Essex Eating in Seville

A few weeks ago, I descended on Southern Spain, like an Essex accented pestilence stripping bare their bars of tapas, beer and sherry whilst leaving in my wake dazed, starving Spaniards who didn’t quite know what had hit them.

A major part of my ‘Essex pestilence tour’ was spent in Seville. An ancient city of culture, oranges, flamenco, tapas and errr…shoe shops. Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many shoes for sale anywhere on the planet, but I digress, my entire focus was on eating and drinking, muchos, and that’s an aim I achieved for the three days I was there.

The budget didn’t stretch to fine dining and to be honest, that’s not the sort of place I’m after in Spain, because you can eat and drink incredibly well for relatively sod all at the less salubrious end of the scale. I’m at my happiest propped up at a bar, with a glass of sherry at 1.5 euros a glass, and with tapas just as much of a giveaway bargain, tipping both into my mouth, conveyor belt style, all night long.

So, bearing that in mind, here are the places I enjoyed the most on my brief visit.

La Brunilda

The food I ate here was without a doubt the best food I ate in Andalucía in the two weeks or so I was there. It was so good in fact, despite only being in Seville for three days and having a whole host of restaurants to try, I ate there twice.

Chef, Diego Caminos’ menu features traditional tapas with a modern slant, such as a take on Salmorejo featuring orange, raisins, mackerel and cress.

Other stand out dishes I wolfed down over the two visits included a beautifully flavoured and textured risotto (in fact one of the best I’ve eaten anywhere) which featured the unlikely pairing of a sweet red wine reduction, truffle oil, orange and asparagus.

Excellent salt cod fritters with pear alioli.

Foie gras cooked ‘a la plancha’.

A slider style veal burger, which was delicious.

In fact, everything I ate here from start to finish was superb. Nothing disappointed, and as you can see from the pics, I gave the menu a pretty thorough going over. Even better, it was incredibly cheap. If you’re visiting Seville, I can’t recommend this place enough.

La Brunilda

c/ Galera 5

(near Mercado Arenal)

Telephone: 954 220 481

Eslava

I had a cracking lunch at Eslava, standing outside on the pavement basking in the warmth of the Spanish midday sun. When I arrived, it was rammed, with more people turning up the whole time. It’s definitely a popular joint. The prices are ridiculously cheap; hardly anything on the tapas menu is above 3 Euros. As you can imagine, I happily took advantage of the fact.

My ‘I’ll stick anything in my mouth’ outlook demanded that I started off with some of the Sangre Encebollada (a sort of black pudding made from fried chicken blood). To be honest, I can’t say I was a massive fan; it was quite flavourless and had a texture somehow reminiscent of biting into a lump of Plasticine.

Shaking my head to clear horrific flashbacks to childhood culinary experimentation, I moved onto the much more agreeable, roasted pork ribs with rosemary honey glaze. These were excelllent. 

Green Pepper stuffed with Hake was also pretty damn nice as was a piece of roasted mackerel.

Scallops with seaweed puree and rather pretentious sounding kataifi noodles (turns out it's a type of finely shredded filo) were also good.

Finally, if you thought the noodles sounded a  bit special, how about a slow cooked egg served on a mushroom cake with caramelized wine reduction? Posh but peasant(ly) priced at 2 Euro 50 (see what I did there?) In case you're wondering, it was pretty nice actually.

Eslava

c/Eslava 5

Telephone: 954 906 568

La Azotea

La Azotea felt somewhat similar to La Brunilda with regards to the modern take on traditional tapas. No surprise then that I liked it so much.

Croquettas with an Oso Buco filling. Errr....Hell yes!

Even better, Iberico Pork cheek and goats cheese gratin.

A plate of Morcilla with caramelized onion and quails egg was similarly delicious.

The only dish that didn’t quiet come off was a special of avocado and cucumber salmorejo (so basically guacamole, yeah?) with fried baby squid. It was incredibly rich, thick and cloying. It didn’t matter though, as with the other places I’ve recommended above, the menu was priced so you can romp through it to your hearts content and not really have to worry about the bill too much. Got to love that.

La Azotea

Jesús del Gran Poder, 31

Telephone: 955 116 748

Casa Morales

Finally, how about something a bit more traditional? A proper bar, which does excellent, old school tapas. They must be doing something right, it’s been open since 1850. It’s very atmospheric, battered, noisy, packed and most importantly, cheap.

This is the perfect place to stand at the battered age worn bar, necking bargain sherry or a cold beer and topping yourself up with jamon.

