In Granada, when you order a drink in bars it comes accompanied with a free little (or not so little) dish of typical food. Normally, the food could be meat in sauce, squid, little fish, sandwiches, potato omelette, etc.
The Granada people go out for "Tapeo" and only asking for two drinks they can have dinner.
We recommend it because is a typical custom in Granada and it is very important to live this custom to understand the kind of life of there. And it is a very cheap way to have dinner.
In all bars you can take a "Tapa" with your drink, but the typical place is in the center, near the bull ring ("Plaza de toros").
www.turgranada.es/?id_idioma=2
Google map: bit.ly/IJxcCF
This wine and tapas bar is absolutely fantasic! The owner is generous and interested in pleasing anyone who shares her love of food and wine. She plays flamenco from her record collection, serves up yummy tapas, some of which she makes herself, and has a small but excellent range of Spanish wines that she thoughtfully combines with whatever tapas you want. I left myself entirely in her hands and had two blissful wine/food experiences. The atmosphere is also memorable with tasteful decorations and thoughtful touches like linen table cloths that she puts out on the bar before you begin. If I could make this my regular wine bar I'd be in heaven!
Tendillas De Santa Paula No 4, Granada, Andalucía
Google map: bit.ly/HKg39Y
You’ll need to arrive earlier than the Spanish to ensure a table and tapas in this thriving,
buzzy Asturian community centre, open Friday to Sunday evenings and staffed by volunteers for the last 20 years. Inside older community members prop up the bar, and tables of Spanish speakers alternate with other nationalities, all happily gorging on generous plates of gambas, ham, cheese, sardines and calamares – washed down with beer for 1 euro or Asturian cider, poured from a great height to get the air into it. Past the bar with its photos of landscapes and Asturians proudly wielding their prize-winning cabrales cheese, the centro gives way to a village hall atmosphere, complete with functional tables and plastic chairs. Last time I was convinced our table of seven had over-done it: we’d ordered nearly everything on the menu, twice! But we still managed to finish everything – and three bottles of rioja - for the princely sum of 20 euros per head.
Open Friday and Saturday evenings and for lunch on Sunday.
www.centrocabraliego.net
171 rue Haute/Hoogstraat, 1000 Brussels
+32 (0)2 511 05 59
Google map: bit.ly/ysbmVR
Bec is our Been there local for Brussels. You can view her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/brussels-local-rebecca.jsp and follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/Becinbrussels
Great little local restaurant in Kennedy Town - an up and coming area in HK, that's 20 mins from Central. Good service and a nice relaxed atmosphere.
Shop 7 Ground Floor, Grand Fortune Mansion, 1 Davis Street, Kennedy Town, Hong Kong.
Google map: bit.ly/zXZysC
Great restaurant, really delicious food, easy going atmosphere.
Italian food, small plates to share (two per person was recommended by the waiter and is right).
6 Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, London WC2E 7NA
+44(0)20 7836 8448
Google map: bit.ly/xz54yz
Fed up of Cruzcampo (not many people out of Seville are actually that fond of it) then this is the best place to visit. It has an extensive menu of beers, ales, bitters, stouts from all over the world (hence the name). And to ensure that the Morte Subite (€2.95) doesn't take such effect there are also several tapas to choose from, including German sausage and sauerkraut.
www.cerveceriainternacional.com/
C/ GAMAZO, 3 41001 Seville, Spain
+34 954 211 717
Google map: bit.ly/A8l76q
* BecomingSevillana is our Been there local for Seville. You can read her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/seville-local-kim.jsp and follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/BecomingSevillana.jsp
She also has her own blog: becomingsevillana.blogspot.com/
A minimalist wine-bar style establishment in Utrera, a small town some 30 minutes away from Seville. A good range of hot and cold gastro-tapas. A little more expensive than most places, but definitely worth the few cents more. All dishes come beautifully and innovatively presented. Being a drab winter day, I asked for the 'pucherito expreso' (€3.90), and what a spectacle! Puchero is a broth made of various meat-types. It is normally served as a broth with rice or chickpeas and the meat is served as a side, all mushed together and eaten with bread, called 'pringá' (or pringada). My pucherito expresso was served to me from a tiny cafetiere. The waitress poured it for me into a bowl, garnished with a quail egg, and the pringá was in the bottom half of the instrument.
