Category: tapas

A Night To Remember

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Jesse and Luisa – Hardcore!

This was without a doubt the most spontaneous and “extreme” Gourmet Tapas Tour I’ve done so far. Just over a week ago, in fact on the night before my 20 years in Spain party, I picked up Jesse & Luisa at their hotel not expecting too much out of the ordinary, though in fact, as the gourmet tours are more flexible than the all-inclusive ones in terms of locations and food, they tend to be quite individual. We started off with some great seafood and then at our second stop, while having some gorgeous jamón Ibérico, Jesse expressed a passion for chorizo and I knew we’d have to hit an extra bar along the way so he could try their venison chorizo speciality. This led to a quick pringá pit stop afterwards and, as Jesse & Luisa were still hungry, we then headed over to our next (fifth!) stop. Up until then we’d been sticking to pretty traditional places and so it was time to go somewhere modern and upmarket to try a bit of innovative cooking, where J & L got to enjoy some fabulous squid and grilled Iberian pork. By this time I realised that we had set a record for the number of tapas bars visited during one tour and so – of course – I suggested we go for one more.

At the sixth and final tapas bar we ordered some beautifully grilled fish (urta), and also desserts. But we weren’t done yet as the gourmet tour includes a round of cocktails. By this time Peter had joined us because it was getting pretty late and so he came to walk me home.  Looking back it probably wasn’t the most sensible thing to do on the eve of my party day, but it just “kind of happened” and so we went with the flow and we all had a great time. The Gourmet Tapas Tour usually lasts about four hours and we visit three different bars and then go for cocktails. On this record breaking occasion we went to six tapas bars and then a special members-only cocktail bar and I didn’t get to bed until well after 2 am. I blame the Harvest Moon…

Dreaming in Córdoba

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Córdoba has long been famous for the Mezquita, the beautiful mosque-cathedral with its perspective-shifting array of columns and arches, but in recent years this fascinating city, which has the second largest preserved historic centre in Europe, has been increasingly recognised as one of the essential must-see places.

The Hospes Hotel Palacio del Bailío (Palace of the Knight-Commander), Córdoba’s first ever 5-star hotel, combines modern luxury with the charm of a building whose history is intertwined with that of the city. The site was occupied by the Romans (there are Roman ruins in the basement) and the Moors, and after the conquest of the city by the Christian king Ferdinand III in 1236 it was given as a reward to one of his supporters. It was owned for many generations by the family of the Great Captain (El Gran Capitán) Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, and the present palace was built between the 16th and 18th centuries. After part of the palace had been donated to the convent of Dolores and the Hospital of San Jacinto, and with the death of the last descendant of the Fernández family, the palace fell into decline until it was purchased by the Castejón family in 1929, who began the work of its restoration. It was declared a historic monument in 1982 and became a hotel in March 2007.

The entrance to the hotel from the street is surprisingly modest, and is watched over by a statuette of San Rafael (the unofficial patron saint of Córdoba), and a small stylised metal dragon. Once inside it’s impossible not to be drawn in by the combination of the grand and the cosy. The basic facilities are what you would expect from a 5-star hotel, but the special charm of this hotel is the way in which these are combined with Hospes’ own emphasis on restfulness and well-being, and expressed through the fabric of a historic building.

Last week my friend Peter (aka Seville Concierge) and I were invited to spend the night and also enjoy a flamenco-themed dinner. Our room was a modern standard (dreamer), with a fabulous slate-tiled bathroom, two balconies that overlooked the main patio garden with its swimming pool and fountain, and of course the amazingly comfy beds that Hospes is famous for. There’s also a pillow menu available. I loved falling asleep – and waking up – to the soothing sound of running water from the garden.

In the evening dinner was in the Roman patio, with an excellent singer and guitarist duo (there’s a different entertainment theme every month) and wonderful food by Senzone. The main restaurant is in the next room, and there’s also an attractive tapas bar, which are open to the public as well as guests. The patio also doubles as the breakfast room, where we had a substantial breakfast (well, it would be really, wouldn’t it?) on our second day. The Roman patio is so called because beneath the glass floor you can see the remains of a mosaic and marble columns of the Roman building that was once there (rediscovered by accident in the 1930s when the owners were building a tunnel to bring coal into the house without blackening the floors). It also has restored eighteenth century murals, including a row of upper story windows to match the real ones on the other two sides.

One thing we didn’t get to do was to sample the pleasures of the Bodyna Spa Roman baths and massage (having slept through our alotted time in the late afternoon – darn those comfy beds!) but we were able to have a look around the next morning when sales manager Laura Baena took us on a tour of the hotel. We were duly impressed, especially by the peacefulness of the cool, dimly lit stone baths (there are three of them, set to three different temperatures). I could certainly have spent a blissful hour there just soaking up the silence. We also got a peek at the Roman ruins, which aren’t open to the public and are under special protection, similar to the mosque.

All too soon our 24 hours of luxury were over. I can honestly imagine spending a couple of days at the Palacio Bailío and not even leaving the hotel, so if you do plan on staying here (and I highly recommend it) book yourself an extra night so that you actually get to see the city. I’m still dreaming of going back…

Oh, and did I mention the free WiFi?

[photo gallery below…]

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Madrid Food Tour

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Lauren Aloise is a young American woman who first fell in love with Granada, later Seville and, finally, Madrid. She started Madrid Food Tour because she wanted to share her enthusiasm for Spanish food and ingredients with food lovers from all around the world. Lauren loves introducing people to new food and drink and explaining the background of traditional Spanish dishes. She believes that one of the main things Spaniards are resoundingly proud of is their food and the top quality ingredients found in the Spanish kitchen. Her aim is to pass along their pride and enthusiasm to each of her guests in Madrid.