Casa Morales

Garcia de Vinuesa 11

Massive thanks to Shawn of Sevilla Tapas for all the tips.

Bell's Diner & Bar Rooms - Bristol

Bell’s Diner is something of a Bristol restaurant institution. Located on a corner site in the Montpelier area of the city, it first opened its doors under Shirley Anne Bell in 1976 as a French bistro style restaurant, which was popular with a largely student crowd. Later, after a period as a vegetarian restaurant and then, once again a French bistro, in 1997 it was bought by chef Chris Wicks whose menus had more of a fine dining style and combined classic cooking with cutting edge culinary techniques. So it remained, until the beginning of this year, when it was announced that Bell’s was once again up for sale.

Step forward chef Sam Sohn-Rethel, ex Moro, Lido and Flinty Red whose absolutely belting cooking at Manna had made it by far my favourite Bristol restaurant. I was sad to hear he was leaving, but excited when I found out he was taking over Bells, which is closer to where I live and much more importantly, downhill, although thinking about it, that’s going to be a real embuggerance when rolling back home afterwards, stuffed silly and drunk.

When the restaurant re-opened under Sam, I was abroad, doing my best to eat the Spanish out of all of their grub and drinking much of their sherry but I headed over to Bell’s as soon as I arrived back, for a solo lunch last week and then went there again, the very next night for dinner with Elly. I think you can probably ascertain from the double visit that I thought it was a bit good.

So, let’s get it out of the way early. This is undoubtedly my new favourite Bristol restaurant.

Let’s talk about lunch.

From the outside things looked more or less the same. However, stepping through the front door into what was once the reception area, there now sits a small bar, which is a good use of the space. I always liked the front dining room at Bell’s; it’s a lovely space and taking a seat at my table it’s apparent this hasn’t really changed.

Sam’s cooking style here remains exactly what made me such a fan at Manna. Spanish-North African and Mediterranean flavours with a bit of classic British thrown in for good measure all put together with top quality ingredients. He’s continued with the small plate dining format, but there are some larger, pricier dishes here too. A Big Green Egg BBQ in the kitchen means charcoal grilled ingredients feature throughout the menu. As with Sam’s previous restaurant gig, a British artisan cheese section on the menu gets a massive thumbs-up from me.

Bearing all this in mind, I settled in for what I expected to be a cracking lunch and proceeded to order a few dishes from the small plate menu. First up, some bread, baked on site by their pastry chef. It had a nice springy texture and a beautiful chewy, marmitey crust. Cracking stuff especially when lavishly smeared with rather luxurious Abernethy butter, which is apparently handmade in Northern Ireland.

I picked at a beautiful looking bowl of house pickles as my food started appearing from the kitchen.

First up, Salt cod fritters with a mayonnaise dip, simple, well made and absolutely delicious.

Next, a lighter dish of broad beans, cumin yoghurt, Israeli couscous and coriander. The texture of the couscous was phenomenal, large individual beads, unlike the fine grains I’m normally used to. Again, lovely stuff.

A small plate of Charcoal-Grilled Chicken Oyster Pincho, marinaded in Chipotle with Harissa Yoghurt impressed me no end. As you’re no doubt aware, chicken oysters, the tender tastiest pieces of meat, located underneath the bird are highly prized by greedy bastards in the know. Here in front of me, as if in some delirious meat laden dream was a load of them, threaded on a skewer spiced and chargrilled. Unbelievably good.

But not as good as a plate of Kid’s Liver, Charcoal Grilled Onions and Naga Chilli Pickle. I’ve never eaten goat’s liver before and true to my instinctive need to stuff all unknown items into my gob, this is what I went for and I’m chuffed that I did. It had a rich but mild liver taste, combined with the grilled onions and the almost toffee sweet heat of the chilli pickle. Absolutely banging. Loved every bite.

Finally, a lurid orange scoop of Alphonso Mango ice cream had a fantastic velvety texture and a superb flavour. As someone who has dabbled in the art of making ice cream on more than a few occasions I can tell you now, this was quality stuff.

Would you believe, except the ice-cream at £2.50 a go, all of these dishes were on the lunch menu for £4 each? Or if that’s not a bargain of the instantly chew their arm off variety enough for you, how about 3 dishes for £10?

So, a really cracking lunch and incredible value for money, so much so that I headed back again, for dinner with Elly the next night…

We started off with more of the excellent house pickles, bread and stonking Abernethy butter and as it was a Friday (and we really need no encouragement whatsoever), we decided to crack into the plonk. Turns out the wine list is good and as much as a bargain as the food, with a general policy of adding about a £10 mark-up on the cost price.

