Ribera Manero

Frankly, half of Barcelona could learn from a kitchen this unbothered by trend. Ribera Manero sits on the seam of Les Corts and the Eixample, half restaurant, half fishmonger, and the point of it is good Spanish product left largely alone. The flaw, such as it is: nothing here will startle you. The cooking is deliberately plain, and anyone arriving in want of fireworks will leave underfed on drama. I've concluded that doesn't sink it. Restraint is the whole offer, and the kitchen runs straight through from mid-morning to eleven at night, which makes this one of the few serious lunches to be had at five o'clock. Three or four visits a year, the cured things to start, something from the counter to follow, and not much grumbling when the bill arrives.