Category Archives: restaurants

the boyz are back in town

24 Thursday Nov 2022

Posted by in food & drink, friends, restaurants, sevilla

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renoir (20)

Richie, Michael, Juanlu, Frank & Pankaj

Can’t actually remember the first time(s) I met Michael and Frank, the dynamic duo behind Renoir Guides. Quite a few years ago now. And as Michael lives in London and Frank on the Costa del Sol we end up meeting up separately more often than together, either here or there. But this week is different! All the boyz are here, including Pankaj (who I’ve met before) and Richie (first time). And what a kick off we had. Sherry and aperitifs at Manolo Cateca and then lunch at Cañabota. And omg what a lunch it was. The last time I was at Cañabota was for my birthday in 2019 and since then Juanlu and team have garnered their first Michelin star (2021).

Funniest thing was walking into Manolo Cateca to meet the boyz and there was Sam! (of Charlie & Sam). I mean, what were the odds? Not only was he just passing through town but the last time I saw him and Charlie was on my birthday in 2019, just after my last meal at Cañabota when they met me for some celebratory cava. Mind blown.

It was an amazing afternoon, fun catching up and the food was spectacular, every bite was perfection and the wines were gorgeous. Many many thanks to the boyz for taking me out for this unforgettable experience.

Highlights from the superb Cañabota tasting menu below. Tomorrow I’m taking the guys on a Tasting Triana Tour. God help me…

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redemption

21 Tuesday Jun 2022

Posted by in restaurants, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars

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redemption

A couple of weeks ago I ran into a friend of mine enjoying snails outside a very popular snail bar (they’re in season now) and he was with a pal who happened to be a chef at a restaurant I wrote a rather scathing review about a few years ago (2013, this chef wasn’t there at that time). Anyhoodle, I took a pic of them and posted it on my Instagram and the next day got a message from the new owner of this place, asking me if I’d like to come and have a meal to see if I might enjoy it better than last time. I said sure, I mean why not, and then asked if I could bring a friend. And so I brought my friend Fourat with me, the same person who had been with me at that last disastrous meal back in 2013, it just seemed fitting. Fourat thought so too.

So today we showed up for lunch and it was lovely. Since Covid the new management (brother and sister team) has redone the whole place, including the menu, which now has a few Peruvian influenced dishes as Pedro has spent years in Peru running a restaurant there. It looked like a very interesting menu.

Gotta say, the main ISSUE of the previous visit had been the absolutely appalling and frankly rude service. It was only when I saw Fourat’s jaw drop open at one point after an especially rude bit that I knew I wasn’t just being over sensitive. We paid. We left. We never went back. Because you can have the best food in the world (and trust me, this wasn’t that) but if the service sucks then so does the entire experience.

Of course today we were going to get the VIP treatment, so I was mostly focused on the food. Which was excellent. Original takes on traditional dishes, the aforementioned Peruvian ones, lovely lemon and cava sorbet for dessert, all of which left us wanting to come back and try more. I really appreciate that Pedro got in touch because of course things change and he gave me – and Fourat – the chance to take another look.

fuck brunch

24 Thursday Mar 2022

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brunch

A few weeks ago Twitter pal (and imo one of the best food writers ever) Marina O’Loughlin posted her somewhat sweary article in Noble Rot mag railing against the nonsense that is brunch. And of course the comments flooded in by like-minded (right-minded!) folks who chimed in with their own (sometimes also sweary) opinions about brunch. Which basically boiled down to: fuck brunch.

And then the other day I saw this. By definition all day brunch should not be possible. Or even allowed. Frankly it sounds more like a threat. ALL DAY BRUNCH. I shudder just thinking about it.

la calçotada

18 Friday Feb 2022

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It’s that time of year again. From December to March calçots are in season and during this time La Quinta Brasserie brings the Catalan calçotada to Sevilla. Over the years it’s become a bit of a tradition here at Casa Azahar. You can either order the full menu or just a “teja” (roof tile) of calçots to share and then order a la carte.

The calçots are similar to a large spring onion and are roasted over coals, then wrapped up in newspaper and served with a wonderfully nutty romesco sauce. Delicious and also messy as hell (La Quinta provided us with a paper bib and also black latex gloves for this procedure). The trick is getting the non-charred soft delicate centre out. First you peel away a bit of the charred bit at the end until you see the green part of the onion. Hold onto that! Then tightly grip the tip of the calçot with your other hand and pull.

After that you dip the calçot into romesco sauce, another Catalan dish made with tomatoes and roasted red peppers, puréed and thickened with toasted crushed almonds and bread. Heaven.  After dipping the calçot into the romesco you are meant to tip your head back, hold it high over your mouth and slowly lower it in. So good, and also lots of fun.

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noor by paco morales

07 Monday Feb 2022

Posted by in andalucia, culture, food & drink, gastronomy, getaways, michelin star, restaurants

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This truly was a dream come true. I mentioned last week that my friends Xavier and Nina were coming to town with their friends Wade and Ginny, and that Xavier had seen my interview in Bon Viveur where they asked which one restaurant I was dying to go to… and my answer was NOOR! So as the gang had already planned to go there Xavier very generously invited me to go with them.

NOOR, which means “light” in Arabic, was opened in 2016 by Cordobés chef Paco Morales. His concept is all about tasting the history of al-Andaluz (the moorish name for Andalucía) and for his first season he began in the 10th century, using ingredients that were available to the people of that time. With the help of documentarians, historians, archaeologists and designers, Paco has told the culinary story of the times with skill and imagination, which has earned him two well-deserved michelin stars. Each season he has moved up a century (with a retrospective in year 4) and so, for this visit, we found ourselves in the late 16th century. And for the first time at NOOR new world comestibles have been introduced into the menu.

I won’t say too much about what happens there because there are some lovely surprises, but the space is simply gorgeous, all light and open and elegantly minimalist. The tables all have a clear view of the open kitchen and the service is beautifully choreographed without being pretentious or stuffy. Maître/Sommelier Pilar Vargas keeps everything running smoothly and is charming and helpful, as are all the staff.

The food. I’m not going to go into detail here because it would take all day. So much detail, so much care, so much going on. And so just go have a look at the photos and, yes, they were all as delicious as they look. Not a wrong step, though I will say that a couple of personal favourites were the cured meat starter with pickled onion and albaqdunis, the almond curd with tuna, and the grilled sea bass. But honestly, I loved every bite.

The wines. In the end we did the wine pairing and omg it was fabulous. While there was an emphasis on Montilla Moriles (of course) Pilar also surprised us with some international choices and then a special 2014 Moscatel de Alejandria by Pérez Barquero made exclusively for NOOR and served from a gorgeous green damajuana.

There are three menus available. Xavier chose the middle one “rihla” with the wine pairing option, but you could also order a bottle of wine and have Pilar “fill in” with a couple of special tastes during the menu tasting.

At the end of our meal we huddled together with Paco for a group photo and asked him what he was planning for the upcoming season. He made a show of asking one of the team, Josef, to come over so he could translate Paco’s answer to our group into English… and the answer was IT’S A SURPRISE. Honestly, if you can, go. Pics below…

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