Tag Archives: friends

demelza & zoltan

07 Thursday Mar 2019

Posted by in friends, social media

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Demelza @demelzamd and Zoltan @zoltanpolger21 co-owners of Restaurante Salitre in Menorca. I first “met” Demelza online a few years ago when she was working as my friend José Pizarro’s PA in London. At the time Zoltan was also working with José as head chef. Then they moved to Menorca to open their own restaurant. And although they have been in town a few times (Demelza is from a village not far from Sevilla) we have never managed to meet up. UNTIL… yesterday!

I was at Bodeguita Romero, sitting at the bar with two tapas tour clients, and saw this guy kind of eyeballing me from across the room. Then a lovely woman came up and said… are you Shawn? They were just passing through and what luck that we happened to cross paths at the Bodeguita. We had a short chat, since I was working, it really was great to finally meet. Hopefully next time we can go out for a few tapitas and sherry together.

kalé is back!

21 Thursday Feb 2019

Posted by in casa azahar, cats, friends, home

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So about umpty years ago Kalé came to stay with me when I was living in my “too big, too expensive” apartment in Barrio Santa Cruz, and had to take in lodgers. This came about because the person I was going to share the apartment with bailed last minute due to health problems, and with deposit paid and contract signed, I ended up stuck with a place I couldn’t afford. At first I tried looking for another flatmate, but then I discovered it worked out better to take in short-term lodgers. I did this for eight years until I moved across the hall to a somewhat smaller place that I could afford on my own.

Anyhoo… Kalé is a historian from the US. I always loved hosting historians who were here to do research at the Archivos de Indias, because, unlike the young studenty types, they were “grown ups” and I never had to worry about having to explain anything. Personal space was respected, rooms were kept clean, etc, etc.

The very unique thing about Kalé is that she has known ALL of my cats, from Lua, Sunny and Azar to Loki and Luna… well she still has to meet Morcilla. But it’s nice being able to talk to someone about my first cat family who actually lived with them. Kalé has been back in Sevilla since she lived with us, and this time she will be here until mid-April. It’ll be very nice having her around.

a long expected party

12 Tuesday Feb 2019

Posted by in andalucia, birthdays, friends, gastronomy

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We had been planning Steven’s 75th birthday party ever since he made it known last year that he wanted to spend this special celebration in Sevilla. It actually morphed into Birthday Week, kicking off in Sevilla and finishing up in Cádiz, but on the day itself we met up with other friends of Steven & Julie for a fabulous dinner at Restaurante Eslava. It was a lovely evening and I felt very lucky to be a part of it.

they’re baaaaacck!

09 Saturday Feb 2019

Posted by in sevilla, tapas, tapas bars, wine

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The wonderful Julie & Steven (AKA Julia & Esteban) are back in Sevilla to celebrate Steven’s 75th birthday, which is next Tuesday. We got Birthday Week off to a rip-roaring start with an (ahem) 8 hour lunch (!!), which may or may not be a personal record. Started off at Manolo Cateca for a cheeky sherry before having a super delicious lunch at Palo Cortao, along with Julie’s friend Susan, who just happened to be in town for a weekend getaway.

Of course after our leisurely lunch we had to go for a Penúltima and we chose the rooftop of the Gourmet Experience as Susan was really wanting to sit in the sun. Unfortunately, by the time we got there the sun was too low to reach us, but we enjoyed a lovely bottle of cava, and then Susan had to leave us to meet friends for a Flamenco show. By that time we were starting to feel a bit peckish again and Julie remembered how much she loved the pavía de bacalao at Palo Santo, so we strolled over there only to find out that the kitchen still wasn’t open. Undeterred, we decided to have a little pulpo ensaladilla along with yet another penúlitma, but then Eslava’s honey ribs started to sound like a good idea, so we popped over there for a snack while we waited. An hour or so later we were back at Palo Santo for our final snack of the day.

Then it was back home to Netflix with the cats. Looks like it’s going to be a crazy week. The actual birthday dinner will be at Eslava Restaurante on Tuesday, with a few other Sevilla activities between now and then. And then on Thursday I’ll head off to Cádiz with Julie and Steve to spend a couple of days there before they head back to Málaga on Saturday to catch their flight home. Phew!