Tapa Thursdays: Mamarracha

January 8, 2015 by · 2 Comments

Places to Eat in Seville Mamarracha

If a mamarracho is a person who deserves no respect, relatively new tapas bars Mamarracha, on Hernando Colón, is not aptly named. I’d heard rumors of a new bar from the Ovejas Negras group, and despite the packed bar on a Saturday afternoon, I’d been assured that the wait was worth it.

What struck me immediately about the bar were two things: how calm the wait staff was with patrons practically hanging off the bar, and how sleek the interior looked. Like Ovejas Negras, the narrow space echoes an old ultramarinos, with slate black mixed with natural wood and a creamy turquoise tile accent. The space was choked, but the inviting back dining room features a garden wall and several tables. Lesson leaned (again) – don’t arrive at 3:30 p.m.

mamarracha tapas bar sevilla

I grabbed a glass of wine and Kelly a tinto, and we went outside to escape the crowds, leaving our names with a hostess who had her hands full, yet chirped out off-menu specials seemingly every two minutes. We were able to snag the corner of a bar area and tucked into a menu featuring smoked meats, several options for vegetarians like K and an extensive wine list.

We started with a strawberry and beet salad with feta, along with a foccacia topped with cheese and veggies that we’d seen march by. I wasn’t a fan of the acidic Ribera wine I’d sampled and switched to beer.

strawberry and beet salad Mamarracha

Foccaccia with Provolone at Mamarracha Tapas Seville

Wine list at Mamarracha Seville Tapas

What differentiates Mamarracha from ON down the street is that they have word-burning stoves and indoors grills, so I wanted to try some meat. Kelly ordered veggies in tempura, and I asked the waitress for a recommendation. She offered up the corral chicken, which came with a chimichurri sauce, and a baked sweet potato, plus a tapa of morcilla.

Veggies in tempura at Mamarracha Seville

carne a la brasa Mamarracha

All of the food was tasty and fresh, though I had to send the chicken back for being undercooked. By the time it came back, I was nearly stuffed but couldn’t pass up a dessert. We chose a sevillano favorite – homemade torrijas with vanilla bean ice cream.

Dessert at Mamarracha Seville

The bill was adequate for all we’d consumed – five plates, a dessert, a glass of wine, two beers and three tintos – 54€. We left satisfied and practically rolled over to Ines Rosales next door, where we bought Christmas goodies for our families.

If you go: Mamarracha is located right down the street from the Ayuntamiento and the main exit of the Cathedral, on Hernando Colón 1 y 3. Opening hours are daily 1:30pm to 4pm and 8:30pm to 11:30pm. Arrive early if you’d like to sit or eat promptly!

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I ate at Mamarracha as part of the Typical NonSpanish Project with Caser Expat. But don’t worry – all opinions and calories are my own!

Filed Under: El Centro, Featured, food, Restaurant Reviews, Sevilla Center, Tapas Bars, Tapas Thursday, Typical NonSpanish, Where to eat in Sevilla · Tagged: ,

Tapa Thursdays: Seville’s Newest Gastrocultural Offering, the Mercado Lonja del Barranco

December 18, 2014 by · 5 Comments

Gourmet Markets in Seville

In a city renowned for tapas culture, more and more foodie-friendly offerings are popping up. From wine tasting packages and jamón cutting courses to ethnic bars and even a midday flamenco show, I’d thought I’d seen it all in Seville when it came to merging food and culture (hello, my favorite parts of blogging).

Then ex-bullfighter Fran Rivera (also the ex-son-in-law of the Patrona of Seville, Cayetana de Alba) pumped money into a gourmet food market in a century-old building. While mercados and plazas de abastos are nothing new to la vida cotidiana in Spain, places like La Boquería and Mercado San Miguel are becoming tourist destinations in other cities, and Rivera and business partner Carlos Herrera are jumping on Spain being a foodie haven (and anyway, people have to eat).

Mercado Lonja del Barranco Sevilla

Mercado Lonja del Barranco opened in late November to crowds, to rain, to runaway success. Housed in a glass and wrought iron building that served as a fish market until 40 years ago, the space has 20 different puestos featuring regional goodies, as well as half a dozen free-standing food carts and a Cruzcampo beer station that allows you to sample recently-brewed beer.

Each puesto has a specialty item, like acorn-fed ham, salmorejo or the mythical Spanish omelette, and there are a few cocktail or wine bars. And much like the Corte Inglés Gourmet Experience, several local restaurants have set up shop.

