Restaurant in Barcelona, Spain
One chef, serious cooking, strong value.
A solo-operated creative restaurant in Barcelona's Eixample, La Forquilla earns back-to-back Michelin Plates and a 4.8 Google rating at €€€ pricing — well below what comparable creative cooking costs elsewhere in the city. Best for pairs and food-focused visitors who want a considered, unhurried experience. Book ahead; the cover count is deliberately small.
If you have already visited La Forquilla once, the question on a return trip is not whether the food holds up — it is whether the singular format still works for you. Vidal Gravalosa runs the entire operation alone: preparation, cooking, and table service across a handful of covers. That constraint is also the point. The cooking is precise enough to earn back-to-back Michelin Plates in 2024 and 2025, and the Google rating sits at 4.8 from 430 reviews, which is unusually consistent for a room this small. At €€€ pricing in a city where the leading creative tables charge €€€€, La Forquilla is the kind of place that rewards repeat visitors who know what they are walking into.
The structure here is a tasting menu alongside a creatively driven à la carte built around seasonal ingredients. Gravalosa handles everything himself, which means pacing is deliberate and the sitting is not designed for diners who want to move quickly. Documented standout dishes include Maresme peas with baby squid and Iberian pork jowl, and crispy Segovian suckling pig with its own sauce, parsnip purée, and baby gem lettuce. Both dishes reflect a kitchen that knows how to balance local produce with technical preparation rather than applying technique for its own sake.
The solo-operator model creates an atmosphere that is quieter and more focused than a conventionally staffed restaurant at the same price tier. There is no front-of-house noise buffer, no sommelier running between tables, and no background hum of a busy pass. For diners who want to talk, that is an asset. For anyone expecting the energy of a full dining room, it is worth knowing in advance that this is a controlled, intimate experience — closer in feel to a private dining format than a neighbourhood restaurant.
La Forquilla is on Carrer d'Aragó in the Eixample, which means it is accessible year-round without weather considerations affecting the experience. Because Gravalosa manages every element solo, table availability is limited by design. Booking as far in advance as your schedule allows is advisable, particularly for weekend evenings, which fill faster given the small cover count. Weekday lunch slots , where available , are worth considering if you want a less pressured sitting and the chance to discuss dishes with more time between courses. Barcelona's seasonal calendar also makes spring and autumn visits worthwhile: Maresme peas, one of the documented signatures, are a spring ingredient, so visiting between March and June puts you in the right window for the dishes most associated with the kitchen's identity.
La Forquilla is well-suited to food-focused visitors who want creative cooking at a price point below Barcelona's top-tier tables. The solo-chef model is part of the experience, not a compromise , if that framing appeals to you, the combination of Michelin recognition, a 4.8 Google rating, and €€€ pricing makes this a direct booking decision. It is less suited to large groups (the handful of tables limits capacity), business diners who need reliable pacing, or anyone with complex dietary requirements that would require extensive communication with a one-person operation. Parties of two will get the most from the format.
For Barcelona visitors building an itinerary around Spain's broader creative dining scene, La Forquilla sits in productive company. The country's most decorated tables , El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Quique Dacosta in Dénia, Arzak in San Sebastián, Azurmendi in Larrabetzu, and Martin Berasategui in Lasarte-Oria , all require day trips or longer. La Forquilla offers a credentialled creative experience within the city without the logistical commitment. For international context, it occupies a similar positioning to focused one-chef operations like Jordnær in Gentofte or the kitchen-forward philosophy of Arpège in Paris , chef-led, ingredient-driven, and not interested in spectacle for its own sake.
The Eixample address puts La Forquilla within reach of most central accommodation. For a fuller picture of where it sits in the city's dining scene, see our full Barcelona restaurants guide. If you are planning around other venues, ABaC and Enigma represent the city's higher-budget creative options, while MAE Barcelona and Olivos are worth considering for different formats. Cocina Hermanos Torres is the most direct comparison at a higher price tier. For broader planning, our Barcelona hotels guide, bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide cover the rest of the city. If you are extending into wider Spanish dining, Aponiente in El Puerto de Santa María is worth the detour for a very different expression of the country's creative cooking.
La Forquilla is a solo-operated restaurant: Vidal Gravalosa cooks, preps, and serves. That means a slow, considered pace and a very small number of tables. Come expecting an intimate experience, not a conventional restaurant service. The tasting menu is the most coherent way to experience the kitchen on a first visit. Pricing is €€€, which is below the top tier of Barcelona's creative dining scene.
Yes, for the price tier. At €€€ with Michelin Plate recognition two years running and a 4.8 Google rating, the tasting menu delivers more credential per euro than most of Barcelona's €€€€ creative tables. The format works leading if you have time and want to experience the full range of Gravalosa's seasonal cooking rather than selecting individual dishes.
