Category Archives: restaurants

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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brunch!

24 Monday Feb 2025

Posted by in food & drink, restaurants, sevilla

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I just can’t brunch. Sorry. Yesterday my friends at La Azotea invited me and Peter to try their brand new Sunday brunch menu and I had to check to see what was the latest time we could arrive. Which was shortly after noon. Still a bit early but what the heck. And it really was lovely, just a lot of food to consider so early in the day.

It’s a set menu with a choice of three egg dishes (we tried two of the three – benedict and Ibérico). All of it was delicious. And one bonus with having the midday meal finish earlier than usual was that I actually got a lot of extra work done after getting home. Also went to bed earlier. Don’t think it will become a habit though.

Sunday Brunch at La Azotea

  • bread basket, olive oil, butter, jam
  • charcuterie, cheese
  • eggs: rancheros / benedict / revuelto Ibérico
  • waffle with maple syrup, nuts and fruit
  • coffee / tea
  • juice / soft drink
  • bloody sherry / mimosa

calçots 2025

07 Friday Feb 2025

Posted by in gastronomy, restaurants, seasons, sevilla

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It’s been a few years since I last went to the calçotada at La Quinta and so today while out making an appointment at the Social Security office (more on that next week) we decided to stop in as it was in the neighbourhood and scored a table out on the patio. Rather than go with the whole calçotada menu (which is way too much food) we opted for a rooftile of calçots and a couple of other dishes. This year they didn’t offer any gloves so our hands were a total black mess in no time.

This is a Catalán tradition where the calçots (similar to a large spring onion) are roasted over charcoal, then wrapped up in newspaper and served with a nutty romesco sauce. Delicious and also messy as hell. The trick is in getting the non-charred 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 the romesco sauce and pop it into your mouth. One day I hope to attend a real calçotada out in the countryside in Catalunya but for now this is just fine.

takeaway!

17 Friday Jan 2025

Posted by in homecooking, restaurants, sevilla, spain, substack

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The other day I was invited to try out a new restaurant here by María, who I’ve known forever. She has a new job as front of house at brand new Luz y Brasa and she told the owners about me. And so, I went with Peter and it really was a great experience. BUT… there were only two of us and, aside from a few small starters, most of the dishes were mahoosive. So we on purpose over ordered because we didn’t want to have to decide between the sea bass or the Ibérico pork, and so we had both and then half of this baby came home with us.

People visiting Sevilla are never sure whether it’s okay to ask for a “doggie bag”. But I say hell yeah. It’s not really so much a Spanish custom but during Covid lockdown and with many places doing takeaway it became more usual, and then in 2023 there was a law passed (La Ley de Prevención de Pérdidas y Desperdicio Alimentario) requiring restaurants to offer a takeaway/leftover service.

And so Thursday’s takeaway leftovers have ended up being a delicious Friday lunch. Wild sea bass in a quick garlicky amontillado sauce, buttery mash and peas. Win-win.