Food in Barcelona is simply amazing and the amount of excellent restaurants leaves you spoiled for choice. At some stage, you may want to diversify from tapas and paellas and try some Italian. If so, this is the one. Located in Poble Sec, Xemei is a hidden gem, not far from some areas of Montjuic. Considered the best Italian in town, the owners (twin brothers) are very faithful to their Venetian tradition and offer delicious Italian food in a cozy trattoria atmosphere with wooden furniture and green walls. All pasta dishes we tried were delicious and perfectly al dente. We started with a truffled potato tortilla, and squid with polenta (divine), followed by a scrumptious pasta with truffles (seasonal), the black spaghetti and a perfect and delicious pasta cacio e pepe. The table next to ours was delighted with their parpadelle with octopus ragu. We finished in grand style sampling the traditional good old tiramisu, as well as a fig pie with vanilla ice cream, which completed our feast beautifully. Xemei used to be frequented mostly by locals, so hurry before word spreads!