There were a few great things about the Spanish leg of my travels:
- I got to visit a fairly large swath of the country, which meant different regional specialities
- My wife joined me for this part of the trip – so we could order and try more food
Some general comments:
Spanish food culture is noticeably different from what we have in Australia. Going out for a meal often means going out to share a number of small plates of food (tapas/pintxos), and drinks, sometimes at different establishments. The Spanish also eat later than I am used to, and lots of the bars and restaurants really only start serving food from 7pm onwards – but stay open quite late. This took a little bit of adjustment, but is made quite palatable by the fact that it didn’t really get dark until 9pm or so.
Some highlights:
- The vermud (vermouth) at Taberna La Indigna, Madrid. The food was nice, and the picos de pan (little breadsticks) which I basically dunked in butter were next level, but after trying the vermouth here, I couldn’t find any others that I enjoyed as much in all of Spain.
- Visiting Sybarit GastroShop Mérida in the midst of Emertia Lvdica (a festival where almost everyone dresses up in Roman period costume), and indulging in the local jamón ibérico (cured Black Iberian pork, a real staple of Spanish cuisine).
- Looking out over Cácares’ historical town square from the terrace at Miga and enjoying their carrillera (those braised pork cheeks again)
- The super-innovative small bites at Baserriberri in Pamplona, the star of which was the award-winning tiny oxtail sandwich flambeed with absinthe
- The speed and quality of the pintxos at Bar Antonio in San Sebastian. This is a tiny little tapas restaurant, where the patrons just flow out onto the surrounding street as things get busy. The work rate of the small crew behind the counter was truly impressive, as was the Tortilla (Spanish potato omelette) which came out of the kitchen steaming, was rapidly cut into hunks and distributed through the bar, and out the servery window onto the street. They also do fantastic gildas, which are a traditional Basque pintxo – essentially a skewer with some olives, anchovies and guindilla peppers (which look kind of like green chillies, but are mild). It is just a punch of flavour on a little stick. As someone who often goes for the extra olives, extra anchovies option, a couple of these with a cold beer are right up my alley.
- The modern twist on the traditional Aragonese food at La Flor De Lis in Zaragoza. The fried artichokes are worth a recommendation and, for the more adventurous, the tomato salad with pickled rabbit (yes, you read that right) and thyme ice cream.
- The ‘cheese bombs’ at El Mina in Teruel. For lovers of cheese-filled pastry. The lamb ribs with padron peppers and local Mora ham also deserve a mention.
