Barcelona: city of Gaudí, beaches and tapas. Charming but perhaps a little predictable. So Casa Bonay – a hotel, opened in Dreta de l’Eixample last March, that is also a restaurant, coffee shop, art gallery and social hub – is a breath of fresh air. A collaboration between 15 like-minded creative types in this neighbourhood just outside the old town, it will “fill some of the city’s gaps”, according to co-founder Inés Miro-Sans.
An archway leads from the street into Casa Bonay’s living room-esque lobby and bar, called the Libertine. An Instagrammer’s dream, it has original tiled floors, lighting by Santa & Cole (whose co-founder, Nina Masó, met Miro-Sans at an astrology class) and fabrics by Chinese/Catalan designers baTabasTa. It’s a place you could spend a whole day hanging out or working in, with a great menu and selection of Catalan natural wines.
The mix of terrace and courtyard bedrooms are peaceful and bright, with yoga mats, and beds covered with woven blankets made by local not-for-profit firm Teixidors. Marcos Bartolomé, the owner of Satan’s Coffee Corner in the city’s Barrio Gotico, who is credited with kickstarting a wave of high-quality barista-style coffee in the city, was invited to open a branch inside Casa Bonay after Miro-Sans spotted him selling from a window in a gift shop.
In the hotel’s restaurant, called Elephant Crocodile Monkey, chef Estanislao Carenza kicks against the tapas fixation with south-east Asian dishes made with local ingredients: acorn-fed pork and carabinero shrimp in Vietnamese spring rolls (€9.90) or dry-aged beef pho with fresh rice sticks (€11.50), for example.
“We’re not pioneers,” says Miro-Sans, “but we know how to enjoy ourselves,” says Miro-Sans, “and we want people to have the best.”
• Doubles from €72 room-only, casabonay.com
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