aracena getaway day 3

16 Thursday Apr 2026

Posted by in trips, travel, andalucia, getaways, bitesize sevilla

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

Final day in Aracena. What, so soon? Everything had been planned so well before leaving Sevilla, but you know what they say about plans. In any case, it all started off great (after yet another overpriced meh hotel breakfast). We were picked up by Belén Reyes from Jamones Eíriz so we could visit her family’s bodega in Cortaconcepción. I was put in touch with the Eíriz family by my good friend and neighbour Mariano García (Cafetería Donald), who has been their client for over fifty years. And I was eager to visit because they are a smaller more artisanal producer, kind of the opposite end of the scale from Cinco Jotas. It turned out to be not only an interesting contrast, but also super educational. Delicious too as we were treated to a great tasting of jamón and charcuterie paired with local wines at the end. Plus I GOT TO SEE PIGGIES.

The plan for the rest of the afternoon was that Belén would drop us back at the hotel where we would be picked up by my dear friend Javi Abascal, who would then take us to visit his newest project in Fuenteheridas, a restaurant and guesthouse called Restaurante Lieva. And after lunch there Javi would take us back to Sevilla. Perfect! Except that on the way to meet us Javi’s car broke down and he spent the afternoon waiting for a tow truck and then at the garage back in Sevilla. But no problem. Belén ended up driving us to Lieva and afterwards one of Javi’s staff took us home.

This is a very special place. For one it’s huge with several charming dining rooms that have been beautifully maintained, including the fixtures and original floor tiles. And there is also a spacious terrace, perfect for events. I didn’t get to see the guest houses – next time! But you can take a look here. The menu, fitting for Sevilla’s Rey de la Cascarilla (King of Offal – sounds better in Spanish) focuses on local products, specifically with doing wondrous things to every part of the Ibérico pig. Will definitely be back for more.

aracena getaway day 2

15 Wednesday Apr 2026

Posted by in travel, andalucia, getaways, bitesize sevilla

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , ,

 

Peter, Luismi, Adela, Bill

Woke up on Day 2 with nothing else planned other than a much anticipated re-visit to the most wonderful Restaurante Arrieros, which is about to close after 25 years. I had previously thought I would visit the Castle and the much-touted Caves of Wonder in the morning but it turns out I can’t actually walk (well, hobble) in Aracena. So after meh hotel breakfast we just hung out at the hotel (to be fair it’s lovely) until it was time to call our taxi to get to Linares de la Sierra. We were picked up by Pepa (turns out she and her husband Pepe are THE taxistas in Aracena) and after a brief detour up to the Castle to take some shots of the VIEW (see postcard post) we were off to Linares de la Sierra. I’m guessing that Pepa is an ex-Formula 1 driver because OMG. First of all, the very narrow road from Aracena to Linares is nothing but curves and while Pepe took each one deftly she also took them with no messing around speed-wise, all the while chatting non-stop. Can I tell you – I loved her – though I did have to put on my imaginary brakes from time to time.

For this very special lunch we were being joined by my friend Bill Bolloten, a wine writer who lives in Jabugo. He made his way to Linares on motorbike. And then all the fun just happened. There are two fab tasting menus available but, as we were three people, we decided on choosing several plates to share, which gave us a chance to try a few more dishes (plus none of us do dessert).

This is a collage of various dishes tried at Arrieros at various times. But you get the gist. It’s always amazing, always worth your while. And hey, you still have two months left to experience this yourself. It’s not just the food, not just the village, not only the gorgeous house where the restaurant resides… it’s all of it.

After lunch we were driven back to the hotel in Aracena by Luismi, a much more relaxed experience than we’d had with Pepa (though I wouldn’t have missed either for the world).

Read more on Bitesize Sevilla… Restaurante Arrieros