Bodega de Santa Cruz

On a fairly average Wednesday night, I took my first step on the yellow brick road to tapas overdose by visiting the first of the many restaurants bookmarked in my Lonely Planet challenge.

Bodega Santa Cruz.

Located on Calle Mateos Gago, in the Barrio de Santa Cruz (read tapas district), the restaurant is fairly unassuming. It's not trendy nor does it have a waiter poised to pounce on passers by with a menu. It just perches on its little corner with welcoming sound of chatter from within and people, drinks in hand, spilling out to occupy its pavement tables.

  

Inside menus are posted on chalk boards ready to be erased at a moments notice as dishes things sell out (as they often seem to). Even on a Wednesday, there wasn't a seat in the house so standing it was! I am far from a tapas connoisseur and I was more than slightly bewildered at the scribbles that greeted me from the board. One of the barmen asked what I wanted but there was only so long that I could stall him by asking for a glass of house white. After about 5 minutes, he must have sensed my stupid foreigner vibe as he offered to make my selection for me, asking only if I wanted meat or fish. I decided on one of each. 

And this is what arrived:

Solomillo al Whiskey

Buñuelos de bacalao

Now I must say that I wasn't highly impressed in terms of presentation. Their 'put it on a plate and bung a few bread sticks or a slice of bread on top philosophy' wasn't really doing it for me. As for the offering underneath the bread mountain, it looked a bit school dinner-ish. 

I braced myself but was pleasantly surprised! 

The flavours were great, just like something I imagine a Spanish granny to produce at the drop of a hat for unannounced guests. Fresh ingredients and traditional flavours.

Solomillo al whiskey is pork tenderloin in a garlic and whiskey sauce. Manolo, the barman I struck up conversation with, told me that it is reputed to be the best in town. Though I've not sampled enough examples to know, I will vouch for the fact that it's pretty damn good. I loved the sweetness of the almost clear sauce and thankfully for fellow commuters on my bus home, wasn't too overpoweringly garlicy.

Buñuelos de bacalao translates as cod sweet fritters. The result is like a well seasons fish cake ball. Interesting fact: colloquially buñuelo is used to talk about shoddy work or a botched job.

As you eat what you owe is tallied on the bar with chalk, no bills or receipts here my friends.

At 5.80€ for two (substantial) tapa and a glass of house white, I was more than thrilled with the price.

I left the bar full, with a promise to return to visit my new friend Manolo and wishing I had more space to cram in more delights.

Keeping my word, I visited again on Saturday to find the bar full to bursting. I wasn't going to bother looking for a space when a voice shouting 'Señorita!' over the crowd, ushered me forward to the bar. It was literally elbow room only!

Manolo was nowhere to be seen and left to my own devices I ordered on a wing and a prayer and this is what I was bought:

Salpicón de Mariscos 

Pollo al Ajíllo

Flamenquín de Chorizo.

I can't even begin to explain the happiness that these little plates of joy bought me: washed down with a ice cold beer, in a heaving bar, amidst the almost deafening conversation levels of the locals. For me, this is what life in Seville is all about! Welcome to Andalucía.

Perfect for: a quick bite by the Cathedral, an authentic bar experience, home cooking, cheap eats.

Price: 2€ to 2.5€ per plate. Alcohol was fairly darn cheap, though exacts are hard to say when your bill is whatever Manolo shouts at you!

Verdict: The perfect start to a tapas adventure.

My latest crazy project: The Lonely Planet Restaurant Challenge

My first two experiences of tapas here in Seville left a lot to be desired. 

I followed the advice of my boss. She told me never to visit an empty bar - the Spanish flock to where the food is best, whether there is a wait or not. Fairly sound advice, you'd think.

Typically, I must have chosen the only two tapas bars in the whole of Spain where this was not the case...cue inedible aliños (cold, seasoned dishes) in one bar and extortionately over-priced wine and jámon in another.

