A new discovery – Tre Fratelli
I meant to go back to bed after the cats got me up way too early this morning (and after playing a few rounds of email Scrabble with alejna) but in the end I just read a bit and then Nog & I went out for an nice morning walk. My main objective, other than getting some exercise, was to take more photos of azulejos – you can see the ones I found today over here.
While we were out I spotted a new (well, new to me) Italian restaurant and noticed that it also had a list of tapas on a chalkboard outside. Italian tapas? It sounded almost too good to be true. And so after we’d finished our walk and had done a few chores at home, Nog invited me out for an Italian tapa lunch.
This time there was no overly generous soul bringing us extra drinks and another plate of food after we were already full. Though I did have a very nice glass of red wine. And we shared four tapas. And it was perfect. See for yourself . . .
risotto
manicotti with spinach & ricotta cheese
the first photo is mushrooms with garlic & herbs and bruschetta
casa azahar 
Even though we just had our lovely lunch of soup and fresh cucumbers, this post has made me hungry.
So glad to hear that you are enjoying food again! And feeling better.
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I just had a bag of chips…and a bloody mary, made with very cheap vodka…eat your heart out..;-)
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Mmmmm … chips!
The very best thing about this new find is that you can order wonderful Italian food in tapa size portions. It’s not only cheaper, but you don’t have to commit to a whole meal if you’re not that hungry. I wish more restaurants (other than Spanish ones) would do this.
For example, I love my favourite Italian place Porta Rossa, but you have to have a full meal there, so I don’t go there as often as I’d like to. The tapas we had today at Tre Fratelli were not only delicious but the whole meal only cost about 14 euros.
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yeah but I bet my chips and bloody marys knock the socks off any poncy tapas *tongueout*. In fact I just went out and bought some more……chips *and* vodka……:)))
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Well, it is Saturday night . . .
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That food looks very tasty!
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This whole discussion made me suddenly wonder why we have no tradition like tapas here in America? What a great idea it is, to be sure.
Perhaps it s rooted in our “Puritan” ancestry — the very idea of sitting around (lazily!) enjoying the beautiful evening air with a nice glass of wine and a little snack is anathema to that whole mind set. No matter that we have advanced a couple of centuries past that pioneer time where if you didn’t work all daylight hours you would probably starve to death in the winter, the whole attitude “Idle hands are the devil’s playground” is still very prevalent in this society.
Besides, how could stuff high fructose corn syrup and processed fats into, say, cod wrapped in puff pastry? Or that tapa Jim and I loved at Ay maricru that consisted of a couple of slices of zucchini with goat cheese layered between them, grilled lightly and served sprinkled with olive oil and paprika? How could Burger King market THAT?
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Heck, in this whole town, no let me expand that, this whole region, I cannot think of a single place where you can sit out on the sidewalk at a little table and eat a little something, let alone drink a glass of wine. And in Sevilla, heck, all over Spain and Portugal, even in the tiniest little villages, there were sidewalk bar/cafes everywhere we turned.
In our Sunday paper today there was a letter to the editor decrying the idea somebody proposed for revitalizing our dying downtown area suggesting that a cafe where you could eat and have a glass of wine or a mug of beer might be an good idea. The woman wrote, and I quote exactly: “”As far as being able to eat an a nice cafe and have a drink with it, is something that I ain’t too proud of. Anyhow, that’s the least of our worries. We eat at McDonald’s and have money left, plus we won’t get hooked on booze. I’ve lived in Lebanon 73 years and never craved a drink of liquor with meal or without one.”
Can I claim asylum in Europe on the basis of that? “Your honor, I am a refugee from the Bible Belt! Please protect me. I just want wine and tapas, have mercy!”
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Vancouver is tapas-crazy, let me tell you. Nobody eats entrees anymore, it seems.
But cleverly, they haven’t lowered the prices even though the portions are one-quarter the size!
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I feel for ya, hmh.
It really is a wonderful way to eat, Rain. Prices here went up after the change to the euro, but they are still usually quite reasonable. For example, these Italian tapas cost 2.50 euros each (the bruschetta was 1.50), which is probably the standard price for a tapa in Sevilla.
When I worked at a tapa restaurant in Bristol 16 years ago the tapas cost 4 pounds (about 5 euros).
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Oh. My. Stars.
Those little italian tapas look like heaven…when I go to an italian place here, they overload your plate with starches and sauce, which taste good, but it’s still just TOO MUCH. What’s with that? It’s so much nicer to have just a little and to share!
I’m glad you’re feeling better, and I’m sending you some happy vibes. {hug}
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