Deciding to get a starter each and ‘one for the pot’ I only had eyes for one thing, spied on the specials board as I walked in. ‘Elizabeth David’s Lamb St Menehould with Tartare Sauce’. Get in my frigging belly. An absolute classic of breadcrumbed and fried breast of lamb. Any chef, who’s putting Lizzy David’s grub on the menu, can do no wrong in my eyes. It was amazing and at £3.50 they’re practically giving it away.

Meanwhile, across the way, Elly was wide eyed, surveying three huge seared scallops surmounting a plate of chopped summer salad. She’s scoffed a fair few scallops in her time and in her opinion, these were the best, the fattest and juiciest she’s had. Fair play. The sweetness of the scallops when eaten with the sharpness of the chopped salad was delicious.

Our shared starter was a plate of Goat’s Curd with Tomatoes, Basil and Chilli. Fresh tasting and light, as with everything else, a cracking plate of grub. Later on in the year, if we actually have a summer, this dish can only improve as tomatoes get some warmth and sweeten.

Elly’s main effort was directed at a plate of Handmade Westcombe Ricotta Ravioli, Roasted Cherry Tomatoes, Asparagus and Broad Beans which she demolished in no time, reckoning it good but not quite as spectacular as some of the other dishes we’d tried.

However, something else from the specials board, Short Rib of Beef cooked in Rioja with Chorizo. Slow cooked meat, with a bone sticking out of it? Yep, this one’s for me. Soft, rich, falling apart as sank my fork into it. Boody amazing.

By this point we were both pretty stuffed and as I had been so impressed with the ice-cream at lunch the previous day, we had another go. This time, chocolate for Elly, which had the same beautiful texture and just the right level of bitter sweetness. I had Rum & Raisin (with neat rum poured over the top) so just the right level of borderline alcoholic to suit moi.

So, as I said right at the beginning of the review; By virtue of Sam’s cooking, Bell’s has instantly jumped to the top of my favourite restaurants in Bristol list, even after only being open for a couple of weeks, it’s really that good and it’s only going to get better, as they settle in.

Sam is a seriously talented chef and it’s patently obvious from his menus and his grub that he absolutely loves cooking and eating.

I really can’t praise it enough. Lovely food. Cracking restaurant. Get over there and enjoy it.

Bell’s Diner & Bar Rooms

1-3 York Road

Montpelier

Bristol

BS6 5QB

Telephone 0117 9240357

http://www.bellsdiner.com

Essex Eating in Spain - Núñez de Prado Olive Oil

The surrounding countryside on the hour long bus journey from Córdoba provided a constant reminder of why I was travelling on this ageing coach in blistering heat. With my head resting against the glass, I watched reflected a continuous vista of olive groves stretching up and down in beautifully neat lines over the gently undulating hills, nothing else but olive trees, trailing off into the distance in every direction.

Stepping off the bus, in an incredibly louche manner, I took in my surroundings, the rather sleepy Spanish market town of Baena, destination for a fair amount of the olives I’d seen on the journey, there to be squashed relentlessly and mercilessly at the hands of Núñez de Prado, makers of some of the finest organic olive oil you can get your grubby mitts on, which was exactly what I had in mind.

Taking a swig of water and bemusedly studying the map on my phone, I wandered off aimlessly into town, accompanied by Elly, in search of the famous olive oil mill, determined to bluster, cajole, bribe or threaten my way in (as it turned out, there was no need for any of this, they happily let anyone in).

Arriving unannounced in the oil mill office and enquiring about the possibility of a site tour I was a little taken aback to have the President of the company, Francisco Núñez de Prado (or Paco to his pals) stepping up to act as guide.

Joined by a handful of fellow olive oil tourists we were led around the mill by the extremely entertaining Paco, who explained the process in English, Spanish and French – with a little German thrown in, just for the sheer hell of it.

The Núñez de Prado family have been making Olive Oil for seven generations and have eschewed the use of chemicals in the growing process since 1986 being subsequently certified organic in 1990.

Harvest season runs from November-January with 160 employees picking the olives entirely by hand ‘working really fast’.

The olives are crushed in terrifying looking, rolling, heavy granite presses which date from just after the Spanish Civil War, in 1944 and were installed by Paco’s father.

The resulting paste is then hydraulically pressed. They only produce Extra Virgin Olive Oil and there is only a 1st cold pressing.

