47 Best Shopping in Eixample, Barcelona

While it's perfectly possible to dash in and fill your bags with boxes of Cacao Sampaka's exquisite cocoa creations to take home with you (or nibble on the way back to your hotel), consider setting aside 30 minutes to sit down in the pleasant in-store café and order an "Azteca" hot chocolate drink. Quite possibly the best hot chocolate in Spain, a sip of this thick, rich, heaven-in-a-cup is the highlight of any Barcelona shopping spree.

A sleek and breezy Balearic Islands look for women is what this designer from Mallorca brings to the fashion scene of urban Barcelona in a whitewashed shop reminiscent of an art gallery. Her dresses transmit a casual, minimalistic elegance and have graced many a red carpet all over Spain.

Though one of Europe's oldest flea markets, Els Encants has a new home—a stunning, glittering metal canopy that protects the rag-and-bone merchants (and their keen customers) from the elements. Stalls, and a handful of stand-up bars, have become a bit more upscale, too, although you'll still find plenty of oddities to barter over in the central plaza. It's open Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday—the latter is the busiest day so if you want a more relaxed rummage, go during the week. 

This Valencia company is famed worldwide for the beauty and quality of its ceramic figures. Barcelona's only Lladró factory store, this location has exclusive pieces of work, custom-designed luxury items of gold and porcelain, and classic and original works. Look for the cheeky figurines by Jaime Hayon, a Spanish designer, and the spectacular chandeliers by Bodo Sperlein.

Norman Vilalta was a lawyer in Buenos Aires before he decided to do something rather unusual: learn the trade of a traditional cobbler. He moved to Florence, Italy, to apprentice and learn the trade, and then set up shop in Barcelona. Today he is one of a handful of people in the world who produce artisanal bespoke shoes, which take three months to make (and can be shipped worldwide). The shoes come complete with a video showing the entire making of, and will set you back somewhere between €2,500 and €5,000. However, you will also join the ranks of the chef Ferran Adrià, the architect Oscar Tusquets, and members of the Spanish royal family as owner of a pair of Norman Vilalta shoes. And since they fit like no other and last a lifetime, you might consider it a worthy investment. For a more affordable option, Vilalta's ready-to-wear footwear is available at the high-fashion emporium Santa Eulalía on the Passeig de Gràcia.

A shop dedicated exclusively to men's accessories of the finest kind, the Outpost was created by a former Prada buyer who considers it his mission to bring stylishness to Barcelona men with this oasis of avant-garde fashion. The constantly changing window displays are works of art, providing a first taste of what's to be found inside: Robert Clergerie shoes, Albert Thurston suspenders, Roland Pineau belts, Yves Andrieux hats, Balenciaga ties. You enter the Outpost as a mere mortal, but leave it as a gentleman—provided you carry the necessary cash.

One of Barcelona's longtime fashion giants, this is one of Spain's leading clothing designers, with many locations around town. Famed as the creator of the Iberia Airlines uniforms, Adolfo Domínguez has been in the not-too-radical mainstream of Spanish couture for the past quarter century.

One of Barcelona's longtime fashion giants, this is one of Spain's leading clothing designers, with many locations around town. Famed as the creator of the Iberia Airlines uniforms, Adolfo Domínguez has been in the not-too-radical mainstream of Spanish couture for the past quarter century.

Barcelona's premier travel and adventure bookstore stocks many titles in English. Book presentations and events scheduled here feature a wide range of notable authors from Alpinists to Africanists.

Lighting design and kitchen and bathroom fixtures, along with furniture and diverse objects by acclaimed architects and designers, are on display here in this clean-lined upper Barcelona shop managed by architects and interior designers Marta Ventós and Nuria Torrecilla.

If you're looking for a one-of-a-kind statement piece for your home, look no further than Azul Tierra. This 1,400-square-foot showroom is filled with weird and wonderful interior design from all around the world, from sculptures, to ornaments, knick-knacks and furniture—all carefully selected by owner and designer Toni Espuch on his travels. 

The Bagués dynasty has bejeweled barcelonins since 1839. While they stock much that glitters, the Lluís Masriera line of original Art Nouveau pieces is truly unique; intricate flying nymphs, lifelike golden insects, and other easily recognizable motifs from the period take on a new depth of beauty when executed in the translucent enameling process that Masriera himself developed. The location in Moderniste architect Puig i Cadafalch's Casa Amatller in the famous Mansana de la Discòrdia on Passeig de Gràcia is worth the visit alone, although sadly, the interior of the shop bears little of the building's exuberance.

