Well, what’s the catch? They do have salads but the mainstay of the sandwich menu is meat with a bit of dairy thrown in. The best vegetarian options (the vegie burger and the vegie sandwich) are not gluten free and/or dairy free. But it’s a great place to go if you feel like the Spanish equivalent of a steak sandwich, as I did. The grilled pork loin with roast vegetables (onions and green peppers) was delicious and although the bread contains egg, it is spot on. Most of the sauces are gluten-free too.

Carnivores can sample everything from Catalan butifarra to Basque chistorra to cured ham and cheese lovers can enjoy blue cheese or Manchego. The sandwiches cost around 4 euros with a supplement of 75c for gluten-free bread.

One of the most popular local beer brands has brought out a gluten-free beer. I didn’t see it on offer at Conesa but it might be worth asking for “cerveza sin gluten” just to check.

The restaurant area is small, with standing room only at times, so you might be better off going diagonally across the square and out the other side to a row of benches, if you don’t mind a bit of sun. Remember to keep a close eye on your belongings. 

Conesa now have another restaurant near Plaza España, which is another popular tourist destination and also handy to Montjuic. Check out the website www.conesaentrepans.com for more details, as well as other restaurant options in Barcelona and Spain on the Catalan Celiac Association web site www.celiacscatalunya.org

And have a great trip!

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Movida is the sort of place where they bring absolutely delicious but totally not gluten-free breads to the table with perfect olive oils and you have to cry while you watch your callous friends eat this in front of you. It's really the only complaint I have about the place — it wouldn't be that hard for them to find a decent gluten-free option. After all, Fifteen does it. I usually ask for a serving of mixed olives instead, which comes quickly enough, but always ends up on the bill rather than as a replacement for the bread.

Depending on how hungry you are, you can just have tapas — little mouthfuls for one designed to go with the food and help you drink more — or the larger raciones. You can be a little boring and have a tapas as an entrée and a racion as a main or you can go the spanish route and order a variety of both to come out as they will and share everything you can.

When the goat special isn't on, my favourite dish is the Conejo Agridulce, rabbit in a honey sauce with almonds and raisins. Thankfully, it's at both restaurants, but at my recent visit to Movida Aqui I resisted the urge and tried new things. I'm so glad I did — on special was the Cordero al Chilindron, a slow-roasted lamb dish with a white wine, paprika, tomato, capsicum and onion sauce. Oh my. The meat was falling off the bone beautifully, the sauce complemented it perfectly. Given that I had no gluten-free bread, it was all I could do not to tip the bowl up and slurp the sauce up.

We also had Choco a la Plancha, cuttle fish served with squid ink, which was very tender and much more intricate a flavour than I had imagined it would be. Another stand-out dish was the quail with morcilla and chickpeas.

Dessert for the gluten-free but not dairy-free is easy: I would choose the flan every time. These days, however, I go with the sorbets, which change regularly. 

Ask the sommelier to help you out with a dessert wine or port too. Movida's cellars are extensive.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Movida,
1 Hosier Lane,
Melbourne

Movida Aqui,
Level 1, 500 Bourke St,
Melbourne (Access via Little Bourke St)

Phone: (03) 9663 3038
Web: www.movida.com.au