Report Abuse

Fabulous veggie food - Recommended!! 14/05/2013

5 Posted on 05 / 15 / 2013

Our most expensive meal (54 euro for a 3 course meal with no alcohol for two) so far on a holiday to Costa Brava and that includes a few nights of those eaten in expensive Sitges!

The venue looks like a small bar from the outside but don't let this put you off, at the back there's a nice seated area.

The meal was worth every euro we paid. There was a good selection of veggie and vegan foods on the menu and we found it a bit difficult to choose with so many options.

Before the food arrived we were give a small glass containing a smoked watermelon gaspacho which was gorgeous!! The food we picked was well presented, fresh, hot and extremely tasty. A nice open kitchen and very friendly staff (one of who gave the recipe of one of the starters to a lady on the next table).

The highlight was a fantastic tiramisu with raspberries and white chocolate pieces embedded in it.

With 20:20 hindsight we'd have chosen the tasting menu purely to sample the full range of the food. With this tasting menu you also get a bottle or water and either 2 glasses of wine or 4 beers all for 25 euro per person.

Pros: Excellent food, Great service, Interesting menu
Cons: Mineral water not chilled

Report Abuse

Sesamo is wonderful!

5 Posted on 05 / 01 / 2013

We loved Sesamo. We went there twice during our stay in Barcelona and had a great time both times. Admittedly it is best for vegetarians (one of us is vegan) but they were very accommodating and what we did have was delicious. The staff was friendly and attentive. And Sesamo is where we were turned onto the apparent fancy gin and tonic trend. Definitely recommend trying a gin and tonic here - not like the one's your grandparents drank!

Pros: friendly staff, gin and tonics, delicious food!

Report Abuse

Superb

5 Posted on 03 / 02 / 2013

I went to Sesamo this evening (March 2013) and had the Vegan taster menu. Excellent food, well cooked and friendly service. If I was in Barcelona for longer, I would definitely go back again. This was the best food I have eaten in Barcelona.
Updated from previous review on Saturday March 02, 2013

Pros: Excellent vegan food, Very tasteful restaurant, Friendly service
Cons: Looks like an average bar at the front

Report Abuse

Open Sesamo

5 Posted on 01 / 08 / 2013

Well well well, it's not often I dish out five Happy Cows on a review but this beautiful little place will be getting the full complement of cows tonight. Located in a gritty part of town but as soon as we walked in we knew this was going to be something special. The dining room seats around 20 without being on top of eachother. After deliberating over the price we decided that the €25 per person 7 course tapas tasting menu was going to provide excellent value rather than ordering starters, mains, drinks and desserts separately. We were told everything could be served as vegan so some of our dishes would be different to those diners who were having the same menu experience with vegetarian options. Over the course of 2 and a half wonderful hours we had the privilege of receiving 6 scintillating savoury courses as follows: pumpkin and miso soup, catalan potatoes with out of this world sauces, pad thai noodles, salad with tomato rubbed bread, courgettes stuffed with pumpkin risotto and a spicy curry at then end. For dessert we had a mixed fruit chocolate fondue. This was accompanied with water and wine all inclusive. The whole experience was just amazing and very well presented and explained. The whole operation is run by two guys who are just on top of everything in a calm and informal manner. We will be back as Sesamo that is for sure.

Pros: amazing food, great staff, beautiful interior
Cons: vegan desserts could be more imaginative

Report Abuse

Hello vegan chocolate fondue!

4 Posted on 07 / 21 / 2012

I went to Sesamo as one of a party of four. It is kind of hard to find as it's easy to walk past the small door without noticing it, but we got there eventually! The place opens out at the back into a nice intimate restaurant with great hip decor and lighting. There was only one waiter working when we were there but he was friendly, funny and pleasant. We ordered gin and tonics (a different one each) off the extensive menu and they were all TOTALLY LUSH and came in impressive glasses! To start I had the potatoes, which when they arrived looked literally like uncooked potatoes on a plate with some sauce next to them! A bit odd, but I thought they were delicious - my friend who got them too found them too plain, though. Main courses were all gobsmackingly delicious. Vegan options are a bit predictable, I was stuck with a Thali while my vegetarian friends got more inventive stuff, but I'm kinda used to that happening! The dessert situation was odd - like others in these reviews, we were all excited about the peanut butter cheesecake, only to be told there was none. Does it actually exist I wonder? My veggie friends had the Baileys brownie which was apparently very delicious but HUGE and very rich so hard to finish! I got the vegan chocolate fondue and may I say I was one happy lady! So delicious and served very elegantly (not eaten so elegantly though...!). One big con was the loo -- kind of outside and really rather stinky :Z I made use of it and then advised my companions to avoid at all costs! But perhaps they were just having plumbing problems that day? I don't know. We all thought the price was good. It was a special birthday dinner and it definitely felt like a special, classy place to go. Kind of sketchy neighbourhood but we were OK leaving quite late at night. Recommended!