www.besanatapas.com/
C/ Niño Perdido, 1 41710 Utrera
+34 955 86 38 04
Google map: bit.ly/xujL5Z
* BecomingSevillana is our Been there local for Seville. You can read her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/seville-local-kim.jsp and follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/BecomingSevillana.jsp
She also has her own blog: becomingsevillana.blogspot.com/
Tigre is a small, quirky classic Spanish bar. We love it. They serve some of the most fabulous tapas you'll ever taste. The owner, Antonio, is a flamboyant showman who takes enormous pride in everything he serves. Try the berenjena (thinly sliced deep fried aubergine) - amazing. Antonio also serves a mean tostada: marmalade with soft white cheese or ham with blue cheese crumbled on - wash it down with fresh squeezed orange juice and a prefect strong coffee. If you're feeling adventurous (and hungry) ask Antonio to simply keep the food coming, it will be a culinary experience, you will not leave hungry and it won't cost a fortune. In the summer evenings the bar takes over the top part of the square, service can slow down outside sometimes in the warmer weather, but hey whats's the rush? You're sitting in a lovely traditional Andalucian square under the stars sipping your drink.
Pl. Constitución, 1
18120 , ALHAMA DE GRANADA , GRANADA
Google map: bit.ly/sypico
This classic Andalucian tapas bar has a great atmosphere, it serves a fantastic selection of local wine and draft beer and a plate of tapas is free with every drink you order. In the summer the tables spill out into the narrow street and in the winter they close the big wooden doors and place trays of burning olive wood (Braseros) under your table to keep you warm. If the free tapas don't fill you up you can order more food - great rustic plates of food, it is all local and seasonal. Try a media (half) plate of the setas (fleshy mushrooms) and the calamari plancha (grilled squid) are both incredible. In summer the tinto verano (red wine and lemonade cooler) hits the spot. In winter one of the local full bodied red wines is perfect. Whatever the season the atmosphere in Ochoa is always vibrant.
Plaza de Constitución, Alhama de Granada, Andalucia, Spain
Google map: bit.ly/uL3pgq
This very beautifully decorated wine bar is in the Realejo part of Granada (the old Jewish quarter), very close to Melia hotel. What a great place to have tapas and a huge selection of Spanish red and white wines and cider. Carlos, the owner, knows his stuff and will be very happy to talk you through each of his selected wines and point you in the right direction should you want to take some home with you. We will be back.
Calle San Antonio, next to (Plaza de Los Campos). Granada, Andalucia, Spain
+ 34 666 238 485
Google map: bit.ly/tvqqef
This is a place that we very much recommend. Not perfect by any means but the prices are fantastic. Bottles of wine can be bought for €8!
The starters are brilliant and very large. The portion of mussels was huge and very good. The desserts are mouth watering.
The main weakness of this place is that some of the meat based mains are not as good as the rest of the menu. The fish based mains are good.
Staff are businesslike rather than friendly - food comes quickly but having said that there is no push to get you out if you are nursing your drinks.
One other note - bread is not free!
Plaza El Ángel 12, 28012 Madrid, Spain
+34 913 691 059
Google map: bit.ly/oODb9o
Local tapas bar in the Alfalfa neighbourhood.
Good relaxed vibe, with people spilling out into the street when it gets packed (which it easily can given the small size).
C/ Candilejo, 1 41004 Seville, Spain
+34 954 222 344
Google map: bit.ly/mZLXAV
This traditional stand up tapas bar is located on Plaza Alfalfa. Above the door is a colourful tiled arch depicting a beach scene.
A very popular place with both locals and visitors alike and it quickly fills up as soon as the door opens. Offers superb value for money & allows you to try traditional Andalusian-style tapas at great prices.
A novel tapa for me was the Iberian pork liver, served cold in an olive oil marinade. The tortilla portions were massive. Staff friendly and attentive.
There are tables at the back, but most opt to stand while eating tapas and watching the football on the TV and the activity on the street outside.
Calle Alfalfa, 4 41004 Seville, Spain
Google map: bit.ly/pdCHCA
Opens: noon - 4pm & 8pm - midnight daily.
Bodega Santa Cruz (aka Las Columnas) is a great find, just around the corner from the Giralda.
