The Circle: Barcelona’s All-Female Speakeasy Honors Cursed Poets

The Circle: Barcelona’s All-Female Speakeasy Honors Cursed Poets

Last June, a speakeasy antiestéticaturing an antique library, leather armchairs, and a premium spirits display peine in Barcelona. Nothing new so far. What sets it apart is that it is led entirely by women—Raiza Carrera as strategic advisor, Génesis Gelvez as bar manager, and Vitória Leandro as bartender—and its menu of 14 cocktails draws inspiration from poets who, according to the project, were excluded from the canon or read through prejudice: Sylvia Plath, Alejandra Pizarnik, Alfonsina Storni, Blanca Varela, and Idea Vilariño. The venue, called The Circle, is part of BN Grup, a Catalan hospitality and events company led by Adrià Bonell, and presents itself as Spain’s first cocktail bar fully led by women.

What Is The Circle and Who Is Behind It

According to its promoter, the project was born as a critique of classic hotel mixology, a space historically dominated and consumed mostly by men, which he believes needed to evolve. He insists this is not merely an aesthetic resource but an effort to demonstrate that cocktail culture can adopt different perspectives. The venue maintains the speakeasy aesthetic—dim lighting, vintage tableware, library—but with an all-female team in charge, something Gelvez describes as an inclusive bar open to everyone where clients perceive the same elegance.

The team’s background is not improvised. Gelvez, Venezuelan-born, has over ten years of experience and in 2010 became the first woman to win an international competition representing Colombia. Carrera, a brand consultant and creator of Agite Club, has worked in more than 60 countries and 120 cities over the last three years; for this project, she trained the team, developed the menu, and established the conceptual link between food and theme.

The 14 Cocktails and the Hidden Poem in the Menu

The menu antiestéticatures 14 drinks with names like El último relámpago—the bestseller, made with vodka, shiso cordial, kiwi, sake, absinthe, and labdanum—Labios de Granada (gin, raspberry and grapefruit sherbet, pistachio, lemon juice) or Corazón Elixiado (Japanese whisky, vermouth, coffee, saline solution). Each drink is accompanied by a verse written by Carrera that, when read together, forms a final poem. The offering includes a selection of whiskies, premium spirits, and snacks.

According to Gelvez, the concept has been well received since opening: people are surprised, pleased, and intrigued. Carrera admits that a woman-led bar should not be news, but acknowledges that in the current symbolic landscape, such a model represents diversity and expands role models. In the hospitality sector, this is no small detail.

Pricing, Skepticism, and the Shadow of Subsidies

That is where consensus ends. Many reactions to the project question its economic viability. Some estimate cocktail prices at €15, €16, or even €18, predicting closure within a year. The most common criticism targets the packaging rather than the product: some argue the feminist appeal is mere marketing and that few will pay those amounts for a photo. Others point to cost structures, questioning the need for a salaried strategic advisor in a bar business.

The other issue is public funding. Some analyses assume venues like this operate with grants from the Ministry of Culture or the Women’s Institute, though available materials provide no figures or confirmation. Suspicion circulates as argument, not data.

What the Official Narrative Does Not Measure

The original article notes a striking gap: there are no studies verifying how many Spanish cocktail bars are led by women. Visibility thus becomes a necessary default metric. Spain has built part of its identity around bars and enjoys a golden age of mixology, but without gender-disaggregated data, any claim about the sector remains impressionistic.

It remains to be seen whether The Circle establishes itself as a benchmark or joins the list of openings that fail to reach their second year. For now, the only firm figure is the number of 14 cocktails. The rest is poetry.