Pros: Fondue fondue fondue, Amazing gin and tonic menu, do not miss!, Very nice waiter
Cons: Stinky loo!, No PB cheesecake, sad times, Better choice for veggies than vegans

Report Abuse

"Best meal in Barcelona"

5 Posted on 07 / 09 / 2012

On my stay in Barcelona I had sort out Sesamo after rave reviews upon this website and a snippet of information in my guidebook (Le Cool - Barcelona). Upon finding the restaurant (note, the entrance is small and just looks like a regular bar) we were greeted with an intimate dinning area past a bar, where we spent a little time waiting to be seated. This wasn't a bad thing as we listened to many other British tourists fill the seats with glea and we enjoyed a large gin and tonic in the meantime. Once seated we got to sample the delights of the food. All of the menu in vegetarian with a few items labelled as vegan. There was plenty of choice and I was greeted by a few surprises. Vegan goats cheese! Vegan chocolate fondue! Suffice to say we can back more than once. It was my favourite meal in Barcelona and my boyfriends too. While eating in Sesamo we heard people remark 'this is the best meal I have ever eaten' and the staff were wonderful and friendly, with the chef coming round for a chat after the meal.

Pros: Good Food, Reasonable, Friendly Staff
Cons: Waiting when busy

Report Abuse

great place for a nice dinner

5 Posted on 06 / 19 / 2012

Beautiful space. Had the tasting menu which was easily made vegan. The food was well presented. Lots of flavor. A very gourmet experience.

Pros: flavor , space, fresh

Report Abuse

Amazing

5 Posted on 06 / 04 / 2012

We had our last meal in Barcelona at Sesamo and wish we could have gone there more (and More and MORE). Not a hippie place, no tripped out painting on walls and loud rock. We had the tasting meal with two glasses of wine and were blown away by the taste of each dish and the wonderful chef, he came out to explain each dish. He is cute too - kind of like a young Frank Zappa. Although we are vegan there was some dairy in a couple of the dishes. Didn't mind because everything was so tastefully done and the dairy was only used as a condiment. Small place call for reservations.

Pros: Favorful, Great Presentations, Sophisticated Decor
Cons: Can't go back soon

Report Abuse

Open on Sunday!

4 Posted on 09 / 28 / 2011

Sesamo is one of the few places open on a Sunday.

We had a fabuouls meal there.

The starters were unusual and tasty. The mains were a good size and dessert was heavenly.

I would recommend giving it a try.

Report Abuse

All vegetarian tapas

4 Posted on 09 / 04 / 2011

We went to Sesamo for dinner and were in the mood for tapas (hey it's Spain, what do you expect). There was an option to take an 8-course degustation menu, with wine/beer/water and a dessert for 25€ per person. It seemed like the ideal option.

The items were partly from the tapas menu, as we expected, but also contained some items from the day specials. A pleasant surprise. In the end we even got a complementary ninth course.

The tapas were tasty, but nothing very special. Some olives, mushroom croquettes, bread with tomato, etc. Good, but not special. But of course there were also "specials"-items, which were worthy of their name. A smoked watermelon gaspacho, a pistachio pasta pesto, ... Much more orginal than the tapas. And of course also delicious.

We were a little disappointed with the dessert, as we did not get to choose which one we wanted. And it was NOT the peanut butter cheesecake that we had been drooling over all evening. Fortunalty the coconut cream truffels were also extremely satisfying, so we'll forgive them this small negative point ;-)

The staff was very friendly, but seemed to be somewhat more interested in me than my boyfriend. We'll just assume this was because I clearly spoke better Spanish than he did. The waiter did not speak English very well, but at tables where no one spoke Spanish, the chef would personally come and explain. Very cute. (The menu does contain a translation by the way!) They had a blackboard with the specials which they moved around from table to table. Also very cute. Especially when they swooshed it around to the English side on request.

