Berbena
Well-run, well-cooked, still missing the last spark
Berbena does a lot right. The product is good, the cooking is clean, and the room runs smoothly—the kind of place where you can feel the team has control. Plates land properly executed, without obvious mistakes, and it’s easy to understand why people rate it.
But once we’re a few dishes in, something doesn’t quite lift. The food is good, yet it doesn’t have that final punch that turns “correct” into “craveable.” It reminds us of cooking from someone highly trained who, somehow, doesn’t love eating: everything in place, nothing truly delicious enough to haunt us the next day.
Two more details shape the experience. First, the dog situation: we don’t love dogs in restaurants, and here you basically have to accept the owner’s dog as part of the room. Second, the wine list feels oddly international for a modern Barcelona spot, with less local personality than we’d expect.
In the end, Berbena is solid and works—just not as exciting as it looks on paper.
Clean: 9/10
Comfort: 8/10
Food: 7/10
Wine: 7/10
Service: 7/10
The Experience: 7.5/10
Price: 80€/pax
