Category Archives: tapas tours

katie & co

06 Monday Oct 2025

Posted by in sevilla, sherry, spain, tapas, tapas bars, tapas tours

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Remember Katie & Paul? We met back in 2023 when Katie (a twitter/insta pal, that’s her on the right) looked me up while they were in town and we spent a lovely sherry-filled afternoon together. Then they came back in February this year for the first Bowland & Bay Sevilla Getaway and last week we did the second one. And you know what? I think we’re getting good at this! Apparently round three is going to happen in March.

Katie runs her adventure food company Bowland & Bay out of Lancashire UK so if you happen to live near there, or will be in the area, look her up. Below a couple of “after” shots from the Sherry Tour on Friday. On Thursday we did a Market and Tapas tour in Triana (both modified from the usual tours to accommodate a larger group and my limited mobility). A job well done!

Pam & Gibert

29 Friday Aug 2025

Posted by in food & drink, friends, sevilla, sherry, tapas bars, tapas tours

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Vaughn, Nora Frances, Pam & Gibert

It’s always so lovely when clients become friends. Pam & Gibert were first here in April 2024 and came out with me on both a Flamenco Tour and for a Sherry & Tapas Tasting. We’ve stayed in touch since then and so when I heard they would be stopping in Sevilla briefly at the end of August with another couple we had to do something. But what? I could have offered them a Triana Tour for something different but of course I CAN’T WALK. In fact, the only work available to me since last August has been the tastings because they take place in one bar and I can hobble there and back again at my own snails pace. So then I had a think and put together the “Off The Beaten Path ON CRUTCHES Tour”. And it was actually fabulous.

All the bars were about a five minute walk (ten minute hobble) apart and – most importantly – not far from my house. We started off early at Sevilla’s sherry temple Manolo Cateca in order to get The Table (there’s only one) and while Manolo doesn’t take bookings he agreed to hold the table for me if we got there right at 12.00 noon. Deal! After that a few posh seafood snacks at La Barra de Cañabota followed by the “main course” of traditional tapas at Taberna Zurbarán (who also don’t take bookings but did me a favour). And well, it turned out so well I am tempted to offer it as one of my regular tours, except other than Cañabota I would have to call in a favour each time at the other two places and I don’t want to take advantage. It would work with just two people as we could always squeeze in without having to book everywhere. Hmmm… maybe something to think about.

Anyhow, Pam & Gibert will be back AGAIN next March (“I’m like a bad penny, Shawn”) and I really can’t wait to see them again. Even if just to hear Pam’s wonderful southern accent again… I could listen to her all day.

a good day

21 Thursday Aug 2025

Posted by in bitesize sevilla, flamenco, life stuff, sevilla, tapas, tapas tours

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I almost didn’t go out today but, as I did stay-at-home yesterday, I gave myself a push and ended up so happy that I did. It wasn’t so blisteringly hot, down almost 10 degrees from last week, but I still hopped on the 32 bus for one stop to cut down on painful walking. On my way to the Flamenco Museum (researching an upcoming Bitesize Sevilla article) I was surprised to see Ultramarinos Lucas open. My friend Roger had told me about this place ages ago but every time I passed by it was closed. So of course I had to go in. An ultramarinos is a small grocery store / wine shop where you can often have a glass of something and a snack. So I went in and met Pablo, whose grandfather had started the shop more than 100 years ago. We had a nice long chat and I promised to come back to do a write up. 

In spite of the quick bus ride it was still a bit of a hike to the Museo so we decided to stop off for a quick Beer O’clock at Salmedina along the way. 

At the Museo I met with Carlos to get some help with how to structure my article and while I was there I was hit with such a feeling of… almost like homesickness? I’ve been taking people there on my flamenco & tapas tours for almost 15 years, but of course not since last summer when I started needing crutches to walk. I guess it was a combination of missing both the place and my old life. Anyhow, Carlos was super helpful and I came away with tons of notes, plus he sent me extra info by email.

By then it was lunchtime and, as I hadn’t updated Catalina La Barra in over a year, we headed over there. Even managed to find stuff on the menu I hadn’t tried! And then it was time to hobble home. Got back around 4 pm, took a shower and just felt… so happy. I don’t know, it doesn’t sound like anything special but it really was. Meeting and chatting with different people, feeling purposeful, a nice meal. A good day. 

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.


wanker

01 Tuesday Oct 2024

Posted by in sevilla, tapas tours

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wanker

A couple of weeks ago I received an email from a guy who was building up a tour company here and had decided to call it Azahar Tours… then he saw I was already using this name and had been, well forever, and he asked if it would bother me if he also used it, even though his tours weren’t food related. I told him that I really appreciated him asking and that, yes, the azahar brand has been associated with me since 2005 and so to avoid any confusion it might be better if he chose another name that was all his own. And he did. Respect.

But not this wanker. The Sevilla Tapas brand has also been recognised as mine since 2009 (2007 if you count when the food blog started) and basically, Sevilla Tapas Tours (as generic as it may sound) has been my food tour name, again, since forever, because… I got there first. But what I didn’t do was pay for every possible website domain that might sound like me. In fact, since I barely knew what I was doing back in 2007 my main domain is a bit messy. But whatever. People still find me because I’ve been online for almost 20 years and I have a respected reputation. One that I think I have earned.

Then this wanker comes along, some guy here who started doing food tours, and in fact mostly seems to be doing my tours (as so many of the copycat food tour companies do these days) but then touts himself to be THE authentic food tour experience in Sevilla. Whatever. It only began to irk when he started calling himself Seville Tapas Tour all over social media, cos like, that’s me. Then today I saw this sponsored ad on instagram calling himself the REAL Seville Tapas Tour… wtf.

Don’t get me wrong. This guy makes no difference to me in terms of work. I always have more tour requests than I can handle (hence, my angels). What irks is that he knows he is using my well-known brand name. I guess because he is hoping people will confuse him with me? That this might drive some business his way? How pathetic is that? Because he does know who I am. We see each other in the street (he ignores me) and I mean come on. I just don’t get it. And I am certainly not flattered.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness. – Oscar Wilde