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A Barcelona seafood restaurant got a mysterious booking. Then Obama, Spielberg, and Springsteen came to dinner.

Isobel van Hagen   

A Barcelona seafood restaurant got a mysterious booking. Then Obama, Spielberg, and Springsteen came to dinner.
International1 min read
  • Obama, Spielberg, and Springsteen ate dinner at the Palace Hotel's Amar restaurant in Barcelona on Thursday.
  • The superstar trio made a last-minute booking and delighted the surprised restaurant staff.

It was a case of guess who's coming to dinner when the staff at a top Spanish restaurant took a mysterious last-minute booking. To their amazement, not one but three of the world's most famous men eventually arrived to sample the seafood menu.

On Thursday evening, former President Barack Obama, filmmaker Steven Spielberg, and singer Bruce Springsteen dined at Amar restaurant at Barcelona's Palace Hotel.

The trio was in town ahead of Springsteen's concert at Barcelona's Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Friday.

Amar's chef Rafa Zafra told a local news outlet that the surprise reservation was only made a few hours in advance, per The Guardian.

The famous Spanish-American chef José Andrés "called me and told me that it was a very important table, but that we should please not say anything," Zafra told Spanish radio station Cadena SER. "And of course, I began to investigate and saw that Obama was coming, that Bruce had a concert."

The group came "tired" but wanting to "try everything," Zafra told the outlet and the group dined on oysters, shellfish, and caviar.

They even "drank a little," he added, saying, "The one who behaved best was the one who had to work today," Zafra said, referencing Springsteen's Friday concert.

Restaurant staff member Pol Perello posted a photo on Instagram of the staff and chefs posing with the famous trio, with the comment, "The pleasure this job brings you!"

Former First Lady Michelle Obama and Kate Capshaw, Spielberg's wife, were also in town for the concert. The group was set to visit some of Barcelona's famous tourist destinations, like the Picasso Museum and the Sagrada Familia Basilica, according to Reuters.

Obama and Springsteen are long-time friends, after meeting when the singer-songwriter performed for Obama's 2008 presidential campaign. The pair recently hosted a podcast-turned-book called "Renegades: Born in the USA."


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