An authentic tapas bar where the good humoured bar staff chalk up your tab on the bar counter.
Food while cheap is good, and we ended up frequenting this place a few times during our stay in Seville.
Some seats outside.
C/Rodrigo Caro 1 (very near cathedral)
Open 7am - midnight daily.
Google map: bit.ly/q4Nee4
An absolute gem. One of the oldest tapas bars in Seville, with a bar on the site since the late 17th century. Popular with tourists and locals alike.
Dark wood panels with seating at a minimum but great food and a great atmosphere.
You stand at the bar and order and your tab is chalked on the bar counter to keep track.
Food really good quality and not that expensive. The espinacas con garbanzos (spinach with chickpeas is particularly to be recommended.
You can book a seat at the back for the dinner menu but we much preferred the tapas menu at the bar, so much so that we returned a number of times during our stay in Seville.
While we were there there we encountered an elderly gentleman named Valentino who writes poetry on napkins and hands to people in the bar. If you do see him, buy him a glass of beer for his trouble.
We first heard about this place on Rick Stein's TV programme 'Spain'.
www.elrinconcillo.es/en/home.html
C/ Gerona 40 near Plaza Ponce de Leon
+34 954 22 31 83
Open until late every day
Google map: bit.ly/o0Hn7B
See bar featured at the start of this Youtube video on Rick Stein's Spain:.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fuiDcJyXfE&feature=related
Tiny tapas bar that is extremely popular. As soon as the door opens the place fills up.
As with a few other tapas bars in Granada, you get a free tapa with every drink. Don't ask me how they remember but for every drink you buy, you get a different and better tapa each time.
Emphasis is on seafood and the menu is very reasonably priced.
Calle Navas, 26, Granada, Spain
+34958/227-070
Google map: bit.ly/ow7COi
Open 1 - 4pm, 8 - 10.30pm Mon - Fri
Closed Sept
A traditional unpretentious stand up bar which can get jammed when busy and is popular with locals and tourists alike. Always a good sign to see the locals in a bar/restaurant.
You get a free tapa with every drink. Additionally if you do want to buy off the menu, there is a great choice. It is a great way to try different dishes by selecting tapas.
Only downside is the lack of seats.
Almireceros 1-3, 18010 Granada, Spain
+34958223222
Google map: bit.ly/mReQuA
11.30 am - 1am Fri - Sun
A really modern restaurant with an abundance of 'tapas de diseño'. In a very minimalist setting, the menu offers something for everyone's taste, pâté, mini salads, meat, fish and finger fancies. Tapas range from €2.75 - €3.75. Entering with a rumbly tummy is dangerous business, as you will want to try everything on the menu! A little pricier than your average tapas bar, but definitely worth every cent!
www.showdetapas.com/home/
There are several in Cádiz, but the one that I visited is:
Calle San Francisco, 3 Cádiz
* BecomingSevillana is our Been there local for Seville. You can read her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/seville-local-kim.jsp and follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/BecomingSevillana.jsp
She also has her own blog: becomingsevillana.blogspot.com/
Literally meaning vegetable garden in Spanish, La Huerta, offers just that. Lots of veggie tapas - you can even find croquetas (croquettes) free of ham (choice of cauliflower or pesto). Tapas prices ranging between €2-3. Three tapas and 4 drinks (2 people) was about €20. Great summertime dining as plenty of outdoor seating and near other tapas bars (including the infamous Rinconcillo) if you wished to make a little tour of it.
Plaza Terceros 9, Seville, Spain
+34 655 270 079
Google map: bit.ly/ovIJK5
* BecomingSevillana is our Been there local for Seville. You can read her profile here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/articles/seville-local-kim.jsp and follow her tips here: www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/travellers/BecomingSevillana.jsp
She also has her own blog: becomingsevillana.blogspot.com/
Barrio: La Encarnación
A lovely bar/restaurant nestled in the Triana barrio. It offers a wide selection of international-influenced tapas, and a well-balanced variety of meat/fish/vegetable dishes. Friendly and attentive waiter service. Fancy food but relaxed atmosphere - a little pricey, but good quality (3 tapas and 2 drinks €28). Try the star dish "Arroz meloso con magret" - Risotto-style rice with duck.
www.puratasca.com
Numancia, 5, Triana 41010
+34954330680