Dalí, Duchamp, Pla: Historic shore bar in Cadaqués closes after 79 years

Catalan painter Salvador Dalí and writer Josep Pla, as well as French artist Marcel Duchamp, enjoyed plenty of hours at the Boia bar on the beach of Cadaqués.

After 79 years since its opening, this seaside bar in the town of the Alt Empordà county in the Costa Brava closed down on January 4. During the last few days, the owners have packed things up while locals bid them farewell.

Opened in 1946 at the Platja Gran in Cadaqués, Boia bar has been the meeting point for famous local artists such as Dalí and Pla and internationally renowned figures such as Duchamp.

Boia, the Meliton, Marítim, and the Casino are among the most illustrative sites in Cadaqués.

Decades after its opening, Pere Vehí's son, Manel Vehí, transformed the bar into a cocktail bar called Boia Nit in 2012.

A little over a decade later, the bar permanently closed earlier this year after 79 years of business due to the Shores law. In 2014, owners renewed their logging concession, but someone "appealed the decision," Vehí told the Catalan News Agency (ACN) over the phone.

Legislation requires that there be a distance of over 150 meters between two establishments on the beach, which is not complied with in this case.

So far, no response to the owners of Boia bar appeal has yet been notified. Although, Vehí does not expect the situation to improve.

"These last days, a lot of people have come to us crying," Vehí said, as many told him that after the closure of Boia bar, "part of the Cadaqués' soul has been lost."

Around 26 people have been laid off due to the closure of the establishment.