Category Archives: markets

galicia getaway – a coruña

24 Wednesday Aug 2016

Posted by in food & drink, gastronomy, markets, spain, travel, trips

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coruna (1)My first day trip with Anna and Jorge The KilomEATers was to A Coruña, a lovely coastal town about 45 minutes (by car) north of Santiago de Compostela. We started off by visiting the central market, which is renowned for its fish and seafood. After that we drove over to the second “old centre” by the port, and thus began an amazing culinary adventure.coruna (2)

Our first stop was Taberna Arallo, very recently opened in the Plaza Mayor, and run by the same group in charge of Michelin starred Alborada. To me the décor and general ambiance felt a bit “prefab cool”, complete with the now de rigueur long communal table and open kitchen, and smooth jazz Spotify on the sound system. Luckily we were there at opening time (no reservations taken) and got a spot at the end of the table that felt a bit more “private”.

Here we sampled just three dishes (we were saving ourselves as we knew we had at least two other places to go). The volandeiras in hot & sour sauce were spectacular, and the “nigiri” croquetas topped with salted hake were also very good. But the “flamenking” filled with zorza and potato, while tasty, came with a rather pointless sweet chilli sauce. In general it was a pleasant, if pricey, experience.

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Next up was Pulpeira de Melide for their renowned pulpo a feira with potatoes boiled in the same water as the octopus. I thought it was delicious, though Anna and Jorge both insisted they’d had better pulpo there on previous occasions.

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Last but not least was a visit to Boca Negra. I’d heard good things about this place and, upon arrival, we were greeted by chef and owner Pablo Pizarro who arranged a special tasting menu for us. The food and service here were excellent – definitely a “must” when you are in Coruña.

  • Saam: pancetta with mussel, sriracha, shiitake, tartare sauce
  • Cauliflower foam with green curry and mussels
  • Dumpling of zambariñas a la Gallega
  • Jurel (horse mackerel) in palo cortado
  • Bonito tartare with spicy ají sauce
  • Secreto Ibérico empanada with curry, spicy housemade ketchup on the side
  • Marinated and grilled chicken thighs with peanuts, cilantro, chilli, pineapple
  • Dessert: Gin & tonic strawberry ice cream with pink peppercorn

coruna (4)A Coruña struck me as a city of contrasts. Great natural beauty and wonderful turn of the (20th) century architecture at times clashing with patches of modernist wasteland. Though overall it’s an attractive place and well worth visiting. I was grateful to have my two very knowledgeable friends as guides, which definitely helped me get the most of my few hours in town.

london getaway 2016 | day 6

08 Monday Aug 2016

Posted by in food & drink, gastronomy, london, markets, travel, trips

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london day 6 (1)

It was Sunday and, as I had a whole lotta nuthin planned, I decided to do one of my favourite things… check out a local market. I’d been hearing great things about the Maltby Street Market, so decided to check it out (even though it meant walking over bridges – twice!). Ever since my surprise panic attack on Friday I was feeling especially vulnerable – right okay, terrified – of going out on my own, but decided to bite the bullet. In this case Tower Bridge wasn’t as “threatening” as I’d feared and catching a glimpse of my Shard also helped me forget I was supposed to be afraid, and I made it across without incident.

london day 6 (12)The Maltby Street Market is an offshoot of the now super popular and upscale Borough Street market, created by people who used to belong to Borough Street but became disillusioned by the direction it has taken. It is open Saturdays and Sundays and is a short walk off Tower Bridge, in Ropewalk lane. I fell in love with it immediately. Also… note to market organisers. Make sure you have your Wine Guy situated just past the main entrance. This was how I met Philip…

london day 6 (2)Philip Morton runs M-wines and focuses on specialty wineries with a production of 1000 bottles a year. And as soon as I started talking with Philip I knew I’d found a special place. He was not only very keen on telling me about his wines but, upon finding out I was hoping to try various foods throughout the market, warned me that the portions sizes were usually massive. Then he popped across the way to Lahpet and asked if they could do a couple of sample sized portions for me…

london day 6 (3)Brothers Dan Anton and Jono serving up fab Burmese street food.

