Category Archives: gastronomy

you lose some, you win some

05 Monday Jul 2021

Posted by in coronavirus, covid, gastronomy, instagram, patreon, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars, tapas tours

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lose some win some beautiful food and wonderful service at La Atrayana

I think most of you know about my labour of love Sevilla Tapas, that I started back in 2007, which then evolved into me doing food and wine tours after recovering from cancer. Which was going great until, well you know, 2020. But the main point of the website is to feature and help promote tapas bars and restaurants in Sevilla, and also to serve as a guide for food-loving people visiting the city.

During lockdown I did my best to support tapas bars here by keeping them in the public eye on my Twitter and Instagram accounts. As I have something like 30,000 food pics in my phone archives this wasn’t a problem. So I’d be sure to post something daily. Then once places started reopening I got back to doing what I do, which is visiting bars and updating their pages on my site. Very sadly some had closed for good during 2020, but others were born. And so keeping within my “safety parameters” of only going out twice a week and either sitting outside or near an open door/window, I got back to work.

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my clubhouse clubs

15 Monday Mar 2021

Posted by in clubhouse, gastronomy, social media, spain, wine

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my clubhouse clubs

My goodness… I have suddenly gone from being a very reluctant participant on Clubhouse (preferring to lurk and listen) to co-hosting THREE clubs. It all started the other day when the cats woke me up way too early, about 5.30 am. So I had a look at Clubhouse and there were these two guys, and then three @jack.madrid @yaffler @sommelierbrenodefaria, having a chat about fortified wines. I popped into the room, thinking I would just lurk as always, but they started asking me questions and finally I was brought up “on stage” and ended up yakking away about sherry for ages. We finally decided it would be a great idea to have a Club dedicated to fortified wines and, since I was the only one with “club credits” left, it was up to me to get the ball rolling.

Then the next day I was chatting with my friend Gabriella @tenedortours (aka Shawn of the North 😉) and I told her about this new club and said it would also be great to start one about Spanish wines. Gabriella has has lots of experience on Clubhouse already, speaking and moderating on various clubs, so she got the new Spanish Wine Club set up in no time. To compliment it I set up the Spanish Food Club, because you really can’t (or shouldn’t) have one without the other. And so that’s how it all happened.

All three clubs debut this week. I’m nervous AF, but luckily my co-hosts are seasoned Clubhouse pros. Still… eep! 😬

gitana tapas at T

30 Wednesday Sep 2020

Posted by in food & drink, friends, gastronomy

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So, remember chef John? Well, I introduced him to Ricardo & Javi at T by ConTenedor and it looks like they are going to be a good match. This evening John presented a five-course tasting menu for the four of us and it was spectacular. Works so well in the equally spectacular space too. If you live in Sevilla look for upcoming tasting menu pop-ups by John on his @gitana.tapas and T’s @T_espacio_gastronomico Instagram accounts.

You can see the pics below…

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chef john

08 Tuesday Sep 2020

Posted by in gastronomy, restaurants, sevilla

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Back in July chef John Grabecki @grabecki1 got in touch with me about his new project Gitana Tapas @gitana.tapas which he hopes to start up in Sevilla soon. So after a bit of whatsapping, and also waiting after he arrived here to pass 14 days without any obvious covid symptoms, we met up for lunch at La Barra de Inchausti.

Some people (me included, initially) might think it’s a crazy idea for a chef from London to come to Sevilla in the middle of a pandemic to start a new business. On the other hand, well, why not? I should know better than anyone that sometimes you just have to follow your heart, and John not only has some family ties here (his sister is married to a Sevillano) but he also just loves it here.

Anyhow, lovely lunch, lovely company, and I am happy to help him out with connections, etc. So watch this space! Also go give John and Gitana Tapas a follow on Instagram!  🙂

out and about

21 Tuesday Jul 2020

Posted by in gastronomy, restaurants, sevilla, spain, tapas, tapas bars, welcome

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out and about (1)
Have decided to try and get out and about once a week to visit my friends and their bars and restaurants. This was basically the idea behind the Patreon page, and so far I’ve got 4 patrons! So this money will go directly into keeping Sevilla Tapas alive, allowing me to keep it updated. But it also means I get to see my friends! Bonus.  🙂

On this outing I stopped in at Lama La Uva to see Ana Linares and enjoy a glass of manzanilla while catching up on all her news. And she had plenty! That gurl does not stay still. She hinted at a new project that she says she can’t talk about yet, a bit like naming your baby before it’s born. Meanwhile, she has expanded the menu at her second location Lama La Uva Sol, so I will have to get back there soon. Ana has been active all throughout the lockdown, offering online wine tastings and home delivery. She’s an unstoppable force of nature that one.

out and about (2)

Next stop was lunch at the recently reopened Lalola Restaurante, run by chef Javi Abascal in the spectacular courtyard of the boutique Hotel Conde de Torrejón. Speaking of unstoppable forces of nature… Javi (aka El Rey de la Casquería) is a social media monster and reopened last week with a bang, with a new menu, organised tasting menu events and a take-away option.

As always, the food was exceptional and the courtyard is bright and airy, so proper social distancing of tables is not a problem. The only sad bit was not being able to get the usual Javi bear hug, one of my favourite hugs in the city.  😉

out about

  • Succulent tuna belly with tangy tomate frito
  • Sautéed rabbit kidneys with mushrooms, potatoes, reisling sauce
  • Abanico Ibérco, grilled to crusty tender pink perfection
  • Silky buttery dijony mash