Posted by Krista on November 13, 2011
I normally steer clear of breakfast buffets in hotels, but I make the rare exception on Sundays. Particularly when there are plates of silky jamon for the taking. So I’ve taken, and I have my eye on the churros next.
I will repent later at the gym, or during a long walk through Madrid’s Salamanaca. The shops will probably all be closed — it’s Sunday, after all — but that won’t be a bad thing. My credit card needs a bit of a rest. And so do I.
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Posted in Madrid, Spain | No Comments
Posted by Krista on November 11, 2011
Jamon Iberico and manchego cheese (not pictured) in Madrid, Spain. At a very busy and very fluorescent-lit place called the Museo de Jamon, where everyone drops their olive pits, their napkins, and their cheese rinds on the floor. (Not uncommon in Madrid, but done in excess here.)
Life is good.
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Posted in Madrid, Spain | 1 Comment
Posted by Krista on July 31, 2009
Cerveseria Catalana
Pla del Palau, 2
Barcelona 08003, Spain
Date of Last Visit: Saturday, July 18th, 2009
The Victims: Rutton, Kainaz
The Damage: Rutton paid, the ass. I think it was about 40 euros.
The Background: Richard has suggested we load up on tapas before the wedding. I, in my fragile state (cava…), venture out into the Barcelona sunshine with Rutton and Kainaz, on our way to Cerveseria Catalana, one of Richard and Mireia’s favorite places. I’ve actually been here before, a few years earlier, when I was in town for Richard’s birthday. And it’s just like I remember. Bustling. Friendly. Loud. Fun. Locals and tourists, all mixed up.
The Entrance: There are no seats available. We put our name on the list and then we strategize the bar. I take the south end. Rutton the north. Then we stalk a poor British woman and her son who have finished their food, paid for their meal, but show no signs of leaving.
But they do leave and we take their seats. I’m all up for anything anchovy. And anything jamon. We just point and point and the food starts arriving. Everything arrives but the calamari, which we have to order about five times before someone actually delivers it. (And when it does arrive, it’s bland and rubbery. That Jose Luis place in Madrid was much better.)
The pimentos de padron are great, better than last night’s. But they could maybe use a little more salt. I don’t mind though. They’re green. And Spain is a land of seafood, meat, and potatoes. Anything green is a good thing.
The Verdict: I like it here. Are you going to walk out saying, “That was the best meal of my entire life?” Probably not. But are you going to eat well and cheaply? Probably so.
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Posted in Barcelona, Spain | 4 Comments
Posted by Krista on July 29, 2009
Passadis del Pep
Pla del Palau, 2
Barcelona 08003
Spain
Date of Last Visit: Friday, July 17th, 2009
The Victims: Barry, Natalie, Chris, Evelien, Robbie, Barney, Susan
The Damage: About 80 euros each
The Background: I’m in Barcelona for the wedding of my good friends Richard & Mireia. We’re to meet for drinks at 10 p.m. (this is Barcelona after all), so Barry organizes dinner for us at Passadis del Pep beforehand. When he tells me that it’s down a dark alley, I don’t put things together. But then I vaguely remember reading this in the New York Times.
The Entrance: We’re more than a little bit late. But it’s fine. We grab our table and the food starts its immediate procession, served by gentlemanly waiter-types. First is the jamon (above) and it is, of course, lovely. It’s accompanied by some pan con tomate, which is just okay, really. Actually, it tastes a bit old. I don’t say this out loud of course. I just think it.
Then come the clams, and they’re pretty great. I could eat a lot of these. But I don’t. Because Passadis del Pep is one of those “we keep bringing you food until you say stop” types of palces. And next up are the anchovies…
And I eat a lot of these. They’re great…crispy, fired in all the right batter, lemony. I feel distinctly unladylike, asking again and again for someone to pass me the plate of anchovies. I feel like a cat. And I’m allergic to cats.
Somewhere after the very delicious snails/whelks come the pimentos de padron and I’m struck by the fact that some of our table have never had pimentos de padron before. How is this possible? How have you lived? I tell them that 1 out of 11 is spicy. Just in time for Robbie to have a spicy one. These were better than good. A bit crispy. And good salt.
Ah, and this is where I put my camera down as things begin to go downhill. Some prawns arrive. And they’re okay. And then some more prawns arrive. (Of a different sort.) And they’re okay too, but I’m kinda tired of prawns. Then a server comes to our table and asks “Pescado o carne?” and we say “Carne!” And two more plates of prawns arrive. (Two different types of prawns.)
I’m serious.
I like prawns.
But I was a little prawned out.
Plus, we were late for drinks. So we rounded up the bill, with thanks to Susan’s Spanish, and made our way out into that dark night, to the party on the roof of a hotel, where we all wore white.
The Verdict: Eh. Things started off well. And the company, of course, was tremendous. But really…how many prawns can a gal eat? Maybe this would have been better if we were all a bit more chilled out about things. We were late and had to leave early. Never a good combo. All that being said, I kinda think that maybe you should still go here, next time you’re in Barcelona. Just maybe.
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Posted in Barcelona, Spain | 1 Comment
Posted by Krista on June 22, 2009
Jose Luis
C/Serrano 89-91
Madrid, Spain
Date of Last Visit: Sunday, June 7th and then again on Monday, June 8th, 2009
The Victims: Myself the first time. Fernando, Guillermo and William the second time.
The Damage: About 25 euros the first time, and unknown the second time because Fernando paid.
The Background: I had all these grand plans of having a big day out in Madrid on Sunday.
Until I figured out that getting to Spain takes a long time. A really long time.
Not sure how I missed that.
