La Barra de l'Avenir opens on Passeig de Sant Joan
La Barra de l'Avenir, a small-plates bar from the people behind Avenir, is open at Passeig de Sant Joan 60 in Barcelona, with Roger Viñas in the kitchen.
La Barra de l'Avenir is a bar of small plates and little casseroles at Passeig de Sant Joan 60, run by the team behind Avenir, the Catalan restaurant with a Michelin Bib Gourmand. Roger Viñas runs the kitchen. Chesco Salrach explains the idea: dishes for sharing, not a tasting menu.
No bravas, no croquetas
Time Out Barcelona points out that the street is full of conventional tapas, and that this isn't. The pitch is popular recipes with a contemporary twist. Salrach says the concept is close to the early Avenir: three or four small dishes on the table and people picking away.
The sauces and casserole dishes are prepared at the Avenir restaurant and finished here, Ara says. Apart from the Russian salad, everything is made in-house.
What to order
Time Out's standout is a carpaccio of pig's head and ear: boiled, frozen, sliced very thin and dressed with a hazelnut, parsley and confit garlic picada and a touch of saffron. There's also a squid tartare, cured in salt and served on a sauce made from the squid's ink, which Ara calls a delight. It used to be a fixture at Avenir.
Others on the table: a fermented-cabbage salad with kimchi and chickpea mayonnaise, squid-stuffed canelones wrapped in wonton pasta, and a casserole of capipota with cuttlefish. Ara mentions a zucchini flower stuffed with cod brandade, lamb meatballs from Cal Tomàs in La Pobla de Segur and a home-made vermouth. Drinks come in a porró, and Salrach has worked out how to serve a gin and tonic in one.
Prices, and a small disagreement
Time Out puts an à la carte meal at about 30 to 35 euros. The lunch formula includes three tapas from the menu, a porró of wine and coffee. Time Out gives it as 19.95 euros, while Ara says 19.50 (without a currency).
Two parents, one school
Viñas trained at CETT and spent sixteen years at Jordi Herrera's Manairó, where he worked through the Michelin years. Time Out also lists Semproniana and l'Hostal Mas dels Arcs on his CV. The owners met at their children's school in Fort Pienc, and Ara reviewed the place on 14 October 2026, saying it opened only a few months earlier.
Location
Carrer de l'Avenir, 72, 08021 Barcelona, Spain
People
Roger Viñas, Chesco Salrach
Restaurants mentioned
Frequently asked questions
Where is La Barra de l'Avenir?
La Barra de l'Avenir is at Passeig de Sant Joan 60 in Barcelona. It's the new project from the people behind the Avenir restaurant, which holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand.
What kind of food does La Barra de l'Avenir serve?
Small plates and casseroles for sharing, with contemporary twists on popular recipes, rather than a tasting menu. Time Out says there are no patatas bravas or croquetas on the menu.
How much does lunch cost at La Barra de l'Avenir?
Time Out says the lunch formula is 19.95 euros and includes three tapas, a porró of wine and coffee. Ara gives 19.50 without a currency. Time Out puts an à la carte meal at about 30 to 35 euros.
Who runs La Barra de l'Avenir?
Roger Viñas runs the kitchen and Chesco Salrach explains the concept. They are also behind the Avenir restaurant, and they met at their children's school in Fort Pienc.