Disillusioned, I turned to my students for help. Questions of 'where is your favourite place to eat in Seville?' were met with a cacophony of negative responds: ' It's too expensive to eat out in Seville', 'Eat before you leave the house and then you won't be disappointed', and even the blasphemous 'McDonald's is just fine when you're sightseeing'! 

I couldn't believe what I was hearing!! This is the Mediterranean! Spain is the land of olive oil, jamón, paellas and mouth watering stews! Surely, in one of the most popular city break destinations in the country, there must be eateries to suit all budgets showcasing la auténtica España.

My last and only hope was old faithful.

via

Lonely Planet - the holy grail of guidebooks.

In the past, it has led me to many a backstreet gem - most notably my favourite cafe in all of St Petersburg, Loft Project Etagi, a multifunctional hostel, come gallery, come cafe housed in a former bread factory. It has proved itself to be a useful companion on many a journey, so it was time to take the plunge for this one. Though Seville doesn't have a city guide of its own, it has a sizeable chapter in their Andalucía book (which is downloadable chapter by chapter in pdf from their website).

Lonely Planet had managed to dedicate a fairly healthily sized portion of its Seville space to restaurants with all manner of budgets in mind - perhaps they know something my students don't! Separated by district, the recommendations all have street addresses, a Euro rating to show you price ranges and forewarning of any closures.

23 weeks, 27 restaurants and 3 bars. Can it be done? I guess, we're going to find out.

I have set my self the challenge to eat my way around Lonely Planet Seville...
and you lucky people are coming along for the ride.

I'll be posting reviews of all the restaurants I visit and you can keep track of my progress on my challenge page above. So here goes...

The List.

Eating:

Barrio de Santa Cruz, Alcazár and Cathedral

Vinería de San Telmo

Catalina

Casa Tomate

Restaurante Engaña Oriza

Cafe Bar Las Teresas

Corral del Agua

Restaurante La Albahaca

Extraverde

Álavaro Peregil

Bodega Santa Cruz

Horno de San Buenaventura

El Arenal

Enrique Becerra

Mesón Cinco Jotas

Mesón de la Infanta

Mesón Serranito

El Centro

Los Coloniales

Santo Restaurante

Bar Alfafa

Robles Laredo

Bar Europa

Confíteria La Campana

El Rinconcillo

Triana

Café de La Prensa

Casa Cuesta

Ristorante Casa Nostra

Alameda de Hércules

Duo Tapas

Bar-Restaurante Eslava

Drinking: 

Baños Árabes Tetería

Bulebar Cafe

El Garlochi

Feliz Día de Andalucíá

34 years ago today, Andalucía became an autonomous community of Spain.

28th February, the regional holiday of Andalusia day, is a celebration not only of autonomy but of what it means to be Andaluz!

Proud to be Andaluz

Having asked my students what Andalusia day means to them, it seems that its not very widely celebrated except in the schools. Children across Andalusia will be treated to a traditional Andaluz breakfast served by their teachers - a glass of orange juice and toast spread with olive oil. They will colour the regional flag, learn about the symbols of the area and also perform the regional anthem (usually on the recorder).

Particularly proud residents will bring out the bunting or decorate their balconies with flags, but it seems for the adult population of Andalusia, Andalusia Day is little more than an excuse for a lay in and a lazy lunch.

Wanting to fully experience the joys of Andalusia Day, as celebrated by true Spaniards, I have done practically nothing!

Woke up, pondered going in to town but decided against it and decided the day would be best spent studying. No sooner had I written one word on my page than I was being ushered out of the door for lunch in the sun in the village.

Luckily Eva, my boss, had booked a table because the place was buzzing. They had set places for us inside but when they saw our faces of disappointment at turning our backs on the sun, they told us to take it outside if we wanted. So that we did, we picked up our table, chipped plates and all, and put it in prime position on the terrace!

This restaurant 'The Four Corners' has the kind of atmosphere I'd always expected to find in Andalusia: full of life and chatter whilst everyone basks in the sun, the children running around the terrace, shrieking with laughter. It was like eating in your nan's back garden when the whole family is round for a BBQ - mismatched china and furniture but a lot of character and soul.