Look carefully for the stairway leading one flight up to this 73-store antiques arcade off Passeig de Gràcia. You never know what you might find: dolls, icons, Roman or Visigothic objects, paintings, furniture, cricket kits, fly rods, or toys from a century ago. Bargaining is common practice—but Catalan antiques dealers are tough nuts to crack.

This internationally famous Spanish shoe emporium (which also now includes several boutique hotels) has offers a large line of funky boots, heels, and shoes of all kinds. Men's, women's, and children's shoes are displayed against an undulating chrome-and-wood backdrop designed by architect Benedetta Tagliabue.

Originally from Venezuela but professionally based in New York, Carolina Herrera and her international CH logo have become Barcelona mainstays. (Daughter Carolina Herrera Jr. is a Spanish resident and married to former bullfighter Miguel Báez.) Fragrances for men and women and clothes with a simple, elegant line—a white blouse is the CH icon—are the staples here. Herrera's light ruffled dresses and edgy urban footwear add feminine flourishes.

On Barcelona's most important shopping street, Casa del Llibre is a major book feast with a wide variety of English titles.

Iconic and ubiquitous, this Spanish department store stocks clothing, shoes, perfumes, electronics, and much more. There is a wonderful gourmet market and food hall on the lower level, plus an affordable top-floor cafeteria with amazing views of Plaça de Catalunya.

Popular with the uptown crowd, Erre de Raso makes clothes in bright and breezy shades and patterns. With colors ranging from electric fuchsias to bright indigo blues and materials ranging from satin (raso) to cottons and silks, the objective is to outfit stylish women in chameleonic outfits that look equally appropriate picking up the kids from school, dropping by an art gallery opening, and hitting a cocktail party in the same sortie.

The third of the Fins de Siècles shops is, like its siblings in Brussels and Isle sur Sorgue, the product of the undying passion of its Belgian owners to rescue as much European design heritage from the 20th century as they can. Their particular fascination is with the art deco period ranging from the 1930s through the '50s, which they buy all over Europe and have restored and newly upholstered respecting traditional methods. Desks, sofas, vanities, and tables are shipped all over the world, but they also stock smaller (and more affordable) items like lamps, vases, rugs, and silverware.

For musical recordings and the latest book publications, this is one of Barcelona's most dependable and happening addresses. Regular concerts, presentations of new recordings, and art exhibits take place in FNAC, both here at the branch in the Triangle Shopping Center on Plaça Catalunya and one on Diagonal in the L'Illa shopping center. Much more than a bookstore, it's an important cultural resource.

This well-established menswear star, with four stores in town and another at the airport, markets selections from Armani Jeans, Scotch & Soda, Hugo Boss, and Blackstone, as well as its own collection of dapper suits, shirts, and gentlemen's accessories.

Art Nouveau furniture, art objects, and decorative paraphernalia share space here with sculpted terra-cotta figures, vases, mirrors, and furniture, nearly all in Barcelona's signature Moderniste style. Paintings by Art Nouveau stars from Santiago Rusiñol to Ramón Casas might turn up here, along with lamps, clocks, and curios of all kinds. Modern pieces, particularly sculpture, are also represented.

The concept store of one of the city’s hottest interior designers provides mere mortals the chance to appreciate the Beriestain groove. Reflecting his hotel and restaurant projects, the shop offers an exciting mixture of midcentury modern classics and new design pieces, peppered with freshly cut flowers (also for sale), French candles, handmade stationery, and the latest international design and architecture magazines to dress up your coffee table.

This rangy complex buzzes with shoppers swarming through more than 100 stores and shops, including food specialists, Decathlon sports gear, and Imaginarium toys, plus FNAC, Zara, Benetton, and all the usual international brands.

Hands-down, Barcelona's best bookstore for years, La Central has creaky, literary wooden floors and piles of recent publications with many interesting titles in English.

Though it doesn't have a lot of English-language titles, this bookstore has a very pleasant café-restaurant upstairs; the space is often used for readings and other cultural events. Other branches of Laie are located around Barcelona, including major museums such as the Museu Picasso and Cosmocaixa.

Occupying the ground floor of Lluís Domènech i Montaner's Casa Lleó Morera, Loewe is Spain's answer to Hermès, a classical clothing and leather emporium for men's and women's fashions and luxurious handbags that whisper status (at eye-popping prices).