Mercado Lonja del Barrando creative space

Mercado Lonja del Barranco

The result is a chaotic but bright and lofty space with impeccable decoration, though seating is limited indoors and there is not rhyme or reason to the set up – it feels like a maze, even when empty. It’s less market and more fancy schmancy food hall, but the Mercado de Triana is right across the Puente Isabel II should you need fresh vegetables or a craft beer.

seafood markets in Seville

People at a Spanish market

food offerings at mercado lonja del barranco sevilla

The Novio and I met some friends on a Friday night shortly after the market opened. Even with rain clouds threatening, the place was packed to the (iron) gills. We found a table outside and just ordered a few beers, unwilling to sidle up to anywhere but a beer tap. While the food offerings looked incredible, there were far too many people to really enjoy the experience. As I’ve passed by in subsequent days, the market remains busy but the novelty has worn off a bit – perfect for sampling tapas or ordering sushi to go.

If you go: Mercado Lonja del Barranco is open daily from 10am until midnight; open until 2am on Friday and Saturday. Prices are variable, but expect a minimum of 10€ a head. The market plans to open cultural offerings, such as workshops and theatre, in the future. Check their webpage for more.

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I visited the Mercado Lonja del Barranco as part of the Typical Non Spanish project with Caser Expat. The power the experience, I enjoy and write about it in my own words. All opinions are my own.

What’s your favorite gourmet market in Spain?

Filed Under: A Few of My Favorite Things, Andalusia Tourism, Caser Expat Insurance, El Centro, Featured, Food Tourism, gastronomy, Habla de Tu Ciudad y Vive de Ella, Markets, Places with Encanto, Restaurant Reviews, Sevilla Center, Tapas Bars, Tapas Thursday, Things to do in Sevilla, Where to eat in Sevilla · Tagged: , ,

Tapa Thursdays: Taberna Panduro

November 13, 2014 by · 2 Comments

Wee, another posts about a gastrobar! I mean, I love a mushroom risotto and fig croquetas like the next guiri, but even with new restaurants opening all the time offering the same sorts of dishes, I was hoping for a little more.

After spending the morning and better part of the afternoon at the Feria de Jamón de Aracena, we were looking for lighter fare for dinner. Faced with only a Spanish decision – either deep-fried at Dos de Mayo or too expensive for end-of-the-month dining at Nazca – I was surprised to find a newer, second branch of the popular Taberna Panduro halfway between the two on Calle Baños.

We arrived early for a Saturday dinner – around 8:30 p.m. – and a few drinks inevitably turned into nibbles. I opted for a wine after a beer drinking marathon at the ham fair, choosing a hearty Jumilla simply because it’s a DO that’s hard to come by out west. Glasses of wine are not only affordable (3.50€ tops), but a number of DOs are represented.

Panduro is just shy of its third birthday, and noted for the quality of its dishes and reasonable prices. We did things the old-fashioned way: everyone chose what they wanted to eat, and we sampled. Jose María had a tatami de atún, I got grilled squid served with risotto and ñora peppers, Hayley opted for the grilled vegetables and Maru had lagrimitas de pollo with guacamole, though I may be wrong about who got what. We ordered cod to round off the last bit go hunger pangs.

The cod was slightly undercooked, and the guacamole didn’t seem too fresh, but the rest of the dishes were spectacular and beautifully presented. This Panduro’s decor was less harsh than the sleek reds and blacks of the sister tavern at Doña María Coronel, near Calle Feria.

The waiter brought us out more bread and olives as the restaurant began to fill up. Even though it’s de rigeur for places to charge for munchies, Panduro left them off the bill.

Had to put myself to bed after this long day, but five oversized tapas and several drinks each had us hovering at 10€ a head. A job well done, I’d say.

If you like Panduro’s offerings, you’ll also like: La Brundilda | The Room Art Cuisines | La Bulla

Panduro is at Calle Baños, 3, open daily but Monday for lunch and dinner.

Have you been to Taberna Panduro? Which of these tapas would you like to try?

Filed Under: fashion, food, Restaurant Reviews, Sevilla Center, Tapas Bars, Tapas Thursday, Where to eat in Sevilla · Tagged: ,

Tapa Thursdays: Yakitoro, a Chicote-run Dining Concept in Madrid

October 23, 2014 by · 10 Comments

Faced with a lunchtime dilemma in Madrid, I was thrilled to get a message at the very moment my stomach rumbled from my friend Lauren, a self- and media-professed foodie and an insider in the Spanish capital chow scene (jo, she’s one of the co-founders of Madrid Food tour. When I say expert, I mean it!).