The company’s primo product is Flor de Aceite or ‘Flower of the oil’ a free run EVOO that is produced by squeezing the crushed olive oil paste between mats, 10 kilos between each mat with a total of a tonne being pressed at a time. The end product is the oil that seeps out. 11 kilos of olives are needed to make just 1 litre of this oil.

After pressing the olive oil is pumped into glass tanks that are hermetically sealed to prevent flavour contamination. As the oil sits, it separates naturally from the water, which is then pumped away. Nothing is wasted, this ‘black water’ and the leftover crushed, tasteless olive oil paste is combined and used on the olive groves as a fertiliser.

The finished oil is then rested for a couple of months before bottling.

And that is more or less that. We then got the opportunity to purchase some of this exceptional product at almost ridiculous knock down prices £4.25 for a bottle of the Flor de Aceite. Thank you very much, stick me down for a case.

I found the whole thing fascinating, probably because the process is so beautifully simple, just like me. Also, I hadn’t really considered how olive oil was actually made, I mean, I had intelligently surmised you squashed the olives, but had absolutely no idea what the actual squashing operation looked like. Now I do. Artisanal squashy.

Afterwards we had a quick wander around Baena, noting that olives, somewhat unsurprisingly for a town surrounded by the things, are sold absolutely everywhere.

Feeling a bit sharp-set and having an hour or so to kill before our bus back to Córdoba we wandered into a bar down the road from the bus station, where the bocadillos we ordered (despite taking an age to arrive, what with the kitchen actually making a tortilla from scratch for the filling) were each about the heft of a midget’s arm. These combined with some patatas and a bottle of water came to10 Euros. Bar La Tella, I salute you and your two-fingered attitude to proportion.

I have much to share with you all about Spain in the coming weeks. I basically ate and drank my way non-stop around three cities, no doubt forever ruining my health, just for this blog and its readers. I really hope all 3 of you appreciate it.

Where to eat and drink in Bath

When I moved to Bristol three years ago, I was astounded to find that Bath is pretty much right next door (my mental geography image of this part of the UK at that time mostly consisting of the word ‘Cider’ scrawled across the South West portion of the map, in crayon). It is in fact a mere 15 minutes away on the train from Temple Meads and it’s fair to say that it’s bloody lovely. 

As you are no doubt aware, I’m a sophisticated chap and like nothing more than a meander around this rather beautiful city gawping at some Georgian architectural majesty. Innit. As such, I have visited Bath a fair old bit and I reckon I have a pretty good handle nowadays on where’s good for a drink or something to eat and I want to share this hard earned information with you.

Now before I begin, as with my previously published Bristol guide to eating and drinking, I should point out these are the places I like, so bear that in mind whilst reading and subsequently spraying tea over your screen in a flabbergasted manner, then resultantly pounding out an angry comment, all elbows and arses. 

Saying that, I’m not ashamed to point out that I have supremely good taste and you could do far worse than to follow my guidance on such matters.

So, lets get cracking… 

Colonna and Smalls

First of all, coffee. This is undoubtedly the best place to get ‘cwaffee’ in Bath, in fact it’s probably the best place to get coffee in the South West. These guys take their brewing so seriously, it’s verging on geeky. I love it. Oh, and the cakes are bloody nice too.

6 Chapel Row

BA1 1HN

Telephone: 07766 808 067

http://www.colonnaandsmalls.co.uk

The Star Inn

A fairly new discovery for me. One of the most beautiful and unspoilt pubs I’ve ever sipped a pint in. Seriously, the interior looks like it hasn’t changed since at least 1935. It’s like stepping back in time. No fruit machine, no flat screen TV, no garish posters offering 2 for 1 on WKD, just a fire in the grate and a background murmur of conversation and laughter. Absolute pub heaven.  I reckon the locally brewed Bellringer Ale is the drink to order.  

23 The Vineyards Off the Paragon (A4)

BA1 5NA 

Telephone: 01225 425 072

http://www.star-inn-bath.co.uk

Sam’s Kitchen

An Ottolenghi’ish display of beautifully heaped salads, cooked meat and cakes greet you as step into this cracking little café. The lunch I ate here recently was probably one of the best I’ve eaten anywhere in Bath. A plate piled with various salads topped with slices of roast lamb and olive tapenade. Superb. The excellent aforementioned Star Inn is just in the next street up. 

