Category: restaurants

Seville Gastronomic Heritage Guide

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sevill gastronomy heritage

Introduing Sevilla’s first Gastronomic Heritage Guide to tapas (and the best places to find them). The first printing of the guide is out and about and you can also download the free APP, which has both Spanish and English versions. It’s a perfect way for both locals and visitors to discover the diverse and delicious gastronomy of Sevilla, one bar at a time. Handy maps and recipes are also included in the APP.

“Establishments suggested come from a popular survey conducted by Tourism Board of City of Seville website between April 15 and September 15, 2013, as well as from a selection prepared by a technical commission of experts composed of Julio Fernández, Chef of the Michelin Star restaurant Abantal, Fernando Huidobro, president of the Andalusian Academy of Gastronomy and Tourism, Javier Compás, wine tasting technician, journalist and gastronomic writer, Shawn Hennessey, best gastronomy Twitter 2013 and author of Sevilla Tapas gastronomy tours, and Paco Sánchez, historic bar-restaurant owner in town, former owner of Bar Giralda and Bar Estrella. As a rule, these establishments are limited to the traditional and touristic heart of the city, although some other establishments are also included beyond that area because of uniqueness, quality and tradition.”
~ Visita Sevilla

I am very pleased and proud to have had a part in the creation of this very special guide.

app sevillaDownload the APP at Visita Sevilla

Ronqueo at La Azotea

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 ronqueo azotea tuna almadraba
It was definitely not your average Tuesday morning. I had been invited (along with a few journalists, bloggers, photographers and friends) to a “ronqueo”, the skilled cutting of an almadraba tuna. The almadraba (Arabic for “the place of striking or beating”) is an age-old technique for catching blue fin tuna that continues to the present day. Every year during the tuna migration from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean (May-June), mazes of nets are set, creating a channel of nets which direct the tunas to a larger “floor net” which is then raised to the surface, enclosing and capturing the tunas.

azotea ronqueo scenes

La Azotea had arranged to have a tuna delivered to their Jesús del Gran Poder location to give us a demonstration of the traditional cutting art know as as the “ronqueo” – the name comes from the rasping sound made when the knife cuts through the spine (from Spanish “roncar”- to snore). The 233 kilo tuna arrived and, with some difficulty, was transferred from the truck to the restaurant, which had been stripped of all tables and chairs and had a protective layer of plastic covering the floor. The master cutter then wasted no time in getting down to work.

ronqueo azotea bulletFirst the head was removed and it was discovered that the tuna had been killed “Japanese style” with a bolt to the head while still in the water. Then the belly (ventresca) was removed and shortly afterwards we heard the rasping sound of knife against spine. The massive upper and lower loin and tail sections were next to come out and then the cutter went to work on the head, removing the cheeks, mormo, morillo (don’t know how to translate those last two).

Then we were treated to the freshest tuna tataki ever – straight out of the fish and onto the griddle. It was a fascinating experience and, as with jamón cutting, it was easy to see that hand-cutting the tuna in this way is truly an art form. I’m so glad I got a chance to see my first ronqueo. Thanks Juan!

This is pretty much the end of the almadraba season for this year so make sure to get over to La Azotea this week while the fresh tuna lasts.

La Azotea
Jesús del Gran Poder 31
Zaragoza 5
Mateos Gago 8

ronqueo azotea jesus josemaria juanchefs Jesús and José María with La Azotea owner Juan

Toro de Lidia 2014

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toro lidia 2014 poster

The second edition of the Lidia bull gastronomic days is on from April 24th until May 4th, with 19 local bars and restaurants participating. You can enjoy tapas based on the famous toro de Lidia meat for either 2.75€ (classic tapa) or 4.00€ (gourmet tapa) including a drink. The establishments will also be visited by a select panel of judges who will choose their top three.

 toro lidia 2014 participants

click on image to enlarge

Orange Day Winners

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orange day winners
Yesterday the winners of the Orange Day Tapa Competition were officially announced. Prizes were given out at a presentation at the Alfonso XIII Hotel. Over 30 local bars and restaurants had participated and I was honoured to be one of the judges this year. There was also a special prize awarded based on public votes received on the Visita Sevilla website.

Congratulations to all the winners!

Naranja de Oro:

  • Restaurante Agredano. Chicken thighs in Sevilla orange sauce (70 points)
  • Taberna Chani. Presa tataki salad with orange salmorejo (70 points)

Naranja de Plata:

  • Puerto Delicia Bar. Mini foie magnum with Sevilla bitter orange crumble (68.5 points)

Naranja de Bronce:

  • Bar Europa. Marinated mackerel with Sevilla orange gelée. (62. 5 points)
  • Dmercao. Orange salmorejo with bacalao strips and leek textures. (62.25 points)

Premio especial del público:

  • Los Corales. Pork solomillo with raisins in bitter orange honey (11.76% online votes)
  • Robles Laredo. Cochinillo a la naranja at 65º ( 11.76% online votes )

Restaurant 50

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rest 50
Last September I attended a press conference for a new initiative in Sevilla called Restaurant 50. The idea was a simple one, to have a select group of restaurants offering discounts to its members. I was given a card to try out, put it in my wallet and kind of just left it there, other than once using it while out for lunch with a friend at Zarabanda’s. At first I thought I wouldn’t get much use out of it because I tend to go to tapas bars rather than restaurants (some of the R50 restaurants offer tapas but the 50% discount only applies to raciones/large plates). Then the other day I stopped in at Room Zero and thought I’d try my Restaurant 50 card again… and I think I’m hooked now. Especially after doing the math on the R50 website and realising that even using my card once a month would save me close to 200€ a year (150€ after paying the annual fee).

There are actually two fees: 50€ annual and 15€ for three months. You can also get a 30-day trial card for free, but these are only sent out to addresses in Spain so are not useful for visitors just here for a short time. However, plans are afoot to have R50 cards available in selected hotels and tourist offices. Will update that info here when it happens.

At the moment there are 21 restaurants to choose from, with more being added all the time. Certain restrictions apply in terms of days and times that you can use your card, and also how many people you can include (usually it’s weekday lunchtimes and good for up to six people). As mentioned before, only main dishes or raciones are eligible for the discount, drinks and desserts are not included, and neither are daily specials, such as set lunch menus. But it still works out to a substantial saving, especially if there are a few of you. There are basically two steps for using your card.

  1. Call and reserve a table saying you are a R50 member (also check on the restrictions).
  2. Show your card when you pay and get 50% off main dishes or raciones.

So now that I’ve blown the first six months of my free card (duh!) I plan to make good use of it between now and September. Especially when friends are visiting, or for a special occasion meal. And then I will happily renew it. Also looking forward to seeing which other restaurants end up on the list.

Restaurant 50