Plus: the chef had a red chef's hat. He should get a bonus point for that :)

In conclusion, Sesamo's was a great place for an evening of tapas and would be a good place to return to and try the specials. And to have that peanut butter cheesecake after all!

Pros: degustation menu, original and yummy specials, Cute & friendly staff
Cons: Waiter only speaks Spanish

Report Abuse

Excellent food and vibe

5 Posted on 08 / 25 / 2011

The batman owner is incredibly helpful. Spoke fluent English and spoke eloquently about all the food. The food was excellent and well presented and the place was very busy so they have very high standards. Excellent vegan selection.

Pros: Friendly, Vegan choices, Amazing food

Report Abuse

very nice place, good service and atmosphere

4 Posted on 08 / 13 / 2011

the food was good and nice. all is vegeterian and there was a good choice of vegan dishes or dishes that can be made vegan. the workers were helpfull and kind. the wine was good and the prices were reasonable.
important to say if you don't like spicy food. some of the dishes are very spicy

Pros: nice atmosphere, good prices

Report Abuse

Good!

4 Posted on 07 / 09 / 2011

I went with my mother (meat eater) last Tuesday and we both enjoyed it. There was quite a lot of vegan choices on the menu which was both in Spanish and English with the chef & waiter speaking both as well (good as the place was full of both nationalities when we went).
I had a mushroom curry which was nice.
My mother is allergic to cheese and tomato which isn't usually a problem as she eats meat but in vegetarian restaurants it can be awkward.
They were accommodating and altered a mushroom and cheese tart to omit the cheese for her. That was served with salad. She ate it but said it wasn't worth the price as it was mediocre (although this could be because the cheese was missing!).

We had the Baileys brownie for dessert and that was amazing! We really loved that.

I probably wouldn't go again but this was a nice place that was well decorated with really friendly staff (the chef came out and explained what had gone into each dish).

Pros: Lots of choices for vegans, Friendly staff , Attentive chef
Cons: Expensive , Bit awkward to find

Report Abuse

Delicious and Friendly Lunch!

5 Posted on 07 / 06 / 2011

I searched out Sesamo after reading about it in Lonely Planet, and arrived at 2:30 on a Wednesday afternoon. There was no one else in the whole tiny place! My partner and I shared a bottle of rosado and had a delicious two course lunch. We started with a grilled peach, rocket, and pecorino salad and a ginger, melon and cucumber soup (cold). Then we got a mushroom/cheddar tart (with side salad) and a pear, parmesan oil, beet, and fresh yogurt over greens. The staff (just one guy) was so nice and helpful. He even gave us a free shot of a Spanish liqueur at the end! I would go back to this place in a heartbeat if I wasn't leaving Barcelona so soon!

Pros: Delicious Food, Vegan Options, Friendly Staff
Cons: No one else at restaurant, Little pricey, no formule option, Could have more interesting vegan option

Report Abuse

Delicious Vegetarian tapas

4 Posted on 07 / 04 / 2011

Delicious Vegetarian Tapas!!!! I highly recommend this restaurant. We had a great time.
Updated from previous review on Monday July 04, 2011

Report Abuse

Great Place

5 Posted on 06 / 15 / 2011

We dined there last weekend and had a wonderful experience. The staff was very friendly and the food was great (we had the tasting menu). Definitely try it when you are in town!

Report Abuse

Good food

3 Posted on 02 / 12 / 2011

The dining experience was friendly, informal and casual. The food was great. The chef salad was my favorite - lentils, several types of nuts, an olive paste, a green pesto-like paste, beets, thinly-sliced cucumbers, potatoes, and of course the greens. It was a meal in itself. I also had the stuffed yellow pepper. The pepper (actually 1/2 of a pepper) was tasty and served with a very acidic and salty side of mushrooms and squash. This side is not quite as intense as an Indian pickle, but serves much the same culinary purpose. The stuffed pepper, while tasty, is no bargain. It's about a half of a meal at the price of a full one.

Pros: interesting, tasty
Cons: Small portion on some dishes

Report Abuse

Great Vegetarian Find in BCN

4 Posted on 12 / 21 / 2010

After struggling to find satisfying vegetarian/vegan food on our first trip to BCN, we ate at Sesamo on Dec. 8th. I believe it is open for dinner only 8-12, and we had no trouble getting a table at 8:30 PM on a Wednesday. Sesamo is a small operation, with just ten or so tables, one waiter and one chef. It has an open kitchen, and the chef is an amiable fellow trained in Madrid who talked with us for a bit. My wife and I shared an excellent salad, and then she had risotto and I had Pad Thai. Everything was fresh and nicely presented. The restaurant is completely vegetarian, and my impresion was that the chef will make dishes vegan if possible -- for example, he omitted the egg from my Pad Thai.

