Great Meals in Spain

I just returned from my third trip to Spain and thought I'd post some great restaurant/tapas recommendations. Some may have been recommended here before.

Seville:

La Moneda (tapas)- Excellent fried fish raciones. It is located 5 minutes on foot from the cathedral.

Modesto (tapas)- has been recommended here many times and deserves the high praise. The mixed fried fish platter was fantastic.

La Infanta (tapas, but a small dining room with tables for dining as well)- There are two of these. This time, I tried the one on Calle Dos de Mayo. The jamon was thinly sliced and deliciously rich; the fried bacalau was also very tasty. Red mullet (salmonete), a small, whole, fried fish was also on my list of favorites. Sunday at 2 PM, especially on the day of a bullfight, seemed like the entire city was having lunch at the bar. Great food.

La Albariza (tapas, with some tables for dining as well)- I know this has also been mentioned here before, so I'll second any recommendations. It is located in Triana on Calle Betis. We ate excellent fried fish as we stood in front of sherry cask tables. The tastiest of the fried fish here tended to be pijotas (baby hake, I believe), served whole and fried. The fried calamares were also notable.

La Trastienda (tapas)- Really fresh fish (especially shellfish--the carabineros were unbelievably fresh) is the specialty here. It is located just off the Plaza de Alfalfa and is packed with locals.

Cadiz

Las Flores (tapas) -- A five minute walk from the main square, this place feels local. an assortment of 3 half-rations and a couple of tapas (all seafood), plus two glasses of house wine each for two people came to an incredibly reasonable 15 euro! The fish here is also as fresh as you would expect from a port city, and the fried chocos, fish eggs, and fried sole (which is considered one of the local fish) should be on the list of dishes to try here.

Chinchon

On a day trip from Madrid to Chinchon, a tiny Castilian town, we ate at Taverna Cueva de Vinos, an old farmhouse located about 10 minutes (walking) uphill from Chinchon's plaza mayor. The interior has not changed much since it was a functioning farmhouse, and the completely rustic interior coupled with fantastic Castilian fare made it a great spot for a long, leisurely midday meal. The assorted appetizers of sausages, tripe, olives, etc., followed by roasted lamb/suckling pig made a great lunch. This town makes the after-dinner drink anis, and Chinchon's version of anis was much more pleasant than some heavier versions I had tasted.

Segovia

Meson del Duque (sit-down dining)- I'll give an enthusiastic second to this one as well, as so many other on the board have written about it. Go for the roasted meets again, and as an appetizer, the judias con chorizo (large white beans with sausage in a stew) was a great, local way to begin the meal. The restaurant is a 10-minute walk from the cathedral.

Laguardia

This authentic, small wine town on the border of La Rioja, The Basque Country, and Navarra was a real highlight of the trip. We stayed at the small and beautiful Castillo el Collado (8 guest rooms total, and a delicious restaurant frequented by locals). Dinner at the restaurant featured local specialties like roasted lamb, pork, kid, etc. Patatas a la Riojana, a potato dish in a stew with sausage, is a local favorite as well. The roasted oxtail was equally as tasty.

Madrid

El Tempranillo (tapas) - Located on Cava Baja, I returned to this place for a good selection of wines and tapas dishes that range from canapes with asparagus and egg to a variety of sliced cheeses. Extremely local crowd.

Feel free to ask questions about these places, and if you have a chance to try any of them, enjoy!

MMM