Though we were trying to find a time for a drink, I had to ask: We’re in Chueca. Where do we eat?

Lauren offered up a few choices, but we were closest to Yakitoro, Alberto Chicote’s newest restaurant. Much like Anthony Bourdain or Gordon Ramsey, this madrileño chef is riding a wave of immense popularity after appearances on Spain’s version of Top Chef and Nightmare in the Kitchen, called Pesadilla en la Cocina.

Welp, our minds were made up on that rainy Saturday afternoon – we’d be wannabe foodies and celebrity stalkers. I came into Yakitoro with high expectations and left slightly let down, to be honest.

Let me start with the good stuff:

Concept

Yakitoro is a Japanese-Spanish fusion restaurant (with food reminiscent of Nazca in Seville). The kitchen prep area is behind a large glass wall, and you can imagine my surprise when I saw Chicote himself making the food. The first question we were asked upon sitting down was Chopsticks or a fork?

I’ve been mildly obsessed with concept restaurants since a sixth grade project where we were asked to plan a restaurant, from decor to menu to price to sustainability. Ours? OJ’s Cyber Cafe, where the 1995 trial took center stage in our menu and chalk outlines were the hallmarks. Morbid.

The tapas – an eclectic mix of vegetarian, fish and meat dishes – are then cooked over a fogón, or a large stove, in the middle of the restaurant in plain view. Polished wooden tables spiral out from the central stove, meaning patrons are grouped together, sharing a cooler in the middle with bottles of beer and chilled wine.

We were sat at a low, steel bar next to the window and filled with succulent plants. The servers wear flight suits that reminded me of the Communist theatre I went to in Harbin, China.

Food

There were easily 50 dishes on the menu, glued to wooden boards, and a small but thoughtful wine list. We chose an entire bottle of rosé to detox from copious amounts of tinto during the week and I ordered for Laura.

The sardines in tempura with a sweet chile sauce were up first. Laura was put off by having to peel them, so I dug in. Those that were cooked were exquisite, and the sweet ñora sauce was an excellent touch, though a few of the fish came undercooked.

I’m not a mushroom fan, though Laura raved about the cooked-to-perfection shiitake mushrooms with dried mackerel shavings and a garlic sauce. The smoky taste of the dried mackerel added depth and distracted me from the texture of the mushroom. The portion was rather generous, as well.

The grilled shallots – a signature dish in Catalonia – were browned on the fogón and crowned with tangy romescu sauce, were a nice break between our heavier dishes. They came speared on a brochette, thus the basis of Yakitoro’s menu.

We chose two meat dishes to finish off. The chicken in tempura was delicious, particularly with the thick and sweet Pedro Ximinez reduction for dipping.

The braised short ribs were cooked to order, glazed with a sweet sauce and a perfect ending to the meal. 

The tapas, while small, were an excellent price – from 2,50€ and up – and we ordered an entire bottle of wine and five tapas for well under 40€.

Service

I mistakenly thought that the less-than-desirable service at Yakitoro was due to it being a brand-new venue – pues no, Yakitoro has been open for business since June. When we arrived just after 3pm, the place was packed, so we got our names on a list for an hour later. 

The kitchen didn’t close midday, which is more common in Madrid than in Seville, but the restaurant wasn’t nearly as buzzing when we arrived at 4:30. We were sat right away, though it took nearly ten minutes to get a menu and another ten for our bottle of wine to be opened. Thankfully, we weren’t in a hurry and enjoyed the sobremesa on Laura’s last day in Spain.

As we left nearly 90 minutes later after a long lunch, Chicote was standing at the door and said goodbye. I fibbed a little and told him the sardines were exquisite – they would have been, had they been cooked for a minute longer. Every restaurant has its kinks to work out (haven’t you seen his show?!), so I’d be willing to try Yakitoro in the future.

Yakitoro is located on Calle Reina, 41, just steps off of Gran Vía in the Chueca neighborhood. The kitchen is open daily from 1pm until midnight, and reservation are accepted. You can check out their website for more.

Filed Under: Featured, Food Tourism, gastronomy, Madrid, Restaurant Reviews, Tapas Bars, Tapas Thursday, Where to Eat in Madrid · Tagged: , ,

Tapa Thursdays: Eating at a Guachinche on Tenerife

April 10, 2014 by · 14 Comments

Julie’s plan had only three itinerary stops on my only full-day on Tenerife: Rental car. Teide. Guachinche :)

Eager not to ruin my own surprise, I refused to give into sneaking a peek at what this oh-so-tenerifeño dining experience was. I actually didn’t know it had anything to do with food until after we’d climbed to the peak of Teide on empty stomachs and was promised a mountain of raciones.

