Julio Moreno & Manuel Salinero

The wonderful Julio Moreno has stepped down as president of the Academia Sevillana de Gastronomía y Turismo (of which I became a proud member in June 2023) and super-foodie Manuel Salinero is stepping up. Today the Academy held a tribute luncheon for Julio at Ispal with most of the academy members showing up (no small feat, it’s like herding cats!) as well as some special guests from the gastronomy and tourism scene here. 

We enjoyed a fabulous sevillano meal with modern touches, the wine flowed, speeches were given, gifts relayed (my favourite was the apron we all signed for Julio)… the outpouring of honest love and respect from everyone present was truly moving to witness. Anyhow, Julio isn’t going far. He is now officially recognised as Presidente de Honor, though we are calling him the presidente eterno, and he will still be with us at activities and events. But now he has more time to enjoy his other pastimes too and only has to see us when he wants to. What a guy. Big love.