london day 6 (13)Tealeaf salad and prawn curry. Burmese street by Lahpet

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Next I couldn’t resist Bar Tozino… six jamones on offer, sherry galore. I don’t usually opt for Spanish food when I’m in London but I was feeling homesick so I poked my head inside and was immediately welcomed by Juan, who commenced to offer me slices of Ibérico to go with my perfectly chilled manzanilla.

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Feeling pretty much stuffed at this point but still curious I made my way over to the Hoxton Beach falafel stall and Moody was happy to make up a “half order” for me, just so I could try it out.

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Then I saw these beauties… scotch eggs by Finest Fayre. So I bought a chorizo one to take home for supper (it was not likely I’d be going out again that day).

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And then I met Mark, the Gay Farmer. Mark produces a unique 50/50 blend (picual and arbequina) extra virgen olive oil from his family’s groves in Murcia. Such a lovely and passionate man, clearly in love with what he is doing. I can’t wait to try the bottle I took home with me.

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Then THESE. Is it a cake? Is it a waffle? Is it a donut? Irene @dhan_waffle is creating one of the most unique desserts in town. You really want to try these Taiwanses eggy delights with tasty toppings.

london day 6 (7)By now the market was beginning to shut down so I had a last glass of wine with Philip and made my way back towards Tower Bridge… and then I saw a sign for something called the Doodle Bar. Intrigued (and still a bit thirsty) I turned the corner into Druid street and found this wonderful new bar, just opened here the day before, from their previous location in Battersea.

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So I sat at the bar for “la penúltima” before heading home and totally loved the ambiance, the friendly staff, and especially that I could recharge my iphone at the bar using one of the many USB chargers.

london day 6 (8)Finally it was time to head home and I made my way back over Tower Bridge. This was my one “totally on my own day” without meeting up with any friends. But the whole experience at Maltby made me feel so at home, so much in my element (chatting away with everybody) that I never felt like I was on my own. It was a lovely Sunday afternoon, followed by a cosy Sunday evening in.

london day 6

day job

28 Monday Mar 2016

Posted by in markets, sevilla, spain, tapas, tapas tours, work

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day jobmarket “picnic” during a Market & Tapas Tour

During Semana Santa last week I only offered tapas tours at lunchtime, due to the massive crowds and processions in the evenings. Bars are also packed solid then. I remember back when I first started doing the tours I would do them pretty much whenever I was asked, including when the Semana Santa processions were on. Lesson learned. I guess in some ways it was “fun” in the sense of everything being very unpredictable, with clients knowing that anything could happen (or not happen, as in, not moving from one spot for half an hour). But in the end I decided this really didn’t represent my Sevilla Tapas Tours and, frankly, these tours were exhausting.

Anyhow, last week was a nice balance of being busy but also with enough time to relax. And it struck me around mid-week how it felt a bit odd only working during the day and having the evenings free. Like a proper day job! Because I’d say about 80% of my tours happen in the evening. So it was a nice break from the routine.

mr potato face

18 Friday Mar 2016

Posted by in food & drink, markets, sevilla, tapas tours

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mr potato face

The other day I was doing some tapas tour training with Aldara for the We Love Tapas Market Tour and we came across this guy. It reminded me of the very best tomatoes I’d ever tasted, bought out of the boot of a car in a village near Sevilla. They were the lumpiest, most misshapen tomatoes I’d ever seen too. Lately there is a growing trend of shops selling “wonky veg”, along with food that is past its sell-by date, at bargain prices. It’s a great idea, don’t you think? Especially for families on a budget, but really for anyone against wasting food for no reason. I think – and hope – we will see more of these outlets soon.