Tag Archives: tapas

La Imprenta

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la imprenta[photo courtesy of the La Imprenta website]

This is more of a bookmark than a review as we only stopped here briefly for a couple of drinks and complimentary tapas (a very tasty hummus and an average sausage and pimenton) on the little terrace, so I can’t really say too much. There’s also a restaurant behind the bar inside which looks impressive on the website, but was closed when we were there. Would like to try it out properly next visit.

Plaza Doctor Quesada, 1
Úbeda
Tel 953 755 500
La Imprenta Website

la imprenta sausagegrilled sausage and pimiento (complimentary)

la imprenta hummuscreamy hummus with jamón

Misa de 12

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misa 12

The Misa de 12 came with a glowing, and justified, recommendation. Inside it’s tiny and charming, with a glass trapdoor covered stairway to the cellar in one corner, so most of the seating is on a little terrace outside in the shade of the overhanging first floor, looking across the spacious expanse of the plaza Primero de Mayo. On a warm summer day this was a perfect spot to stop for a cold beer and then lunch.

As is customary in this part of Andalucía, drinks came with little complimentary tapitas, in this case a Salamanca cheese, lomo de orza (pork loin confit) on toast, and later, cabrales (blue cheese) croquetas. Small, simple and delicious they performed their intended function of luring us on to bigger things – in this case a ración of flamenquin. This dish seems to be ubiquitous in this region and we’d been tempted a couple of times, so we decided it was time to give in, and were glad we did. Perfectly cooked, and with a lovely mustardy dressing. This was followed by a media ración of presa.

By the time we left every table was full, inside and out, and the atmosphere was that nice friendly buzz you get at a place frequented by regulars. Recommended.

Plaza Primero de Mayo, 7 (corner Calle Montiel)
Jaén
Tel 953 828 197
Misa de 12 Website
€ € €

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Food 9 | Wine 8 | Service 8 | Ambiance 9

misa 12 bar

misa 12 blackboard menu

misa 12 (9)traditional salmorejo (complimentary)

misa 12 cheesecured sheep cheese from Salamanca

misa 12 olive oilfabulous olive oil for our bread

misa 12 lomo orzalomo de orzo (complimentary)

misa 12 croquetascabrales croquetas (complimentary)

misa 12 flamenquinflamenquín

misa 12 presapresa Ibérica

misa 12 candles

misa 12 cellar door

misa 12 terrace

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Cantina La Estación

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cantina estacion
As you might expect from a bar called the station canteen, there’s a distinct railway theme to the décor, from the old pictures to the safety lamps and luggage rack, with the restaurant section very much resembling a railway dining car. As you walk in there is also a separate tapas bar, which extends into a sit-down tapas dining area. We stayed with tapas on this occasion and were disappointed not to make it back to try the restaurant as I’ve heard such great things about it.

The tapas menu was nicely varied and we started with a complimentary tapa of small chicken thighs with herby yoghurt sauce, and were again impressed with the standard of the “free tapas” in this part of Andalucia. We followed this with some half-portion selections from the main menu – a pipirrana de bacalao (an elegant take on the local cold salad of tomatoes, onions and peppers served with cod), a seafood burger of chipiron and prawns with ali-oli in a squid ink bun, and a complimentary “tigre” with prawn bread and Iberian cuts, all of them excellent. To finish off we decided on a media-ración of presa Ibérica in mushroom sauce. Unfortunately, although the sauce was superb, the meat was fatty and gristly. To be fair, we weren’t charged for it as we couldn’t eat it, but it did put a bit of a damper on an otherwise very good meal (though not enough to put us off going back).

Excellent service, very good wine list and great ambiance. My only real complaint was the use of a chemical “air freshener”, which was so strong that it actually interfered with being able to taste the food and wine properly.

Cuesta Rodadera, 1
Úbeda, Jaén
Tel 687 77 72 30
€ € € Bar
€ € € € Restaurant
Cantina la Estación Website

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Food 9 | Wine 8 | Service 9 | Ambiance 9

cantina estacion (8)the bar

cantina estacion (3)chalkboard menu

cantina estacion (6)

cantina estacion tigre“tigre” with prawn bread and Iberian cuts (complimentary)

cantina estacion calamar prawn burgercalamar & prawn burger in squid ink bun with seaweed alioli

cantina estacion chicken thighscrispy chicken thighs with herb yoghurt sauce (complimentary)

cantina estacion pipirranapipirrana with bacalao, smoked evoo, tapenade

cantina estacion presapresa Ibérica with mushroom sauce

cantina estacion (2)

cantina estacion (13)
cantina estacion restaurantthe “dining car” restaurant

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Pato Rojo

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pato rojo

A stone’s throw from the Cathedral, I would’ve walked right past if it hadn’t come highly recommended by twitter pal @HERMANOPRIMERO, so I was on the lookout for a small “hole-in-the-wall” called Pato Rojo. There’s not much seating, a couple of tables on the sidewalk terrace and a few more in a small room at the far end of the bar. Most people cram into the narrow bar area and cheerfully order up.

