Food

Victor Satoshi, the owner of The Dog is Hot, heads to a local bread shop to pick up freshly made hot dog buns, while Betty Ford’s chef, Benjapon Kruthanooch, prepares hamburger patties and Pizzería Pepe’s owner, Paolo Mognoni, kneads homemade dough. As they meticulously chop and dice, the clock ticks away until opening time arrives.

Once the doors open, it’s apparent these aren’t ordinary fast food joints, filled with unhappy employees and plastic chairs. Instead, they are home to a plethora of young, fashionable students, skaters and creative types. These singular locales – in contrast to traditional fast food eateries – resonate with a cool, artistic crowd and serve quality food at low prices, in funky atmospheres fashioned by owners and staff.

Dave Kalucy, owner of Betty Ford’s believes the entire staff, rather than solely the owner, draw in the flocks of “indefinable” people. As he states simply, “we’re nice to people.” Betty Ford’s deliberate “comfortable, living room-like feeling,” as Dave calls it, comes together thanks to a mix of kitsch items like Tiki bots and surf-inspired paintings, put together by the warm staff.

Unlike the staff of fast food chains, Dave, an Australian, never fails to have a smile on his face and a witty comment on the tip of his tongue, while chef Ben, hailing from Los Angeles, exudes friendliness as customers greet him throughout the night. These are the men who created the “nice cross-breed corner bar,” as Dave refers to it.

Opened three years ago, Betty Ford’s began as a cocktail bar, where funk music welcomed locals and foreigners alike, mostly “creative people,” says Ben, looking for a place to call home. This “home” for graphic designers, artists and the like, was shut down two years ago due to noise complaints from neighbors. As the red booths and sofa chairs were locked behind shuttered doors and young fans were left without a familiar place to go, Dave and Ben, a former resident DJ at Flamingo’s (a former bar in the Raval), had to think quickly in order to re-open.

During the problem-solving process, Ben ran into a case of the “bad burger,” describing it as “flavorless and made from poor quality ingredients,” which only fueled his desire to bring a good burger to Barcelona. A light bulb went off and the “diner food” concept at Betty Ford’s was born, complete with several different hamburgers, French fries and milkshakes. After some trial and error, Dave and Ben accomplished their goal to serve up mouth-watering burgers (such as the Texas, made with crispy bacon and smoky barbecue sauce), leaving thin patty burgers sandwiched between cheap buns a thing of the past. 

Betty Ford’s burgers would turn the already loyal, fashionable crowd into fast food junkies, and take the concept of a hamburger away from low-quality places like McDonald’s and redefine it as something fit for those clad in Marc Jacobs.

The quality of the burgers (made with high-grade meat bought from a secret butcher and mixed with fresh ingredients) attracts a sociable crowd who enjoy exceptional food, and sipping on a cocktail and mingling with others. The atmosphere is, as Ben calls it, “a collective space for like-minded people,” attracting art students, skateboarders, lonely travelers and fashionistas who chat among themselves while dipping French fries into creamy ranch sauce and kicking back cold beers.

Just across Joaquín Costa and a few steps down, there is a similar crowd gathering in the street. Rowdy boys in their summertime shorts crack loud jokes, while girls in their above-the-knee dresses giggle to themselves and roll their eyes. They are standing in front of The Dog is Hot, a small restaurant painted a clean white, with an occasional splash of artistic color.

Inside, Brazilian owner Victor stands behind the counter and greets customers with a warm, welcoming smile. “We attract people from the street,” says Victor, “people from the neighborhood including hipsters, skaters, students and more.” His motto is to give people what they want while staying away from low-grade products.

The menu of quality hot dogs at The Dog Is Hot includes vegan dogs, “the only ones in Barcelona,” says Victor, while offering every topping under the sun (pineapple sauce included). Offering prices from €1.70, he has managed to create commendable food at a low price, attracting a young, on-the-go crowd.

Initially, Victor says he “was interested in opening a hot dog stand, noticing that there weren’t any in Barcelona,” but then learned that food couldn’t be sold in the street. Instead, he opened the restaurant with South American and New York-style hot dogs in mind, as opposed to the Frankfurt-style hot dogs commonly found in Barcelona. When the doors opened in March 2009, an urban, street atmosphere was unveiled, leaving seriousness to the food and drawing a young crowd to the fun, laid-back locale.

The crowds keep growing in size and with a menu that continues to evolve, The Dog Is Hot now serves nachos and plans on serving salads in the future. Their popularity has also led them to set up stands at fairs and festivals throughout the year. Victor says, “this is all due to the quality and variety of the food the restaurant has to offer, along with its street vibe.” As the restaurant has no tables and chairs, customers take their hot dogs away and munch on them in the street, or around the corner at the plaza at MACBA.

As the groups dressed in American Apparel and thrift store clothes drift towards their destinations with hot dogs in hand, there’s more action around the corner. Hip-hop tunes and laughter pour out of Pizzería Pepe’s as BMX riders parked outside discuss new bike parts. Inside, groups of young students sporting the latest Nike sneakers fill the graffiti-covered bar, their bikes resting in the corner.

The art on the walls – quite unlike the cold, graphic posters in traditional fast food restaurants – varies from the entrance to the back, even extending onto the wooden stools and tables. “A few months after we opened in 2002, two graffiti artists came in and really liked the pizza,” explains Paolo, “they offered to come in and paint the place.” Paolo began inviting various street artists to come in and leave their mark, giving the place an added artistic feeling, which Paolo compares to that of pizza. He says, “pizza is like street art, it’s popular, simple and artistic.”

The street art vibe attracts a young, creative crowd with a desire for good, cheap food. Working as a “pizzaiolo” (pizza maker) for three years, the Italian Paolo, who clearly has a strong passion for food, understands the importance of quality food at low prices. “We don’t use machines to produce poor quality food like Pizza Hut,” he says. Each day he or one of the other two “pizzaiolos,” who Paolo trained, make the dough by hand, ready for the evening ahead, “creating the pizza from beginning to end,” he says. The rest is up to the inventive customers, who can pick and choose from a variety of different toppings, from artichokes to anchovies.

The ability to personalize individual slices is another factor drawing in the young and trendy as it turns the pizza into an art form, attracting people who want the freedom to create their own food.

The bar patrons clad in low-slung jeans and graphic-printed T-shirts empty out onto the street with their unique slices in hand. After a few moments of beer-infused chitchat they hop onto their fixed gear bikes and ride back to their apartments.

Tired bodies of customers content after a night of half-full pockets, full stomachs and good company hit mattresses around the city, leaving Dave, Victor and Paolo to sweep up, turn over bar stools and wipe down counters, just as content as their patrons. As they pull down the shutters, preparation begins for yet another day of bread, buns and everything in between.

Betty Ford’s

Open: Sun–Thu 8pm–2:30am, Fri–Sat 8pm–3am.

C/ Joaquín Costa, 56 (Raval). 93 304 13 68.

Find them on Facebook.

The Dog is Hot

Open: Mon–Thu 1pm–11pm, Fri–Sat 1pm–12am, Sun 6pm–11pm.

C/ Joaquín Costa, 47 (Raval). 93 185 95 17.

Pizzería Pepe’s

(hours vary by month, check Facebook) C/ Valldonzella, 36 (Raval)