Pros: Friendly Chef, Vegan Options, Appetizing dishes
Cons: A little hard to find

Report Abuse

Ok...

3 Posted on 08 / 24 / 2010

I enthusiastically went to Sesamo after reading the reviews on here and i have to say i was a little disappointed. The place certainly has a nice feel to it and we were treated well whilst there...but contrary to what I have read here i found that there were few vegan options. None of the main dishes were vegan and so i picked out some tapas. They were all perfectly edible but nothing to write home about.

Pros: Cosy, Helpful staff
Cons: Expensive, Few vegan options

Report Abuse

Must go - fully vegetarian

4 Posted on 08 / 10 / 2010

Sesamo is a non pretentious candlelit restaurant and bar. Its open from 8pm-12am and it well worth going. They speak English and take pride in their food. If we were in barcelona longer, we would have gone back. It is small and took us a walk up and down the street to find it but I'm thrilled we did. Would highly recommend. They have a full menu and tapas special.

Cons: healthy and excellent food, great staff

Report Abuse

Sesamo is a fully vegetarian restaurant

4 Posted on 06 / 17 / 2010

Me and my boybriend are on holidays in Barcelona with some friends and we all went for dinner to Sesamo last Sunday, there were 6 of us, and we had pretty much everything on the menu.
It was recommended by a work mate that had been a couple of times to bcn as the best veggy in town, we had to check it out, i goggle it and dicovered that it was only a veg-frendly rest.
We couldn't find one single dish with meat, since one of my boyfriend's cousin is a ham lover. We asked the waiter about it, and what a surprised, they don't have any kind of animal, he explain they used to have charcuteri in the front bar but since more than a month its a 100 per cent vegetarian.
We spoke with the owner, a very nice big argentinian fellow and told him he has to update sites like this one that still says they are not fully vegetarian.
Hope you try it, food is great, vegan risotto was amazing, very much worth going.

Pros: very good english spoken, incredible food, the owner is so funny
Cons: a bit warm

Report Abuse

This place is really worth its reputation!

4 Posted on 12 / 22 / 2009

We were a group of four and went here on a tuesday night around ten. There were a few other customers too but the service was fast and super friendly. I have a pretty strict diet being a vegan and having a coeliac disease, and the staff was very helpful and I even had a few options to choose from, which is really rare when eating in a restaurant. I was so happy with my dishes and so were the rest of our group too. The place had a great atmosphere and prices were reasonable.

Special thanks to the warm-hearted chef, who made the great dishes! I'd give 5 cows rating, if they would let me give more than 4 to "veg-friendly"-restaurant. No cons!

Pros: great food, sympathetic chef, friendly english speaking staff

Report Abuse

wonderful vegetarian food

4 Posted on 10 / 17 / 2009

We ate here twice while we were in Barcelona and enjoyed both meals very much. The tapas were delicious and beautifully presented. We ordered several to share and enjoyed them all (particularly the figs with cheese). Both times our wait staff spoke enough English to make ordering easy. We ate at nine o'clock and the place was not crowded.

Pros: excellent food, lovely space, friendly staff

Report Abuse

Almost on par with BioCenter, but really classy!

4 Posted on 08 / 14 / 2009

I noticed I neglected to write a much deserved review for Sesamo! I honestly don't remember them having any animal products on the menu, but its a chalkboard menu redone often. They have a really hip restaurant with great english speaking staff & chef who were delighted to accommodate our dietary limitations. Wonderful alcohol, chalkboard menu, front is Spainish back is English. A must do for a nice night out in Barcelona!

Pros: classy/hip, english menu/staff, accommodating

Report Abuse

The best meal I had in Spain

4 Posted on 03 / 01 / 2009

I tried several vegetarian restaurants in Spain, and while there were certainly restaurants with more options, this was the best quality meal I had for my entire twelve days.

I am surprised by the review that mentioned Sesamo having meat, since we didn't see any meat on the menu. We didn't examine the tapas menu closely, since we decided on the prix fixe lunch, so there could have been a meat tapas I didn't see. I would be surprised, though, since it is called Comida sin Bestias (food without beasts). Certainly, the menu of the day had no meat at all.