My flight was at 9:30 a.m. from Heathrow and we took off on time. I landed in Madrid around 1 p.m. and then my luggage came out around 1:40 p.m. By the time I bought my metro tickets and figured out where I was going, it was after 2 p.m. And by the time I checked into my hotel, it was nearly 3 p.m. So by the time I was ready to go anywhere, it was 5 p.m. (I squeezed in a quick workout at the hotel gym.)
So–worst possible time to eat in Madrid?
5 p.m.
Lunch is over and dinner won't start til 9:30 p.m. (10, really.) But it was 5 p.m. and I was STARVING. And so the hotel directed me to Jose Luis. And it was okay. Just okay. (I had the squid–a different squid than what I talk about below.)
And Even More Background: Now fast-forward to the next evening. My colleagues suggest taking me out to dinner. I say sure. And we start walking. And we're walking some more. And eventually I say, "Are we going to Jose Luis?"
And we are.
Really, what are the chances?
The Entrance: My waiter from the previous evening doesn't recognize me. I think this is a bit of a bummer. Even after we had this whole discussion where he said everything in Spanish and I said everything in English and we totally understood each other.
The Food: I put myself in the hands of my Spanish colleagues. (I don't mind someone else ordering for me when I've asked them to order for me.) And so the parade begins. The first dish of the night is the best dish, and it leave me with high hopes for Jose Luis. It's squid and the batter is great. Super great. And then there's some jamon serrano, roughly cut. It's pretty darn good too. And the manchego cheese. I have no complaints. We've started this meal on a high note.
But then the pulpo arrives. And it looks great, with great big chunks of octopus. But it's not so good. It's tough and chewy. Poor reviews from around the table…my Spanish colleagues apologize to me for it.
The Pimientos de Padron arrive, and they look like they've been through a lot, just to get here. They're okay. But they seem slightly overcooked. And I like them with a bit of rock salt.
In between, there's some forgettable calamari (for which my colleagues, again, apologize) and then we have fun with Google Translate trying to figure out what this next dish is. It's cuttlefish. And it's chewy. But the garlicky mayonnaise is good.
The Verdict: There are lots of people who probably love this restaurant and give it rave reviews. I thought it was just okay. But the squid (the second time) was great.
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Posted in Madrid, Spain, Spanish | 4 Comments
Posted by Krista on June 19, 2009
Depintxos
Calle Castello 115
28006 Madrid
Date of Last Visit: Monday, June 8, 2009
The Victims: Many
The Damage: No idea. My colleagues paid.
The Verdict: This is just a little chain. It's nothing special, really. But why do places like this exist in Madrid but not London? (I can't vouch for the food. We just had drinks and lovely roasted peanuts.) I'd go back here for after-work drinks and snacks again.
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Posted in Madrid, Spain, Spanish | No Comments
Posted by Krista on August 29, 2008
La Torre del Oro
Er 26 de la Plaza Mayor
Calle del Arco de Triunfo s/n
28012 Madrid
Date of Last Visit: Monday, August 17
The Victim: Jen
The Damage: I forget. 30 euros maybe?
The Background: I thought I knew my cousin well. But I’ve learned a lot of new things about her this trip. For example…she doesn’t like ham. Or lamb.
Yes, and I decided to take her to SPAIN. Yo estoy estupido. But then again, when I did order a plate of jamon iberico, I did get to eat it nearly all by myself. (Jen, to her credit, did try a few pieces. But just a few.)
I think I got her into octopus though. Oh yes, and I introduced her to croquettas. We ate croquettas most every day in Madrid.
Anyhow, we are in Madrid and we’re hungry and we walk by La Torre del Oro and it looks festive. With normal people inside. So we enter. And we’re greeted by shouts of Viva America! Yes, we are that obvious. We reply, rationally so, with Viva Espana, and we’re all friends.
Our server (the gentleman there on the left) keeps telling us about Bruce! Bruce! Two years, Bruce! I have no idea what he’s talking about. But then I see this…
Apparently, according to the team behind the bar, Bruce likes his red wine.
All we really had at La Torre del Oro was beer and complimentary paella and then a non-complimentary plate of potatoes and octopus. So I can’t really tell you much about the food, really.
But I can tell you that the guys here had us charmed and amused enough to go back three times for drinks and snacks and to watch the tourists come and go across Plaza Mayor.
I’d say this is a touristy bit with life and spirit. And that’s all you really want out of life, isn’t it?
The Verdict: I liked it here. We had fun, each and every time.
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Posted in Madrid, Spain | 2 Comments
Posted by Krista on June 2, 2008
Let’s see if I can do this all correctly. You see, I really want to straighten out my photos. I want ONE photo size. If you notice, my photos are huge if they run vertical. Puny if they run horizontal. Hmmm. Let me see if I can establish order with this post.
Where was I…Canadia Boy and Stacey got married the other weekend. In Biarritz, no less. They are humongously fantastic people and an excellent time was had by all. The other Thursday–that day at the beginning of the bank holiday weekend–they took us to San Sebastian. And we all stuffed our faces and drank lots of txacoli. Why have I not been to San Sebastian before? Why?
So, here’s a little round-up of our tapas crawl…may you at some point in your life get to experience something as wonderfully delicious and entertaining.
First stop, Goiz Argi for some pimentos de padron and some juicy shrimp, all washed down with lots of txacoli…
And then…we headed over to Txepetxa for some pulpo (octopus) and some croquettas (and yes, that’s more txacoli in the background)…
And then it was over to San Sebastian’s La Cepa (my absolute favorite stop) for some jamon and some cervesas…
And then our last stop…whose name I won’t even try to write out…for the nicest bit of steak cooked to a very perfect medium rare…
Now if that doesn’t make you want to move to San Sebastian…
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Posted in San Sebastian, Spain | 3 Comments
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