El Loco Sibarita is, in effect, the “nom de chef” of Miguel de Pablos, and I met up with him at his “pop-up” dining experience via my friend Fourat, to sample some of his traditional, yet unique, cooking.
For Miguel (formerly of the El Loco Sibarta restaurant near the Alameda) it’s all about the quality of the ingredients, and he’s actually a bit crazy about that – hence his name.
The four courses we enjoyed (there would have been five, but in the end we didn’t make it to dessert – too stuffed!) were certainly a tribute to his choices. So too were the accompaniments – Miguel’s own signature sourdough bread with quality olive oil, an excellent palo cortado sherry from González Byass, and a pair of red wines (Botas de Barro) with perfect earthy taste and smooth textures.
The space on this occasion was at Cobertura Photo gallery in El Arenal, which was both spacious and cosy, with lots of light and high ceilings. A very pleasant ambiance.
And so to our meal, taken at a leisurely pace through the course of the afternoon as Miguel prepared and cooked our food in the small open kitchen area next to us. First up was a simple salad of tomate rosa wedges garnished with sweet onion, marinated in olive oil and herbs that was a perfect start and exemplar of the importance of quality products. It was followed by a tortilla in the Galician style – softer and less dense than the traditional Andalucian version. Next a fish dish – fresh grilled hake with spring onions and a pimentón sauce, which was as good as any I’ve ever had. Finale was a pan-roasted 45-day aged beef that was succulent and full of flavour.
Miguel’s sourdough bread, made fresh daily, and served with quality olive oils.
- Beautiful tomates rosas, simply dressed with olive oil and salt.
- Tortilla al whisky with lots of lovely garlic.
- Grilled hake with pimentón, spring onions and garlic.
- Fresh lettuce leaves (lightly dressed) to accompany the meat course.
Loved these reds by “Dirty Boots”. My favourite was the Jumilla grape. We also tried old vine Garnacha.
Main course: 45 day aged beef from Lyon France. OMG. Exquisite.
chef Miguel de Pablos
Miguel and I are quite excited about working together in the future. It really is a top quality private dining experience with many options. If you live in Sevilla you will soon be able to see his upcoming events on Facebook, which include the full-on seasonal menu experience we had, as well as “tapas nights” and Miguel’s “in search of the perfect hamburger” quest, which includes a starter, a FULL-ON burger with up to 5 extra ingredients, 3 drinks and homemade dessert. I am so doing the burger one next time…
Yet another online friend I’ve “virtually” known for years. Although Tim 
One of the hazards of being a high profile Queen of Tapas and sherry educator is that just when you thought you might get an actual day off you get invited to go out and eat and drink fine food and wines. 😉 This week’s guilty parties were winemakers Finca Allende, and hosts and food pairing providers for their cata (tasting), Abades Triana restaurant.
The cata itself was conducted by Miguel Ángel de Gregorio of Finca Allende. They are a fairly small bodega from Briones in the Rioja Alta, and it was interesting to learn something more about this wine region. Miguel Ángel, who is clearly passionate about his wines, first arrived in Briones in 1986, and considered the climate, and especially the land, as ideal for the kind of terroire driven wines that he wanted to make.
We tried six different wines, two white and four red, each made with grapes from specific parcels of land, and which paired very nicely with a menu that progressed from a soup starter (salmorejo), through a tartar of urta (fish), a pluma Iberica, and beef to a chocolate mousse dessert. Exquisite.
You know how it goes… you have that one extra glass of wine at lunch and then on your way home you see something in a shop window that catches your eye. Luckily it wasn’t shoes (that never works out well – tipsy feet are much less fussy than sober ones) but these super cute, and totally unnecessary plates. Actually it’s a fish dinner plate, a fish soup bowl, and two smaller plain blue plates in between. They make me smile. What’s the best/worst thing you’ve ever bought while under the influence?
That’s the three of us – Caroline, Sonja and me – getting nicely squiffy last Sunday afternoon in Sevilla. Where to start with these two? Caroline first got in touch with me mid-September 2011, asking about booking a tapas tour for the end of that month. And since then they just keep coming back! To date they have taken THREE different tapas tours with me. The last couple of visits we just ended up meeting for tapas, and they have always been happy to help me out doing Tapas Research. Which is really what we were doing on Sunday. Honest. So five visits in total. So far.
casa azahar 