Category Archives: gastronomy

homenaje a julio moreno

25 Wednesday Jun 2025

Posted by in academia sevillana gastronomy turismo, friends, gastronomy, sevilla

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Julio Moreno & Manuel Salinero

The wonderful Julio Moreno has stepped down as president of the Academia Sevillana de Gastronomía y Turismo (of which I became a proud member in June 2023) and super-foodie Manuel Salinero is stepping up. Today the Academy held a tribute luncheon for Julio at Ispal with most of the academy members showing up (no small feat, it’s like herding cats!) as well as some special guests from the gastronomy and tourism scene here. 

We enjoyed a fabulous sevillano meal with modern touches, the wine flowed, speeches were given, gifts relayed (my favourite was the apron we all signed for Julio)… the outpouring of honest love and respect from everyone present was truly moving to witness. Anyhow, Julio isn’t going far. He is now officially recognised as Presidente de Honor, though we are calling him the presidente eterno, and he will still be with us at activities and events. But now he has more time to enjoy his other pastimes too and only has to see us when he wants to. What a guy. Big love. 

andala marbella

06 Friday Jun 2025

Posted by in andalucia, gastronomy, getaways, restaurants, tapas

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One of the highlights of last week’s Málaga-Marbella getaway was finally getting to visit my friend Jeffrey Merrihue’s restaurant in the heart of Marbella… Andala. We met up there on Friday evening with my friends Ana and Simon who live in Sotogrande and from there we let Jeffrey take over. 

Andala opened in December 2023 and it is unique in Marbella in that it offers a high quality gourmet tapas menu, with each tapa representing each of the eight Andalusian provinces, as well as daily specials menu featuring fresh locally-sourced products. 

It’s a cosy spot with a bright attractive dining area that opens onto an elevated terrace looking towards the sea. I really love the tapas concept – one for each province – and we did our best to try them all, but there were too many other specials calling us… this is definitely a place you want to come back to. 

We loved every bite we had but – and it may sound silly – whatever else you order you HAVE to have THAT potato. You do. 

Service is super friendly with knowledgeable staff who are there to not only help you with your choices but to also make you feel at home. There’s an excellent wine list too, be sure to ask for some guidance there. Highly recommended – well done Jeffrey and Team! 

Andala Marbella
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bowland & bay

27 Thursday Feb 2025

Posted by in gastronomy, sevilla, sherry, tapas tours

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You may remember Katie & Paul, who visited here back in the fall of 2023. We’d met through social media and then also got to meet in person and we’ve stayed in touch ever since. Katie runs food adventure company Bowland & Bay in Lancashire UK and this week she hosted her first “trial run” Sevilla Getaway with six close friends, and of course Paul (aka Sherry Boy) came along too.

At first Katie had wanted a Triana Tour and a Sherry Tour but of course I CAN’T WALK, which I didn’t think was still going to be an issue when we first started organising things last October. Well okay, I can’t walk much. So since there were going to be eight of them requiring a slightly modified itinerary anyhow, I basically came up with two new “experiences” for them which would require less walking (and taxis home) for me. And both of them went so well I may start offering a version of these shorter tours on my website. Because, other than still being able to do my Sherry Tastings, the tours have been on hold since last summer. We shall see.

Meanwhile, Katie is already organising her next Sevilla Getaway for next October and I’m already looking forward to it.