Negroni Cocktail Bar
Negroni Cocktail Bar is a narrow, low-lit room on Carrer de Joaquín Costa in upper El Raval, the part of the neighborhood that's tilted slowly toward cocktail culture over the last 15 years. The space is maybe 25 seats across a long bar and a handful of small tables pushed against an exposed brick wall. The house specialty is obvious from the name: six or seven variations on the Negroni, from the classic Campari-gin-vermouth build to a smoked mezcal version and a white Negroni with Suze. The rest of the menu rotates seasonally and leans toward Italian-Spanish crossovers, with Aperol, Cynar, and local vermouths appearing regularly. Bartenders stir drinks properly, use decent ice, and don't rush service. The crowd is mostly local: art students from the nearby MACBA neighborhood, workers from the area's agencies and studios, and regulars who come for conversation rather than spectacle. Music stays at a volume that allows talking. This is not a place for a wild night. It's a place for two or three well-made drinks before you move on to somewhere louder or head home. The prices run a euro or two above standard Raval bars, which is the cost of the craft.
What to Expect
A dim, narrow room with warm lighting from pendant bulbs, jazz or downtempo electronic at conversational volume, bartenders in aprons stirring drinks with intent. No bottle theatrics, no flair.
Calm, adult, focused on the drinks. Not a pre-club warmup.
Jazz, bossa nova, downtempo electronic, occasional Italian lounge
Casual to smart casual. Locals arrive in whatever they wore to work.
Couples, small groups, and solo travelers who want a well-made drink and a conversation before dinner or bed.
Cards and cash both standard
Price Range
Negroni 9 EUR, signature cocktails 10-12 EUR, beer 4 EUR, wine 4.50 EUR, no cover
Negroni ~$9.70, signature cocktails ~$10.80-$13, beer ~$4.30
Hours
19:00-02:30 Tue-Sun, closed Mon
Insider Tip
Order from the Negroni list first; the bartenders have their variations dialed in. Arrive before 21:30 on weekends or expect to stand. Ask about the seasonal off-menu builds.
Full Review
Negroni Cocktail Bar is easy to walk past on Carrer de Joaquín Costa; the frontage is modest and the sign barely lit. Inside, the room is longer than it looks, with a polished bar running most of one side and the brick wall opposite it warmed by small pendant lamps. The bartenders work unhurried, stirring drinks in mixing glasses with proper technique and straining over single large-format ice cubes for the negronis.
I ordered the house classic first: Campari, Bombay Sapphire, Carpano Antica. It arrived balanced, cold, and at the right dilution, with an orange twist expressed over the glass and dropped in. The white Negroni that followed swapped Campari for Suze and Carpano for Cocchi Americano, dry and herbal where the original was bitter. Both were 9 EUR, which sits about two euros above a standard Raval cocktail but below what you'd pay in El Born or Gothic for comparable quality.
The room stayed at conversational volume through my visit, even once the bar filled up around 22:30. The crowd was mostly Catalan and Spanish with a few visiting Italians and French, and everyone looked like they'd come specifically for the cocktails rather than stumbling in. The bartender was happy to explain variations and recommend off-menu builds when asked.
Compared to Two Schmucks around the corner, Negroni is calmer and less performative; compared to Paradiso in El Born, it's smaller, less flashy, and considerably cheaper. For a pre-dinner anchor or a late after-work drink, it's among the most reliable cocktail stops in upper Raval. Arrive before 21:30 on Friday or Saturday to get a stool at the bar.
The Neighborhood
The bar is on Carrer de Joaquín Costa, a street that runs through upper El Raval near the MACBA contemporary art museum. The area skews younger and more local than the tourist-heavy lower Raval, with art spaces, design studios, and independent bars.
Getting There
Metro Universitat L1 (red) or L2 (purple) is a five-minute walk. Metro Sant Antoni L2 is seven minutes. From Plaça de Catalunya, walk ten minutes southwest through Carrer dels Tallers.
Address
Carrer de Joaquín Costa 46, 08001 Barcelona
Where to stay in Barcelona
Compare hotels near the nightlife districts. Free cancellation on most properties.
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