Homo Sibaris
By Mark Dix

Homo Sibaris takes its name from the citizens of Sybaris, the Greek city so devoted to pleasure it gave us the word sybarite – a fitting patron for a bar that has been teaching Sants to drink better since 2011. Founder Guillem Laporta, a brewer and one of the early evangelists of the Catalan craft scene, set up shop on Plaça d’Osca, a half-hidden, village-like square a short walk from Plaça de Sants that feels lifted straight out of Gràcia.
The pours chase the widest possible spread of styles – rotating taps and hand pumps up front, a deep bottle list behind them running from Catalan upstarts to continental classics, much of it to take away. And Laporta brews his own: the house HomoSibaris line pours alongside the guests, and he created D.O. Sants, a beer for the neighborhood’s own restaurant association – which tells you exactly how local this institution runs.
To eat there are cheeses, croquettes, olives and sandwiches, all built to hold their own next to a strong ale. Grab a terrace table on the square if you can – on a warm evening, with the right glass in hand, the sybarites would have approved.