There are smoking and non-smoking sections at Sesamo, so don't be put off by the ashtrays in the front. You will quickly be escorted to the main, smoke-free dining room if you so choose. When we were there, the prix fixe lunch consisted of (good, basic) vegan salad, vegan minestrone, and a choice of vegan risotto or vegetarian (not vegan) pasta. However, when the chef (who took our order when the waiter realized it was better for us to speak to him in English than to the waiter in Catalan) noticed that I was more interested in the pasta than in the risotto, he immediately offered to make me a plate of vegan pasta. I was touched when he poked his head out of the kitchen a few minutes later to make sure I ate nuts. Yes, I do. The result was an absolutely excellent, perfectly prepared plate of pasta with garlic and almonds. It sounds very basic, and it was a very simple dish, but it was cooked just perfectly and the flavors were excellent. After the salad and minestrone, there was no need for a vegetable-laden sauce, and the pasta was just perfect.

You must try Sesamo while in Barcelona! It is in a neat neighborhood that you might otherwise miss, too, so make a special point of going. (It's not far from La Rambla, but on the opposite side from most of the tourist stuff. We really liked the atmosphere.)

Please note: Happy Cow only allows me to give this restaurant four stars instead of five because it is, to Happy Cow's knowledge, non-vegetarian. I hope this is correct, since I didn't notice any meat and I would hate for the restaurant to lose points unnecessarily.

Pros: a truly gourmet experience, very helpful staff, excellent pasta

Report Abuse

Sesamo no longer vegetarian

2 Posted on 12 / 06 / 2008

I have recently visited Sesamo and can confirm that it is no longer a a vegetarian restaurant and now serves meat and fish.
Some vegetarian dishes are still available.

Report Abuse

Closed in August

4 Posted on 08 / 31 / 2008

During my last visit to Barcelona, the restaurant was closed for vacation (as most Spaniards are on holiday in August). There was a note on the door that it would open again Sept. 1st.

Report Abuse

Please Stay Open, Sesamo!

5 Posted on 08 / 07 / 2008

Great find! A small bar with a 20-30 seat restaurant space at the back. Open kitchen. Very interesting menu - vegetable dishes, cheese dishes, rices, pastas. Surprisingly good desserts, which we didn't find a lot of in Spain. Staff isn't very strong in spoken English, though, so bring your dictionary.

Due to the small size of the space, I suggest a reservation. Also, maps of that area are bad -- to find it, go to the southeast corner of Mercat Sant Antoni, and look for the street going off at a diagonal; it's at the corner, 1 block off the Mercat.

Pros: Creative chef, excellent food, large portions
Cons: Small space, hard to find

Report Abuse

The BEST in Barcelona!!!

5 Posted on 12 / 22 / 2007

This is the best place in Barcelona. A bit expensive - but very worth while.
High class cooking, with a wide vegan menu. English speaking staff and a warm atmosphere.
Every single dish, from the appetizers through the soup, the main course and to the cake - all had that special touch that turns just "good food" into an entirely wonderful experience.
The food is organic and local grown.
A MUST!

Pros: Briliant food, welcoming staff, vegan friendly
Cons: NONE

Report Abuse

delicious!

4 Posted on 10 / 03 / 2007

this place is good for some vegan tapas and at a decent price, too!

Pros: local beer, good price, good taste
Cons: servers attitude

Report Abuse

lovely mains, skip the starters tho

4 Posted on 07 / 29 / 2007

the mains were lovely very filling etc. especially the buckwheat option and the polenta one. but the starters were disappointing overly fancy looking and not good value for money. id recommend this place nonetheless...

Pros: healthy, tasty mains
Cons: starters poor value, very hot place - toasty..

Report Abuse

Could have more vegan options

4 Posted on 04 / 14 / 2007

Sesamo Bar is a cosy place where you can potentially have a three course vegan meal. Unfortunately when we went, they had no vegan desserts. There were about three vegan options for mains and similar for starters, much more choice for vegetarians. We really enjoyed our starters but were a little dissappointed with our mains. The staff were friendly and the wine was good. They have a standard menu and different 'specials' daily. I would recommend giving it a go and would go back there if I go back to Barcelona

Pros: Helpful staff, Daily specials
Cons: Need more vegan options