Remembering Bar Pinotxo's Juanito

With his smile and his welcome, he made everyone feel like a local

Mis amigos, 

This week we lost a maestro, an ambassador of Barcelona’s legendary La Boqueria market…my friend Juanito Bayén who has been welcoming customers to his legendary Bar Pinotxo for more than 60 years. 

I first met Juanito when I was a boy in Barcelona, and I would go to Bar Pinotxo whenever I had some money for breakfast. Juanito was a permanent fixture there, and I’ll never forget him—in his bow tie, with his big smile, making his amazing Cafe con Leche, and the way he made everyone feel like they were a local. 

Juanito was born in 1934 and grew up in the El Raval neighborhood, where La Boqueria is located. His mom Catalina used to run the bar, making sandwiches and serving coffees, and he started coming to work with her when he was 4 or 5 years old. Over time, Juanito took over and started bringing more traditional Catalan dishes to the menu..he actually received the City of Barcelona Award for Gastronomy in 2015 for his work celebrating the food of Catalunya. He even wrote a book about the bar, God Is In The Garbanzos!

Last year, when he was 87 years old, we filmed an episode of José and Family in Spain in Barcelona, and of course we visited him at Bar Pinotxo. I got to show my daughters my idea of a traditional Catalan breakfast—a cafe con leche with a xuixo (a crispy fried croissant filled with custardy crema catalan and dusted in sugar…maybe I’ll give you the recipe next week?), followed by some cava and gambas made by his nephew, Bar Pinotxo’s incredible chef Albert Asin. (Here’s a secret…if you say “va por ti Juanito” at Mercado Little Spain this weekend, we will give you a free xuixo in honor of my old friend!)

While we didn’t have it on the show, I also love Bar Pinotxo’s Garbanzos con Morcilla—an amazing dish of chickpeas with blood sausage that we sometimes have on our Spanish Diner menu—and also the classic Catalan dish called Cap i Pota, a rustic country stew made from the head and leg of calf. It’s also great with cava! (What isn’t great with cava?)

I went to Bar Pinotxo this morning to celebrate the life of Juanito…and you know me, I’m always taking photos of my food!

Juanito wasn’t just a fixture at La Boqueria, he was also a long distance runner who ran Barcelona's first 18 marathons. He used to joke: "They've stopped letting me run marathons because I used to win them all." He was even in charge of carrying the 1992 Olympic torch to Plaza Catalunya during the Barcelona Olympics!

There are people who you meet, because you get connected by food…because they made you a coffee every morning, or served you lunch at that little cafe near your home. They see you week after week, year after year, watching you go through life, seeing your children as babies, watching as they grow up. They are always there, for the little chat and a smile, and they become your family in some ways. They give you a seat at this longer table that becomes your life.

This is who Juanito was to me, and to so many people who came through La Boqueria over the decades he worked there. He was like the grandfather of the market. Juanito, we will be missing you. But heaven just got an angel! 

Who is your Juanito from your neighborhood? The one that welcomes you and gives you a smile at your regular spot? Please share with us..I am looking forward to reading about them all!