
New on Bitesize Sevilla … A final (?) visit to Restaurante Arrieros. Have a look and if you like it you can give it a “like”. And if you really like it please consider becoming a subscriber (free or paid). Thanks!
17 Friday Apr 2026
Posted in andalucia, bitesize sevilla, restaurants, sevilla, substack

New on Bitesize Sevilla … A final (?) visit to Restaurante Arrieros. Have a look and if you like it you can give it a “like”. And if you really like it please consider becoming a subscriber (free or paid). Thanks!
18 Wednesday Mar 2026
Posted in gastronomy, restaurants, sevilla
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I’ve known José Luis Pastrano since he started off as a young chef at 5-star luxe hotel Balbuena y Huertas in 2023. Within a few months he had garnered recommendations for the restaurant in both the Michelin and Repsol guides… not bad! But things didn’t quite work out with the hotel management so he moved on to open a place in his home village of San José de la Rinconada just outside Sevilla. Then last year he was offered a gig at yet another hotel in the city centre and sadly that fell through after a few months. But now he is back in the centre once more, this time in his own place – no more hotels! – and so Reyes and I stopped in this week to check it out. And we loved it. So much deliciousness… I really hope this will be his time to shine. He deserves it.
27 Friday Feb 2026
Posted in bitesize sevilla, restaurants, sevilla, substack
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The latest on Bitesize Sevilla … at the end of every month I publish a wrap-up list of the new reviews and updates I’ve done. Have a look and if you like it you can give it a “like”. And if you really like it please consider becoming a subscriber (free or paid). Thanks!
20 Friday Feb 2026
Posted in bitesize sevilla, culture, gastronomy, restaurants, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars
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Today my friend and neighbour Mariano Gárcia received the Cucharón de Plata (Silver Ladle) award for his “exemplary career and a lifetime dedicated to the hospitality industry”. It was a very moving ceremony and, typically, Mariano dedicated his award to his family, co-workers and customers…
I have not been, nor am I by any means, the sole author or deserving recipient of this distinction, which, thanks to the prestige of the Chamber of Commerce, the Rural Savings Bank, and the City Council in the person of its Mayor, fills me with satisfaction and pride. Of Cafetería Donald, of Restaurante Donald, of La Hermandad, I am only a co-author, and I say ‘co’ because you have also been, and will be, my wife, my daughters, my parents, my mentor Manolo Ávila, my fellow members of so many beloved brotherhoods, my people in the world of bullfighting, my friends, my gatherings, and everyone else. Without you, Donald would be a ‘simple’ bar and not a home for all those I just named.

More on Mariano and Cafetería Donald coming soon on Bitesize Sevilla.
29 Thursday Jan 2026
Posted in birthdays, friends, restaurants, sevilla

Last but not least for this year’s birthday lunch celebrations… I finally got together with Reyes! We’ve been trying all month but what with one thing or the other it didn’t happen until now. But it was well worth the wait. Reyes had never been to Desacato and so off we went, stopping on the way for a quick sherry at Manolo Cateca (happily the rain held off). A fabulous feast in the best company… and there was even “cake” (actually a smoked dark chocolate mousse with crunchy salt and orange peel). Then a penúltima at Ramón’s Gran Café España and just as I was arriving home the rain started up again. A perfect day.

Chef Pablo Carrasco is one of Los Chicos de Petit.