No, this is not a low cost carrier between Spain and Iceland, but rather one of the best bakeries in town. Barcelona Reykjavik only uses masa madre (sour dough) and organic flours, and after it has been kneaded by hand, lets the dough sit for 12 hours.  This results in heavier, firmer and (let’s face it) tastier types of breads you find in Scandinavian countries. Also like northern Europe, they sell their breads by the kilo.  Their products aren’t cheap but do last a lot longer than your average barra (which generally has a lifespan of six hours). Varieties include bread made of spelt and kamut and chickpea flour, and a range of biscuits and cakes—my favourite is the apple cake infused with cinnamon and ginger. From its first branch in El Raval, Barcelona Reykjavik has now expanded into Gràcia (C/Astúries 20) and the Born (C/ Princesa 16). The latter will also house a small ‘Bread Museum’ in the near future.

If you want to carry a piece of Barcelona around with you, consider buying one of these bags or backpacks made from recycled PVC banners. The local version of the Freitag concept, Vaho buy those banners you see flapping around off buildings and lampposts (the ones advertising cultural and business events), which are then hand washed and turned into cool, one-off fashion accessories and even furniture. Their items aren’t cheap, but you can be smug over the fact that they are 100%, locally hand made from recycled materials.  To top it off, the company employs workers from Barcelona’s Modelo Prison and an organisation that works with handicapped people, altogether making Vaho the most PC of PVC.

There are three of these shops dotted around Barcelona, one in the Eixample (C/ Mallorca 241) another in the L’illa shopping centre on the Diagonal and this one in Gràcia. They style themselves as a ‘world cooking shop’ and do so very well, with products from all over the world, from sweet chilli sauce and mango chutney to peanut butter and Vegemite as well as everything else you’d need to whip up a Mexican feast or Japanese banquet (minus the meat and veg.) The staff is tremendously helpful and the sleek, award-winning packaging design of their in-house products makes them gift-worthy. For dinner party inspiration, they also supply recipes for the huge selection of their ingredients.

This huge perfumery sells all the top niche brands; Crème del Mer and Natura Bissé skin care, Annick Goutal and Creed perfumes and a long etcetera. But what makes it really unique is what’s hidden from public view. Walk to the back of the shop and you will see a small door that leads to their ‘Perfume Museum’ (for a long time free, but now unfortunately around 5€ to get in) which has hundreds of bottles and perfume-related paraphernalia. I love the Dalí-designed bottles, but there are also ones from the Egyptian and Greek period, gorgeous Renaissance flasks and vintage Dior and Schiaparelli. A girly dream.

I’ve been living in Barcelona for several years and although taken for granted in most cities, the humble croissant of the french butter style is rarer in Barcelona that a real Madrid football fan. Tucked away on the quiet pedestrian street behind calle Princesa is the home of the Croissanteria Frances. When I first stumbled upon it I was happy as can be, it was a Saturday morning and I picked up some along with the most delicious chocolate and cream pastries and some danish. With your stash of fresh pastries on board, next step is surely where to go for coffee and shamelessly eat what are the best quality and best value croisssants and co. in town.

You can’t say a lot about a bike shops. I only mention this one for a couple of reasons. The ubiquitous folding bike seems to be everywhere these days and for the discerning Barcelonese commuter there are none better than the Brompton.  Well, these guys are Brompton specialists. The next reason is that in my all dealings they’ve displayed admirable honesty, appear to be very knowledgeable and pretty cheap to boot. Finally, for the princely sum of 20 cents, they provide use of an automatic pump that is available to all at the front of the shop. With Barcelona being such a great city for cycling, Bike Tech is a good destination to get yourself some portable wheels.

Although ‘Pretty Ballerinas’ sounds like an American brand, it is 100% Spanish, owned by the third generation of the Mascaró family from Mallorca.

As the name does indicate however, Pretty Ballerinas are ballet flats (or manoletes as they are known here). Prices are not that cheap, but the quality and design make them great investment pieces.

The flagship Pretty Ballerina is situated in the upmarket Rambla Catalunya. Fittingly, it’s very bijou (no more than five people can fit at the time) but you’ll find the entire collection there. The decoration is very feminine, maybe with an excess of pink but totally different from the majority of shoe shops.

Pretty Ballerinas is well worth visiting for girls looking for a trendy and comfortable between season shoes

In a relatively short time, Anna Figuera Delgado and Macarena Ramos Buil – the creative minds behind the fashion label El Delgado Buil – have taken the Spanish fashion world by storm. Who knows for how much longer their global HQ will remain in this lovely taller-showroom-shop in the Barri Gótic? Their cutting edge clothing is beautifully-tailored (in a deconstructed sort of way) and made of the finest materials in their trademark nude and pastel colours. In their shop they often have samples and a few one-offs at good prices, and sometimes you’ll be attended to by the lovely Anna and Macarena themselves.

For those who resist downloading (legal or not) for whatever reasons, El Papaya Verde is your answer to the increasingly reality show-saturated state of Spanish TV. Not only does El Papaya Verde rent out a huge collection of documentaries, indie, auteur and underground films (oh, and there’s a bit of porn as well), but is right up on its TV series. If you missed the last episode of Lost, desperate to watch Desperate Housewives without the ad breaks or addicted to Mad Men you’ll find them all here, tucked away behind the cathedral.

The Mercat de l’Abaceria Central is great to visit on a Saturday morning when it hustles and bustles and bristles with life. I’m very enamoured with the idea that this fresh food market is still thriving, despite the fact that there is no shortage of supermarkets or convenience stores in Gràcia. Anyone who has been to a mercat in Barcelona knows exactly what to expect, and this one is no different.

The stallholders really know their onions (or apples or eggs or fish or chickens) and generally sell their goods at a great price. To find out what’s in season in advance, have a look at the market’s website which has a handy Calendari de les Hortalisses i les Verdures. For a real taste of local life, this Gràcia market can’t be beat.