Zigzagging down the face of the active volcano through rollercoast roads, I actually think I heard my tripa gurgle. But the excitement in which Julie told me about these temporary, family-run restuarants blew my expectations (sorry, done on the volcano expressions and puns).

“Si esto se llama La Salú para mi madre, que descanse en paz!” 

The small restaurant’s owner, David, was showing us around the various dining rooms, all set around a humble kitchen where family members were peeling Canarian wrinkly potatoes (papas arrugás) and preparing meat at a grill. His mother, a sevillana by birth, married a Venezuelan before moving to the island. When she passed away, her family, who had always loved wine, planted a small vineyard and the guanchinche was born. The name, La Salud, is a homenage to the family matriarch.

We chose seats on the covered patio, watching the clouds roll in over Puerto Cruz. 

Guachinches began to spring up on Tenerife as humble restaurants from which small producers could sell their product. The island’s volcanic landscape lends well to producing young, fruity reds, so we ordered a half liter to begin with. The restaurants operate so long as there is wine to sell – it’s common to find guachinches closed late in the season. 

There were just five dishes on the menu, guaranteeing that everything we tried was fresh – eggs, sobresada and fries (huevos estampidos); garbanzos with a spicy tomato sofrito; chistorra sausage with fries, steak and cheese produced on the island. We ordered all but the steak and an extra half litre of the family’s fruity, fresh wine.

What I loved about the experience (aside from the price – 25€ for everything!), was the personal service we received. Everything was served hot and tasty, and we left satisfied.

Guachinches have started to pop up on nearby Gran Canaria, but the real thing is as tenerifeño as Teide itself.

If you go: La Salud is located in the town of La Orotava on the western side of the island, just east of tourist town Puerto Cruz. The address is Camino de Los Gomez, S/N. They’re typically open from 1pm until 11pm, though may be closed if the wine is depleted. You’ll need a rental car to reach many of them, or a reliable taxi service, as the guachinches tend to be set away from major cities in the north.

Have you ever been to a guachinche, or something similar? Would you eat with locals?

Filed Under: Canary Islands, Featured, Food Tourism, gastronomy, Places with Encanto, Restaurant Reviews, Road Trip, Rural Tourism, Spanish Traditions, Street Food, Tapas Thursday, Tenerife, typical Spanish, Wine · Tagged: , ,

Tapa Thursdays: Room Art Cuisine

February 6, 2014 by · 4 Comments

With the hiring of MaCuro’s head chef, ROOM Art Cuisine went from an American food bar to one of the center’s newest gastrobars only steps away from Plaza Salvador. When my friends and I used to meet in the city’s famous botellón plazas, we’d be stuck for a decent restaurant that catered to many international tastes.

I was invited in November to the Room’s soft opening, along with several other American friends and Tapas Queen Shawn Hennessey. We got a sneak peek at the revised menu, wine list and comfortable yet modern interior while waiters passed around small samples of dishes straight off the menu.

A month later, we were celebrating Mickey’s engagement and wanted to try out a new place. Most of my friends are vegetarians, so the Room has enough to keep their bellies full and Puja and I still got our meat fix with a delicately cooked presa ibérica.

It’s hard to categorize the Room’s food, as the gambit of Spanish wines can be paired with food from around the world – from Ireland to Lebanon. We tried fried cheeseballs in marinera sauce, guacamole with fried plantains, perfectly seasoned humus, a crisp salad with goat cheese and spicy papas bravas.

The service was exceptional – our waiter was quick to fill our glasses and served us two slices of cake to share to celebrate the occasion. The food was artfully prepared both times I went, and prices and portion sizes vary, depending on what you’ve ordered. We paid about 22€ a head, which included wine.

the Room is open for all meals and located at Cuesta del Rosario, 15, just across from Cuesta Sport gym on the Plaza de la Pescadería. They’re also open for happy hour and coffee. I was not compensated in any way for eating at the Room Art Cuisine, nor for this article. All opinions are my own.

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Filed Under: El Centro, Featured, food, gastronomy, Restaurant Reviews, Sevilla Center, Sobremesa, Tapas Bars, Tapas Thursday, Where to eat in Sevilla · Tagged:
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