Bodega Joan79 anniversaries in Barcelona's history

Balbina Garrido and Joan Basells bought premises in a building that included a wine cellar, a grocery store, a house and an inner courtyard in 1942. They decided to baptize the bodega as "La única" and, 79 years later, two clubs, a chess team, a soccer team and 125 FCB titles, we know it as Bodega Joan, the same one that still stands at 164 Roselló Street.

Join us on our journey through the history of Barcelona!

40's

The beginnings of "La única

Traveling back in time to Catalonia in 1942, we must remember that, in addition to the world being in the midst of a world war, Spain was facing its own civil conflict. These were times of great uncertainty and control.

In this context of Barcelona's history, Balbina -from Puertollano, Castilla La Mancha- and Joan -Catalan-, a young married couple, founded the bodega "La única" to sell liquors, especially wines, ice, dry food, potatoes and sweet potatoes. At that time, people had to buy food with ration cards and the ice was destined for home refrigerators: at first it was cut with a punch, then enough money was raised to invest in a machine.

1950s

The renovated Bodega Juan

During the renovation season at the bodega, Joan and Balbina decided to convert the patio and the apartment in the building they had bought into part of the bodega, added some tables and started serving drinks in the premises. The locals liked the tables and the place went from the hustle and bustle of shopping to the bustle of card games and dominoes.

After enlarging the premises, thanks to its presence in the center of Barcelona and the incursion into Spanish tavern services, the city's workers came to eat with their own lunch boxes, which inspired Balbina to start serving side dishes or tapas, such as omelettes, fried eggs and pork loin.

1960s

Home cooking, chess and soccer

While the rest of the world was deeply involved in the space race, swing steps , Oscar de la Renta dresses and the beginnings of rock and roll, the 1960s were very busy for the winery.

After the success of the meals as a side dish, a further step was taken and the restaurant began to produce its own stews. In addition, the fever for dominoes and chess was such that Joan decided to fix up the basement for playing and the "Doble Blanca" club was founded, which even participated in a series of chess championships in bars in the area!

But the passion for soccer was already being felt: in 63' the first soccer team of the winery was founded, with the support of Montesinos, a Barça player and personal friend of one of its members. As the peñas could not be named after players, it was finally named "Peña Joan Gamper."

In the 1960s, home cooking became more important in the restaurant: tuna sandwiches, Cantabrian anchovies, stews, casseroles, salads and more elaborate dishes such as steak, pork loin or fricassee began to be consumed. In the early hours, the food was accompanied with muscatel -a dry, aromatic wine made from very ripe grapes-, hot cognac or aniseed; while at lunchtime, the porrones of beer and wine were the most popular, with a carajillo to finish the meal.

1970s

Management and menu changes

After four decades of continuous service, Balbina and Joan decided to retire from the management of the restaurant to make way for their daughter-in-law, Genoveva Herrero, and José María Vazquez -who had been working at the restaurant since he was 13 years old and was practically another member of the family-. They also began to include more traditional dishes on the menu, taking advantage of the vast supply of seafood offered by the Mediterranean, such as tripe and Galician-style octopus.

1980s

Re-focus on food

After 3 successful decades as a bodega and Spanish tavern, it was time for a renovation: Bodega Joan was reformed to become a properly established restaurant, the focus would now be on the food, to offer the best experience of traditional Spanish and Catalan food in the historic center of Barcelona, and its excellent wines of origin or "cañas de tirador" would be its companion.

1990s

Reopening and officialization of the Joan Gamper Barcelona supporters club

That group of colleagues who formed the first soccer team associated with the winery and considered themselves as a Barcelonista supporters club, met after 2 decades to officialize their registration with the World Confederation of Barcelona Football Club supporters clubs, in 1999. Bodega Joan has since been consecrated as an official meeting place to celebrate events and victories in unison of "Visca barça!"

XXI Century

79 years later... We continue!

Bodega Joan has established itself over the decades as an emblem of Barcelona without fear of reinventing itself to respond to the demands of each historical moment, but remaining a close, friendly and traditional place, part of the neighborhood.

Today, in the knowledge society, it is still a place to share with colleagues while watching a soccer match or enjoying abundant and delicious dishes such as snails a la llauna, Galician octopus, a grilled veal cutlet or a variety of paellas.

Come celebrate our city's history with the 79th anniversary of Bodega Joan on June 30. Bring your colleagues. We want you to be part of our journey!

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