The food, as ever in Spain, was homely, plentiful and delicious, washed down with a cold beer as every kind of topic of conversation was batted around the table (from the latest trend in sunglasses to Turkey's possible entry in to the European Union).

 Tomato salad (Yes those are huge cubes of fresh garlic on top)

Fried cuttlefish

Beef in the best sauce you will ever taste!

As much as I love teaching the kids, I would take fiesta Fridays over adjectives and the past tense any day!

Bellies full and with the afternoon winds whipping up, there was nothing left to do but take a gentle stroll home. 

Writing this, eyes drooping, I'm thinking 'what better way to finish off the afternoon than a siesta?!'...guess it would be rude not too.

Until next time my lovelies...

Viva Andalucía!

Una vuelta: Citysightseeing Seville

I will confess something to you...my blog tag line is a sham. 'The art of wandering' she says! Up until this point I have been quite adept at wandering...it's how I find my way through this little adventure we call life - that is until now (or last Wednesday to be more precise!). 

I had just finished my day of home tuition in and around Seville and it was the first time I had been left to my own devices in my new city.  Armed with my memory map of where my boss, Eva, had walked me, I set of in search of tapas and the cathedral by night. 

After wandering, in completely the wrong direction, I managed to find my way after a kindly old man out strolling gave me directions. 

A good time was had by all (and by all I mean me, little loner!).

Then the problems started...

I wanted to get the bus station but wandering led me astray. Everyone I asked for directions pointed me in the opposite direction to the person before them. The streets were getting narrower, less crowded, darker and everything looked so ominous... I had a little cry. 

When I finally found my way to the bus station, the departure boards were broken. There was no way of knowing when the bus was going or even if there was a bus at all. No one seemed to know anything despite asking two members of staff...luckily a woman catching my bus overheard my desperate questioning and pointed me in the right direction. I had another little cry.

Determined to learn from Wednesdays alien experience, the first stop on Seville Saturday had to be the tourist office.

City map in hand, I made my way to the biro circle which marked the nearest tour bus stop! After getting so ferociously lost, I thought Citysightseeing Seville would be the best way to connect the dots - where had I been, where should I have gone and where should I go in the future (both direction wise and sighseeing wise!).

The route was pretty extensive and covered all major districts of the city (all that had things to see obviously!). The route itself takes 1hour and half if you don't take advantage of the various stops on offer. As I got on the bus pretty late, around 5, I thought it best to stay on board so as not to finish the tour in fading light! Besides, with 5 months still to go, who needs to do everything in one day?!

Your ticket includes entry to a number of normally payable attractions, gives you discounts and freebies at a number of shops and eateries and enables you to join walking tour groups across the city. Bonus: the ticket is valid for 48 hours so you can cram in everything it has to offer! Unfortunately, many of the attractions included close before 6pm whilst the buses run til gone 8pm so make sure you hop on early if you want to make the most of the free entry element.

All in all the tour was interesting and gave a general overview of many different aspects of the city enabling you to see which attractions attract you most! My only bug bear is that the bus spent a lot of time waiting at the stops. Only 5 minutes in to the tour, the bus stopped to 'adjust to the timetable' and waited for 15 minutes! YOU'VE ONLY JUST SET OFF, HOW CAN YOU NEED TO ADJUST ALREADY?!

The tour helped me to:

• get my bearings and see how the city was laid out,
• get a bit of background information about my new home,
• compile a list of sights to visit at a later date.

I wish that I had purchased the ticket when I had a spare day the following day so I could have joined one of the walking tours and visited some of the free attractions (which I will now have to fork out for!). 

I don't think the tour itself is worth the 15€ student price I paid for it, but if you take advantage of all the other elements included then it is truly great value! Something I will probably recommend to my family when I'm busy with the kids at work.

The route starts on the

Paseo de Colon, near the Toro del Oro (the Gold Tower)

from 10am - buses run every 20 to 30 minutes. 

Prices: Adult 17€

Child 7€

Student/concessions 15€