it has taken me so many years to check if the place was still there. I even forgot about it for many years, but it is a place I am very fond of. If your parents or someone special took you to some place, sometime, somewhere, take the time to go back if you can. Life is too short…If you ask me, dad died 22 years ago…but my memories are still there…

“Can Paixano” has been running since 1969, beware as in “Can Paixano” there are no chairs, it is meant to be a quick stop.

Address:

“Can Paixano”

Carrer de la Reina Cristina, 7

08003 Barcelona - Spain

T. (00 34) 93 310 08 39

Opening times:

Monday to Saturday

Bar: 09:00 to 22:30 - Yes, you may drink Cava from 9am if you wish. This is how they roll.

Shop: 09:00 to 15:00 and 15:30 to 20:00

Closed on Sundays and Public holidays

You can find “Can Paixano” products in Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, Norway and Romania. If you want to distribute their products, you can contact them too. For more information visit Can Paixano´s website.

What is a xampanyeria?

A place where they serve Cava, and some small tapas and bocadillos. Once upon a time, the place used to be popular by sailors, now it´s just locals or tourists after a cheap tasty bite with an awesome vibe.

What is cava?

Cava is a quality sparkling wine. What makes it special is its second fermentation which takes place in the bottle, following the traditional method. It is served chilled, between 4° and 6°. Cava is produced in the Mediterranean region in Spain, under sunnier skies and with less rain, which yields grapes with lower acidity than those from Champagne (close to Paris, France) where the climate has more precipitation and it is colder.

What is bocadillo?

It translates as “little bite”. Tasty Spanish bread roll or baguette filled with cold or hot meat, or just about anything. Sausage, omelette, tuna, Spanish ham, chorizo, steak, pork loin, frankfurt, you name it.

What is chistorra?

A thin rather spicy Spanish sausage.

On an unrelated note, it is so hard to update the website without my computer, and most importantly, without barely any wifi. I upgraded my mobile tariff to allow unlimited roaming, that is phone calls and texts only. The operator said I should be able to find wifi in Barcelona. "I can tell you have not been in Spain, am I right?". I was right! Most places I go to are local, for instance, do not expect to find wifi in "Can Paixano". Or for the particular case of "Ciudad Condal" tapas bar, they are so popular they don´t need Wifi at all. It came to a point where most people has internet on their phones, therefore restaurants can get away without having to fit Wifi. Customers roll in and out regardless just because their food is so yummy. Just saying!