Lauren and I met up in Sevilla last month and enjoyed an afternoon tapeo together, during which we swapped stories about our experiences in Spain and also talked about our work in the food and tourism industry. This week we decided to swap a set of questions and share them on our blogs.

You can find my answers here.

Here are Lauren’s answers…

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El Aljarafe | An Afternoon in Salteras

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El Aljarafe is Arabic for “knoll”, and is the name for the cluster of villages dotting the hills just outside Sevilla. I rarely venture out there other than to go to IKEA (in Castilleja de la Cuesta), mostly because it’s a pain to get to by bus. It would actually be fun to do a day trip to some of the little villages out there some time if I can convince someone with a car to do this with me. But I digress…

I’ve only been to Salteras once, about 12 years ago, when I was invited to a special lunch at one of the “parrilla” restaurants there. About thirty years ago the first one – La Bodega – opened in Salteras and was such a great success that soon other places started copying its “formula” of offering a simple menu based on BBQ grilled meats served with “papas arrugás” and “mojo picón”. These are small potatoes boiled in a small amount of very salty water leaving the skins wrinkled and sparkling with salt, which are then dipped in a spicy Canarian sauce. Soon Salteras was full of these establishments and became THE place to go for fabulous meat & potato meals. Since then the menus have become more extensive while the number of restaurants has diminished. Now there are about five left and on Sunday I decided to go out there and try one out.

After a bit of online research I chose La Resolana because I liked the look of their website and I especially liked that they had a “tapas corner”, which meant that my friend Peter (aka Seville Concierge) and I could try more dishes. So we trekked down to the bus station just in time to catch the 1pm to Salteras and when the bus driver pulled out of the station and put on some rock-a-billy music it started to feel like a proper Road Trip. We got held up for awhile in a village just outside of Camas when the main road became blocked by a funeral procession. I’d never seen this before and got one of those odd “I’m living in Spain” moments as I watched a crowd of at least fifty people walking slowly behind a hearse, with half a dozen pallbearers in the lead. It was a sad and beautiful sight.

If you go to Salteras from Sevilla by car it will take you about ten minutes. The bus takes about 25 minutes (or 35 with funeral) and we stopped in places I didn’t even know existed. Luckily we had been told which stop in Salteras to get off at, which ended up being just a few minutes walk to La Resolana. And well, we had a wonderful lunch. As it was a hot afternoon in August the place was pretty quiet, though I’m told it’s always packed out during the rest of the year. I can see why. The service was great, the food excellent, and at one point when a Twitter friend asked me exactly which part of the pig “pluma” comes from (yes, I tweeted the whole lunch) one of the chefs brought me out a book showing me the different pork cuts. After that we were given some boozy sorbet drinks on the house and I got to take photos of everyone for Sevilla Tapas. If you want to see all the great stuff we had to eat then have a look here:
La Resolana

It was only after I got home that I realised this had actually been another of my 20th anniversary day trips! And I’m now keen to explore El Aljarafe a bit more.

If I can find someone to take me…

Abacerías in Sevilla

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Updated March 2013

If you look in a Spanish-English dictionary for a translation of abacería you will probably be told that it is either abaceria (not helpful) or grocer’s, which is kind of true, but misses the difference between these little specialist “purveyors of fine foods” and a small general grocery store (usually called a tienda de ultramarinos), the main difference being that an abacería also has a tapas bar on the premises, where you can sample what’s on the shelves.

The word abacería is of Arabic origin (meaning something like “the place of supplies”), which is why this name is more common in Andalusia than in other parts of Spain, and they originally specialised in the basic ingredients for the local cuisine, especially oil, wine and vinegar, beans and other staples, and herbs and spices. Although these are still sold, delicatessen items like ham, chorizo and cheeses, and quality canned fish and vegetables, now seem to make up the largest part of their stock.

I love browsing around in these little culinary Aladdin’s caves, simply because I’m never quite sure what I’m going to find, or what unusual delicacy I might come away with. Many of them also have that feel of a bygone age, like shops you may remember from your childhood, although a new breed of modern, upmarket abacerías have appeared in a recent years. Here are six of my favourites, ranging from old-style neighbourhood establishments to upscale gourmet ones.

Tiny little “village store” at the front, with a small tapas bar at the back, mostly serving a variety of delectable meaty montaditos. If you didn’t know it was there, well, you wouldn’t know it was there. It’s old-fashioned in the best sense of the word, and may it long remain so.
Casa Moreno
Gamazo 7
(Arenal)


Looking a bit like a traditional English village pub, this is a very pleasant watering hole if you’re exploring the Triana side of the river.
La Antigua Abacería
Pureza 12
(Triana)


Tucked away in a residential neighbourhood, this is definitely a locals bar, with cosy little rooms and everybody on first name terms. Nice atmosphere and some very good food too.
La Antigua Abacería San de Lorenzo
Teodosio 53
(San Lorenzo)

abaceria jo
Looking older than its seven years, this abacería has a real neighbourhood feel to it with a nice selection of of traditional cheeses and cured meats, as well as some gourmet food items.
Abacería José Ortega
San Luís 89
(Macarena)


Recently renovated and re-opened by chef Ernesto Malasaña, this little “shop with a bar” remains faithful to the style of the 1931 original. Excellent selection of wines by the glass, charcuterie, and other cold tapas.
La Niña Bonita
Calatrava 5
(Alameda)


Buy your ham, wine and other gourmet foods from a great range of top quality brands, either to take away or eat on the spot. For the latter there’s a spacious terrace outside or tables inside. Wonderful wine selection at very reasonable prices.
Flores Jamones & Vinos
San Pablo 24
(Centro/Arenal)