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Tag Archives: tapas

adiós pasos largos

26 Wednesday Aug 2020

Posted by azahar in coronavirus, friends, sevilla, spain, tapas, tapas bars

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coronavirus, covid-19, friends, sevilla, taberna de pasos largos, tapas, tapas bar

Last Sunday I was out for a walk and, well, FUCK IT WAS HOT, so I thought I’d take a detour on my way home to see if one of my fave places Taberna de Pasos Largos was open for a cold beer (as it used to always be open on Sundays). Well, not only was it closed… IT WAS GONE. I mean, totally gone. Empty. And my heart broke a little, once again.

The toll of this fucking virus can be seen everywhere, but in my own world I am (so far) mostly affected by the restrictions it puts on me, including having lost my job and only source of income, as well as the loss of so many wonderful bars and restaurants. And this time I lost something very special. I don’t even know what to say, other than I will miss Paco, Pepe and Isi very much. Yes the food was great, the wine too, but I will mostly miss just being there with them. So sad.

Paco & Pepe

Isi

Isi

san lorenzo 2020

10 Monday Aug 2020

Posted by azahar in culture, history, sevilla, spain, tapas, tapas bars, welcome

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antigua abaceria de san lorenzo, san lorenzo, sevilla, tapas

san lorenzo 2020

Today is the Día de San Lorenzo. In case you don’t know, the martyr San Lorenzo was put to a slow and painful death on top of a large gridiron with live coals beneath it and, the legend concludes that, after enduring the pain for a very long time he made his famous cheerful remark, “I’m well done on this side. Turn me over!”.

This is the first time in over five years that I haven’t attended the hectic San Lorenzo Day festivities at the Antigua Abacería de San Lorenzo. Because of Covid, Ramón and Carmen took the decision not to reopen their bar until September. In any case, this celebration is not one that lends itself to social distancing. The place is packed all afternoon long, standing room only, with Ramón passing around platters of grilled flesh (sardines, chicken legs, sausages, etc) with everyone drinking a punch from Huelva called ponche alosnero.

It’s always a crazy time and I miss it.   ❤

day trip to triana

04 Tuesday Aug 2020

Posted by azahar in sevilla, tapas, tapas bars, triana

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sevilla, sevilla tapas, tapas, triana

day trip triana (1)

So I hadn’t been to Triana since just before LOCKDOWN, and I hadn’t seen my friend Peter @SVQconcierge in ages, so it seemed like a good time to do both after hearing that Las Golondrinas II had not only reopened after lockdown, but also had a swish new look. First stop was Triana market, antoher place I hadn’t been to since February. As it is now pretty much 50/50 bars and market stalls, it was pretty quiet, with most of the bars still closed. But good to see the market area busy as well as a couple of the original bars there. Interesting that the old bars were the only ones to reopen.

Las Golondrinas was fabulous as always, and *mostly* good with the Covid stuff, though they are still re-using their plastic bread bowls without washing them first. Otherwise good distancing and care taken with hygiene. Menu was printed on single-use sheets.

Next stop was Blanca Paloma, and had also undergone a bit of a makeover. Interesting take on distancing along their ample bar with new “tables” that jut out so you can sit across from your friend and still feel comfortable. Re: cutlery (a thing of mine!), brought to the bar on a clean plate on top of napkins. Food was delish. Menu on Q-code.

On the way home (back in Sevilla!) we decided to stop for a penúltima at Castizo, which I hadn’t been to since just after Christmas. Nice touch is that they’ve put tall potted plants between pairs of bar stools to ensure proper distancing and the rest of the space is also carefully organised. One good thing about an open kitchen is that you can see everything being prepared in front of you so you know every precautions is being taken.

And then it was home again. This sort of afternoon would have been a usual part of my week on days off when I wasn’t taking out tours. Going out for lunchtime tapas, meeting up with friends and the people who run the bars, taking pics for updating my website, checking in on what’s new. Sadly now this is now down to about once a week. But hey, better than nothing! Photos below…

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coronavirus cutlery

30 Thursday Jul 2020

Posted by azahar in coronavirus, restaurants, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars

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coronavirus, cutlery, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars

outlery
I’m gonna need a bigger handbag. I’ve noticed when going out these days that I need to carry a few extra items with me. Like a paper envelope to store my mask if I stop for a drink or a tapa. A whack of folded up paper towels to mop my sweaty brow (it’s 40º out there guys!) because I don’t think using my usual abanico is a good idea as I’d just be fanning surrounding air into my face, possibly filled with those pesky and possibly lethal droplets. Also there’s my small bottle of hand sanitizer, a pair of latex gloves, emergency sunglasses… so my usual small, cute and comfy summer bag isn’t going to cut it anymore. Especially as I have now decided to include a set of picnic cutlery.

For the most part the bars I have either eaten at or popped into to check things out have been doing things very well in terms of distancing and hygeine. My pet peeves are that some are still using the dread yellow cloth over and over, whereas the best option for disinfecting tables and chairs after each use is recycled paper towels. But the worst is that some are still serving bread and cutlery in baskets that are then reused without having been cleaned at all. I mean, this was always a gross practice, but now?? Seriously, what is wrong with people.

After a recent experience I decided I should always have my own clean cutlery in my bag just in case. And it turns out that there are lots of interesting options on the internet, including these very cute and colourful stainless steel ones by Outlery that screw together and so fit into a tiny box. But I think for now I will be putting together an assortment of teaspoon, tapas fork and dessert knife from my own cutlery at home, toss them in an envelope with a couple of serviettes and see how that goes.

día mundial de la tapa

18 Thursday Jun 2020

Posted by azahar in food & drink, friends, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars, the new now

≈ 1 Comment

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friends, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars

tapas day (3)

I didn’t even realise today was Día Mundial de la Tapa (World Tapas Day)! What a perfect moment to have my first tapa out in 97 days. And well it had to be THOSE gorgeous honey pork ribs at Eslava.

The day started off with a visit to the Alcázar Palace and Gardens, which just opened up to the public on Monday. I thought it would be nice to visit again before the marauding hordes start arriving here on Sunday. So I arranged to meet my friend Corinna at 11.30 (carefully timed so that after our palace visit it would be BEER O’CLOCK).

casaCorinna

Along the way we stopped in at a couple of bars just so I could say hello to people there. It was so lovely seeing dear friends again. Corinna and I  lucked out at Eslava and got a nice socially distanced space at the bar and had an amazing lunch. And I got to see Sixto! He runs Eslava with his wife and I’ve known him for many years. We agreed that the “reopening” in our new now is more than just about business, or even the food. It’s about the people, the ambiance, the… everything! Damn it felt good to be back.

tapas day (4)
Sixto

tapas day (1)

Baby courgette filled with bacalao
Croquetas caseras
Becquer’s cigar
Stuffed courgette flower
Cheesecake
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