This is totally my kind of place. Busy, buzzy ambiance, great food and friendly super-efficient staff. Also absurdly cheap. I went twice during my short visit to Jaén, once with a friend and again on my own. The first night my friend and I spent 12.90€ on drinks (3 beer, 3 wine) and were given about eight complimentary tapas. We were so full we didn’t get around to ordering any of the other mouthwatering dishes we saw coming out of the kitchen, so I took a few pics of them to show you.

Next day I stopped by at lunchtime and found a spot at the jam-packed bar. The barmen remembered me from the night before and started bringing me more “extras” until I told them I really wanted to order some food from the menu, specifically the grilled scallop with seafood. Which was stunning. By this time I was chatting away with the staff and the people on either side of me, and more food kept appearing that we all ended up sharing. What a great way to spend an afternoon. I loved Pato Rojo so much I wanted to take it home with me. There is nothing like this in Sevilla.

Bernabé Soriano, 12
Tel 953 23 40 99
€ € €

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Food 9 | Wine 9 | Service 10 | Ambiance 9

pato rojo barjam-packed bar

pato rojo fritosfritos variados

pato rojo albariñoa very nice albariño

pato rojo langostinoslangostinos a la plancha (complimentary)

pato rojo anchovyCantabrian anchovy with evoo (complimentary)

pato rojo boqueronesboquerones fritos (complimentary)

pato rojo gambas rebozadasbattered prawns (complimentary)

pato rojo joseJosé pouring beer

pato rojo mojamamojama (cured tuna) with evoo and peanuts (complimentary)

pato rojo rejosfried rejos – baby octopus tentacles (complimentary)

pato rojo Tilapia, a type of soletilapia, a type of sole, with padrón peppers (complimentary)

pato rojo rosadachocos fritos (complimentary)

pato rojo ricardo manzanilla sprayRicardo using manzanilla spray on fried rosada (complimentary)

pato rojo salmonsmoked salmon (complimentary)

pato rojo scallopgrilled scallop with barely cooked prawns and salmon

pato rojo ventrescatuna ventresca (not ours)

pato rojo carabinerosgrilled carabineros (not ours)

pato rojo seafood plattermixed seafood platter (not ours)

pato rojo orujoorujo (complimentary)

pato rojo jose rachel ricardoDream Team: José, Rachel & Ricardo

pato rojo (17)the red duck

pato rojo busy barbusy buzzy bar

pato rojo dining areadining area

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La Manchega

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la manchegaFounded in 1886, La Manchega offers a variety of typical tapas and specialises in Iberian charcuterie products and traditional stews. When I walked in I thought I would have a quick tapa and leave, but when I asked if I could take some photos (always best to ask first) Cristobal the barman got very chatty, telling me about the history of the bar, about Jaén, and then an old guy at the end of the bar, who turned out to be the owner, asked if I wanted to see downstairs. But of course!

The door leading to the basement bodega and dining area is behind the bar and there was a feeling of suddenly being an insider as Cristobal lifted up a section of the wooden bar top so I could pass through. We went down narrow stairs to a long low room with beamed ceilings that was filled with wooden tables, chairs and wine racks. White walls were festooned with ceramic plates and all manner of “agricultural themed” bric a brac. Rustic? You betcha.

Back upstairs seated at the bar I only tried one tapa (tender stewed pork in sauce) so I can’t say too much about the food, but the other dishes I saw certainly looked good. That along with a warm inviting atmosphere and friendly service guarantees a return visit next time I’m in Jaén.

Bernardo López 8
Tel 953 232 192
€ € €

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Food 6 | Wine 7 | Service 7 | Ambiance 8

la manchega bar
la manchega jamones
la manchega blackboard
la manchega (4)
la manchega (9)

la manchega stewsstews

la manchega papas aliolipapas alioli

la manchega carne salsacarne en salsa

la manchega migasmigas

la manchega salchichassalchichas with chips

la manchega (11)

Cristobal, owner Pepe, Macario, Juan

la manchega (5)

la manchega (8)

la manchega downstairs bodega

la manchega downstairs dining room

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Peña Flamenca de Jaén

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 pena flamencaWandered in here (or tried to) the first afternoon I was in Jaén, but it wasn’t quite open yet – even though there seemed to be several regulars inside – so my friend and I moved on. The next day I passed by again and I swear those same guys were in there. But this time it was officially open so I sat at the bar and tried a couple of tapas. Some fabulous cheese and a very good stewed meat dish (cannot remember what it was, other than delicious).