The documented standouts are the Maresme peas with baby squid and Iberian pork jowl (available in spring when peas are in season), and the crispy Segovian suckling pig with parsnip purée and baby gem lettuce. Both are listed in the Michelin record as representative dishes. If you are visiting outside spring, the à la carte rotates seasonally, so ask what is current when you book.
At €€€ with two consecutive Michelin Plates, it is among the better-value creative dining options in Barcelona. The main thing you are trading off is the full-team service experience you would get at a €€€€ restaurant. If that does not matter to you, the kitchen quality relative to price makes it a strong booking.
For a similar creative approach at a higher budget, Cocina Hermanos Torres and Enigma are the most direct comparisons. ABaC suits diners who want a hotel-dining experience with more conventional service. For a different format at a different price point, MAE Barcelona and Olivos are worth checking. See our full Barcelona restaurants guide for a broader view.
The restaurant is run entirely by one person, which means dietary accommodation has practical limits. Complex or multiple restrictions may be difficult to manage across a tasting menu format. Contact the restaurant directly before booking to confirm what can be accommodated. Phone and website details are not currently listed in our database , check Google or booking platforms for current contact information.
Yes, for the right kind of occasion. The intimate, solo-operated format suits a dinner for two where the meal itself is the event. It is not suited to large celebration groups. If you want a grander, more formal special occasion setting, ABaC or Cocina Hermanos Torres offer more conventional celebration infrastructure.
No dress code is listed, but at €€€ pricing with Michelin recognition, smart casual is appropriate. Barcelona's dining culture is generally less formal than Paris or London at equivalent price tiers, so you do not need to dress for a ceremony , but this is not a jeans-and-sneakers room either.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Forquilla | Creative | €€€ | La Forquilla is definitely a restaurant with a difference given that owner-chef Vidal Gravalosa takes care of everything, including a huge amount of preparation before every sitting, impressive work in the kitchen, as well as service at the handful of tables. His cooking is centred around a tasting menu plus a creatively inspired à la carte featuring an array of seasonal recipes. Standout dishes include the Maresme peas with baby squid and Iberian pork jowl, and the crispy Segovian suckling pig served with its own sauce, parsnip purée and baby gem lettuce.; Michelin Plate (2025); Michelin Plate (2024) | Easy | — |
| Cocina Hermanos Torres | Creative | €€€€ | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Disfrutar | Progressive, Creative | €€€€ | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Lasarte | Progressive Spanish, Creative | €€€€ | Michelin 3 Star | Unknown | — |
| Cinc Sentits | Modern Spanish, Creative | €€€€ | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
| Enoteca Paco Pérez | Modern Spanish, Modern Cuisine | €€€€ | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
Key differences to consider before you reserve.
For a similar creative approach with more structure and a higher budget, Cinc Sentits is the closest comparison at Michelin one-star level. Disfrutar and Cocina Hermanos Torres target diners willing to spend significantly more for multi-star credentials. Enoteca Paco Pérez suits those who want a more conventional fine dining format alongside the creative cooking. La Forquilla sits below all of these on price.
Yes, at this price tier. Two consecutive Michelin Plates signal consistent kitchen quality, and the solo-chef model means Gravalosa controls every element personally. For creative seasonal cooking in Barcelona at €€€, there are few tables delivering this level of credential per euro spent. If you want a faster, looser meal, the à la carte is the better call.
The documented standouts are the Maresme peas with baby squid and Iberian pork jowl (a spring seasonal dish) and the crispy Segovian suckling pig with its own sauce, parsnip purée, and baby gem lettuce. Both are named in Michelin's recognition of the restaurant. Availability of the pea dish depends on season, so confirm when booking if that is a priority.
At €€€ with two consecutive Michelin Plates, La Forquilla sits among the stronger-value creative dining options in Barcelona. The trade-off is pace and capacity: a solo-chef format means fewer tables and a slower rhythm. If you want creative cooking with verifiable recognition below the price ceiling of Lasarte or Disfrutar, La Forquilla makes the case.
Accommodation has practical limits here. One person is running the entire restaurant, so complex or multiple dietary restrictions put real pressure on the operation. check the venue's official channels before booking. Simple preferences are more manageable than multi-restriction combinations, and the earlier you flag requirements, the better the outcome.
Yes, for a dinner-for-two where the meal itself is the centrepiece. The intimate, solo-operated format makes it well-suited to a focused, unhurried evening. It is not a fit for groups, celebrations requiring flexibility on pace, or anyone who wants to move quickly. The Michelin Plate recognition gives it the credential a special occasion warrants without requiring a top-tier budget.
No dress code is listed, but the €€€ price point and Michelin Plate recognition place it in smart casual territory. Barcelona dining culture is generally relaxed compared to equivalent venues in Paris or London, so there is no expectation of formal attire. Avoid beachwear or overly casual clothing and you will be fine.
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