61 Walcot Street

BA1 5BN

Telephone: 01225 481159

www.samskitchendeli.co.uk

The Chequers

I had a cracking lunch in this Bath Gastropub and was so inspired by the dessert I ate, Elly and I nicked the idea for one of our most successful ‘Basement’ desserts. Looking at the menu, puddings are a particularly strong section. The set lunch menu is decently priced. The sister pub to The Chequers, The Marlborough Tavern is just nearby. I’ve had some extremely nice food there and some that’s been just OK, so I’ve found it a little inconsistent to be honest, nevertheless it has a superb beer garden, if the sun’s shining. 

50 Rivers St

BA1 2QA

Telephone: 01225 360017

http://www.thechequersbath.com

Bertinet Bakery

I’m a huge fan of Richard Bertinet’s excellent sourdough. Definitely pick up some of that, even if you’re just visiting Bath for the day, (preferably sliced) it keeps really well and toasts nicely from frozen and while you’re at it, grab some pastries and cakes too. Everything is superb.

6 New Bond Street Place

BA1 1BH

http://www.bertinet.com/bertinetbakery/bakery.php

Green Park Farmers Market

If you’re in Bath on a Saturday morning, head over to Green Park (formerly a train station) for the Farmers Market. There’s a fair bit of local produce on offer. I particularly recommend Homewood Cheese for their Ewe’s Curd. It’s cracking. Colonna & Smalls is located just around the corner, so get a coffee first to drink as you walk round.

Every Saturday 9am – 1:30pm

Green Park Station

Green Park Road

BA1 1JB

http://www.bathfarmersmarket.co.uk

The King William

A lovely little Bath gastropub set over a couple of floors. There’s a bar and a small dining room on the ground floor and a couple of attractive dining rooms upstairs. There are some extremely nice wines on their list and some great local ales on tap.  Elly and I had a stonking Sunday lunch here.

36 Thomas Street 

BA1 5NN

Tel: 01225 428096

http://www.kingwilliampub.com

Allium

Chef Chris Staines, formerly of the Michelin starred Mandarin Oriental in London has recently made the move to Bath and already achieved some rather impressive reviews from national newspaper reviewers, including Jay Rayner of The Observer and John Walsh in the Independent. Hard to believe the restaurant is located in a Best Western hotel, nevertheless the food is beautifully cooked. The set lunch menu is a bit of a bargain. I’m really looking forward to eating there again.

Best Western Abbey Hotel

North Parade

BA1 1LF

Telephone: 01225 805245

http://www.abbeyhotelbath.co.uk/allium-brasserie

Hare and Hounds

Since I last ate here, a new head chef has arrived so until I go back, I can’t really recommend the food (Although the pub has the same owners as The Chequers and The Marlborough Tavern so the odds are it should be fairly decent). The reason I’ve included this pub in my Bath recommendations is the view. This place has the most amazing vista over the surrounding countryside, both from within the interior of the pub and outside in a rather lovely terrace and garden. Although it’s a little way out of town, if the weathers nice, head here for a drink and if you do have some food, let me know if it’s any good.

Lansdown Road

BA1 5TJ

Telephone: 01225 482682

http://www.hareandhoundsbath.com

 

Finally, a couple of non-food related Bath tips… 

Bath Thermae Spa

Something to do in Bath that I highly recommend, especially if you’re in town midweek. (It gets stupidly packed at the weekend) The Bath Thermae Spa is absolutely frigging uber. Yes, it’s not cheap at £26 for 2 hours (Although if you’ve travelled to Bath on the train, print this voucher out and get 4 hours for the price of 2) but it’s worth it. Seriously, floating  in a warm open-air pool up on the roof, the surrounding countryside visible through the steam rising around you just has to be experienced…unless you don’t like pools. Personally I could have floated around in there all day. Tres ancient Roman. As I said, go midweek, in the morning, for the best experience. 

The Hetling Pump Room, 

Hot Bath St

BA1 1SJ

Telephone: 0844 888 0844

http://www.thermaebathspa.com

Found

Found is a shop owned by friends of mine and Elly’s, located just over Pulteney bridge. It’s basically full of extremely cool and well-chosen items, clothes, cards, stationery, bits and bobs and magazines (they stock David Chang’s Lucky Peach). Apparently Vogue has listed it as one of the top 100 stores outside of London, dahling. Well worth poking your head in for a look. Tell them Dan and Elly sent you to get 150% added on to anything you buy.

17 Argyle Street,

BA2 4BQ

Telephone: 01225422001

http://foundbath.co.uk

So that’s my Bath food and drink recommendations. It’s not an exhaustive list, I’m always finding about new places to eat and booze at. If you think I’ve missed somewhere worthwhile, or you have a recommendation, let me know.