Got chatting with the woman at the bar who introduced me to the owner. Turns out this bar is a labour of love, and one dedicated to flamenco. There are shows every Friday (more often if they can manage it) and it really felt like a place I’d like to go back to. It’s got a cosy bar area, massive dining room with stage, and a nice sidewalk terrace too.

Calle Maestra 11
Tel 665 768 657
€ € €

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Food 9 | Wine 10 | Service 9 | Ambiance 9

pena flamenca (6)

pena flamenca (4)

pena flamenca meatmeat! very good (complimentary)

pena flamenca cheesedelicious cheese (complimentary)

pena flamenca owner barwomanBea and owner Antonio

pena flamenca (3)

pena flamenca (2)

the stage

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El Tostón

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el toston

Super rustic looking and all that, I thought I’d pop in for a snack. The complimentary tapa was two pimientos de padrón on bread. Okay, I guess. I snapped two other photos of anchovies on bread and a rather nice looking revuelto… but you know, the barman was borderline rude and was clearly giving me the “guiri treatment” while he snacked non-stop and chatted with friends at the end of the bar. You probably don’t want to go here.

Bernardo Lopez 11
Jaén
Tel
€ € €

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Food 5 | Wine 5 | Service 3 | Ambiance 5

el toston (3)
el toston pimentosmy complimentary tapa

el toston anchoviesanchovies on toast with caperberries (someone else got this)

el toston revueltonice looking revuelto

el toston (2)

El Rinconcillo de Javi

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rinconcito javiLoved this bar. I wandered in to have a look before heading off for lunch elsewhere and was immediately taken in by the wonderfully OTT Semana Santa ambiance. I mean, it’s something you get used to in Sevilla, but it took me by surprise in Jaén. Also, it seemed more heart-felt here, not like something they were doing to lure in tourists.

Just had time for one tapita – a super tasty seafood “meatball” stew – and chatted a bit with Javi, who runs the bar with his mother. Hence the lovely homecooking. Javi’s mum wasn’t working that day – his aunt was cooking instead. Left me wanting more. Next time.

Arco del Consuelo 4
Jaén
Tel 670 36 06 68
€ € €

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Food 7 | Wine 7 | Service 8 | Ambiance 8

rinconcito javi (3)
rinconcito javi jamico-owner Javi

rinconcito javi albondigas chocosalbóndigas de pescado & mariscos (fish & seafood meatballs)

rinconcito javi (4)counting the days…

rinconcito javi (2)dining area

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Los Arcos

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las arcos tortilla buns                          warm rolls filled with freshly made tortilla (complimentary)

Very remiss not to have taken a pics of the restaurant (oops) so you get these lovely bagel-shaped buns instead. We were almost put off eating here by an initially rather cold greeting, but it had been recommended, so we decided to give it a try, and in the end we were glad we did.

The location, under Los Arcos (the arches) alongside the Paseo de la Constitución, was very pleasant on a summer evening, and our waitress (not the person who “greeted” us) was super friendly and helpful. As a result we sampled two complimentary tapas, a typical tortilla in a bun with amazing spicy olives on the side, and okay fried calamare. Then on the recommendation of the waitress we tried a plate of pork loin “de orza” (preserved in a herbed manteca) with fried egg and potatoes. Fabulous. Definitely the best thing we had to eat in our 24 hours in Baeza. Come here for this, even if you don’t have anything else.

Portales Alhondiga, 11
Baeza
Tel 669 769 336
€ € €

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Food 8 | Wine 8 | Service 8 | Ambiance 8

las arcos calamaresdeep-fried calamares (complimentary)

las arcos lomo orzalomo de orza (manteca herb confit)

La Góndola

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One of a number of quite similar looking bars with terraces under the arches alongside the Paseo de la Constitución, we stopped here briefly for a drink and a complimentary tapita, which proved to be “mystery” meatballs that were actually rather good. If it hadn’t been for the time demands of our research, and the fact that there was only one waiter for a fairly large and busy terrace, we might well have stayed longer.

And although it seems silly to write a “review” based on one tapa I reallly thought this place was worth a return visit. If you get there before me let me know how it was.

Paseo de los Portales Carbonería, 13
Baeza
Tel 953 742 984
€ € €

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Food 7 | Wine 7 | Service 5 | Ambiance 6