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Tag Archives: tapas

the return of the vermutería yo soy tu padre

10 Thursday Sep 2020

Posted by azahar in sevilla, tapas bars

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sevilla, tapas, vermouth, vermuteria yo soy tu padre

My lovely friend Esteban has not only reopened his inimitable vermouth bar Vermutería Yo Soy Tu Padre today, he has also moved location. I stopped in to see the new place and it’s great. Cosy and friendly like the previous place, though I am a bit sad to now have to walk a full ten minutes from home instead of three.  😉

Same great vermouths, made by Esteban from a base of finos and manzanillas en rama, as well as the usual selection of exquisite small-production wines and E’s killer negronis. Tapas are also available. Only open in the evenings for now. Go show him some love guys!

Vermutería Yo Soy Tu Padre
Conde de Torrejón 21

chef john

08 Tuesday Sep 2020

Posted by azahar in gastronomy, restaurants, sevilla

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restaurants, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars

Back in July chef John Grabecki @grabecki1 got in touch with me about his new project Gitana Tapas @gitana.tapas which he hopes to start up in Sevilla soon. So after a bit of whatsapping, and also waiting after he arrived here to pass 14 days without any obvious covid symptoms, we met up for lunch at La Barra de Inchausti.

Some people (me included, initially) might think it’s a crazy idea for a chef from London to come to Sevilla in the middle of a pandemic to start a new business. On the other hand, well, why not? I should know better than anyone that sometimes you just have to follow your heart, and John not only has some family ties here (his sister is married to a Sevillano) but he also just loves it here.

Anyhow, lovely lunch, lovely company, and I am happy to help him out with connections, etc. So watch this space! Also go give John and Gitana Tapas a follow on Instagram!  🙂

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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