Last Thursday, November 28th, El Nacional Barcelona shone like never before with its traditional switch-on of its Christmas lights that mark the beginning of the solidarity campaign promoted by the gastronomic multi-space of the city, and that will continue until January 6^th.

More than half a million LEDs lit up to the music of the Barcelona English Choir. More than 80 singers surprised the customers of El Nacional Barcelona in this solidarity event for the SJD Barcelona Children’s Hospital.

If you want to relive this magical night, don’t miss the following video.

Once again, the arrival of the Christmas season marks the beginning of the solidary campaign promoted by El Nacional. The funds raised go to the SJD Barcelona Children´s Hospital, ​​a pediatric centre of international recognition and visited by patients from all over the world, and in which each year more than 245,000 consultations, 117,000 emergencies, 18,000 hospitalisations, 19,000 treatments of outpatients,  and where more than 3,300 babies are born. In addition, it treats 12,000 patients with rare diseases, and therefore, the objective of the campaign is to collaborate economically to promote the investigation of these diseases that affect children and, in this way, can help achieve their great objective of increasing the number of clinical trials, treatments and scientific knowledge.

DON’T MISS OUR SWITCH ON OF THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

The start of the Christmas season will be celebrated next Thursday, November 28^th at 9:00 p.m.

This year’s Christmas lighting takes place on Thursday, November 28^th at 9:00 p.m. It will be the researchers and doctors representing the hospital themselves who will turn on the more than 500,000 LEDs in a lively event dedicated to the solidary campaign.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE?

From Thursday, November 28^th until January 6^th, El Nacional customers will be able to collaborate with the initiative by donating € 1 when paying their bill. An additional € 10,000 will be donated privately to this collection by El Nacional.

In the last edition of 2018-2019, we raised € 27,102 for the SJD Barcelona Children’s Hospital, and we hope to exceed that amount for this new campaign.

Once again, the arrival of the Christmas season marks the beginning of the solidarity campaign promoted by El Nacional. The funds raised go to the SJB Barcelona Children´s Hospital, ​​a pediatric centre of international recognition and visited by patients from all over the world, and in which each year more than 245,000 consultations, 117,000 emergencies, 18,000 hospitalizations, 19,000 treatments of outpatients,  and where more than 3,300 babies are born. In addition, it treats 12,000 patients with rare diseases, and therefore, the objective of the campaign is to collaborate economically to promote the investigation of these diseases that affect children and, in this way, can help achieve their great objective of increasing the number of clinical trials, treatments and scientific knowledge.

As every Christmas, El Nacional starts out a fundraising campaign in favour of a goodwill cause. This year the money collected will support one of the most important pediatric centres of Europe: the Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona Children’s Hospital. The objective of this campaign is to fund the childhood health investigation and research that this centre carries out.

The challenge is to overcome the almost 9,000€ raised last year with the Red Cross. To do it, from the 22nd of novembre and until the 6th of January, clients will be able to collaborate with 1 solidarity euro in their bills. Donations will be done at the following spaces: La Llotja, La Braseria, La Parada, La Taperia and the Oystrer Bar. El Nacional by its own, will add 10,000€ to this initiative.

Thanks for your collaboration!

El Nacional starts up the campaign “1 euro, 1 afternoon snack, 1 kg of food” with Red Cross to improve the nutrition of children in vulnerable situations. This solidary action will be active during the Christmas period and will directly impact approximately 1,600 children served by the humanitarian institution.

According to the Catalan Institute of Statistics (Idescat), in 2016 the 23% of households with Catalan children were at risk of poverty and did not have their basic requirements guaranteed, such as a healthy and balanced diet, education or leisure.

For this reason, El Nacional, aware of the value that it can offer as a benchmark in the restaurant sector, has signed a collaboration agreement with the Red Cross to guarantee a suitable and healthy diet for children in vulnerable situations. It is expected that about 1,600 boys and girls who are served in the 55 centers of the humanitarian institution will benefit from this alliance.

Xabier Otondo, director of Ocio Gastronómico; the president of the Red Cross in Catalonia, Antoni Aguilera and Gerard Subirats, president of Ocio Gastronómico

Next Thursday 23rd at 8pm we will celebrate the opening of the Christmas season

Very soon Barcelona will celebrate its Christmas light switch-on. It will begin the 23rd of November at La Rambla (Drassanes), where the city council will host an act in honour of the victims of the attack of August 17th.

Same Thursday, El Nacional will also welcome Christmas with a spectacular music and light switch-on show that will take place at 8pm. The centennial space will be decorated with ornaments inspired in a world of magic and fantasy.

The work done will be tangible among the passage that links El Nacional with Paseo de Gracia as in the interior of the restaurant, with more than 3.000m2.

Custumers will be able to enjoy a Christmas light switch-on with more than 450.000 leds that will be shining until the first week of January.

Gastronomy and history come together creating a unique and emblematic concept for the city

A place with many lives

With over 3,000 square metres of space, the restaurant is in a venue with a lot of soul. The emblematic building that now houses El Nacional Barcelona, ​​was formerly used as a café theatre, leather factory, car dealership and a private garage.

In the last third of the nineteenth century, when industrialisation was in full swing, that the space that now houses El Nacional Barcelona, ​​came to life. Official documents certify that on May 21st, 1870, the Teatro Español was inaugurated; a project carried out by the architect Antoni Rovira i Trias, winner of the municipal contest of the Pla del Eixample. As can be seen in the photograph: on the facade overlooking the Paseo de Gracia you could read the name of the theatre.

Unknown author.  Old Teatro Español, at Paseo de Gracia in Barcelona, demolished ca.1900; projected by Antoni Rovira i Trias [graphic document]. Barcelona

The theatre burns down

On the 18th of November of 1889 the Teatro Español burned down. This incident devastated the theatre in the early hours of the morning. In 1892 the theatre was rebuilt at the hand of the architect Ramón M. Ruidor, but this time under the name of Jardín Español. Concerts, zarzuelas, opera arias, raffles, fairs, etc. were held there. However, the venue did not enjoy the expected success and finally closed in 1900.

From cultural centre to manufacturing space

Later, the space gave life to a textile factory dedicated to leather tanning for shoes: the Tenería Moderna Franco-Española. The building continued to have a very slim and light roof that was unique; made with brick vaults with openings by way of skylights.

In another of the lives of this emblematic building, it was a high-end car dealership.

Dealership. Photos of our own archive

From dealership to garage

It is said, although there are no documents that certify it, that after the Civil War the space where El National is now found was used by Barcelona City Council as a food collection point.

What is known with total certainty is that later, the building became a private garage and remained operational until November 2013.

Private garage. Photos of our own archive

Subirats Bureau and El Nacional; a turning point for Barcelona

In June 2013, Subirats Bureau, a conglomerate with more than 40 years of history, founded by Joan Subirats, together with the entrepreneur Lluís Canadell, created Ocio Gastronómico Barcelona, S.L. with the aim of recovering this emblematic space and make it of value for the city. Therefore, on October 25th, El Nacional Barcelona opened its doors.