Eating BIG in Spain: Seville

Eating like a local:
Regional food specialties
-Eating and Seeing Southern Spain

The second stop of our two week trip thru Spain takes us to the beautiful southern city of Seville or Sevilla as it's called by locals. Upon our arrival at the airport and the taxi ride to our rental I felt like I do when arriving in Florida. It was warm, there were palm trees and fresh squeezed orange juice was being sold all over. It felt totally different than Madrid in that it was a little more relaxed than the fast paced atmosphere they had going on there.

Seville

Bodeguita Romero

We used AirBNB for this trip and ended up in a beautiful top floor apartment located in a popular part of town. Some research led me to a site that rounded up all the tapas bars in town. It was also really helpful in explaining some of the specialties of the region which ended up being as good as any of the areas in Spain we visited. First up was a place that came highly rec'd on the site.

Locals Favorite I was led to by Alzahar 

Bodeguita Romero was a short walk thru the small winding streets of our neighborhood. It was a great call by the site as we ended up back here for more. I basically followed the lead and ordered what I saw was good in the review. First plate up was some prawns wrapped in potato shoestrings which were then freshly fried. Simple seemed to reign supreme throughout town and these were as good a bar snack as I had on the trip. Then came the much hyped potato salad which is made fresh. Owner Pedro Romero makes it fresh every morning. Served cold it didnt look like much upon arrival to the bar but once I ate it I needed more immediatley. Chopped green onions and the most amazing olive oil infused sauce was all it had but it was oh so good. Next up was their famous pringá montaditos. This small sandwich is made with a fresh toasted bun and stuffed with tender shredded pork, black pudding and chorizo. The most glorious breakfast tasting sandwich I can remember eating.

Prawns wrapped with Shoestring Potatoes

Marinated House Potatoes 

Pringá Montaditos Sandwich

Some Sights from Town

Seville was stunning so I recommend walking around as much as you can. So many wonderful buildings and winding streets with all sorts of surprises on them. I wish we got to stay longer than just two nights but I now have a reason to go back.

Beautiful Place to Walk Around

La Azotea

Locals Favorite that Tourists tend to find

The next stop might of been my favorite place to eat on the trip and that's saying something. We went here for lunch on our first day in town and ended up going back twice. Owned by a woman from California and her Spanish husband the place was packed with locals and tourists like us who did our homework. On our first visit we couldnt resist the local specialty of Seville. Carrillada's are slow cooked pork cheeks and places serve them all over town. I'd read La Azotea had one of the best plates in town and they were fantastic. Served with perfectly cooked potatoes and a chunk of goat cheese on top this was a delectable snack. Off the tapas of the day menu there were all sorts of fresh locally caught tuna dishes available. We ended up doing much of our ordering off this and each and every dish was fantastic. The sashimi on day one had a mango and cucumber topping that paired perfectly and day two was no different with a avocado based topping ($8). The tarter was fresh and the drinks were great. Pricing was as reasonable as any place we went to. I'd highly recommend a stop here. They also have other restaurants in town.

Tuna Sashimi Special from different days

Fresh Oysters and Tuna Tartar

Carrilladas with Goat Cheese (Stewed Pork Cheeks)

La Primera Del Puente

Down by the river there's a nice scene going on with shopping, bars and restaurants all gathered together in an area popular with the younger locals. We were told the seafood at this place which had a tapas bar across the street that featured the same dishes for cheaper was a nice stop. We enjoyed a few cold refreshments while snacking on some freshly fried baby squid. All good in my book.

Fried Baby Squid

Eslava

a peak inside as it died down before closing

This was another place that came highly recommended online and we were eager to check them out. We stopped in one late evening for dinner and were able to squeeze a space right at the end of the bar. Many places will be packed but dont let that deter you. Once you get your spot the bartenders are good with getting over to you. We enjoyed a plate of cod stuffed in pepper, their much praised ribs, a Brie Pastry with cuttlefish + algae which looked like a lit joint but ended up being really interesting. Along with those wonderful taste we also got a few plates of seafood including the first of many plates of razor clams we'd end up ordering on this trip. Everything was excellent.

Some of our plates ordered from Eslava

More Sights from Town 

A Gorgeous City

Levies Cafe Bar

Popular Stop with Students and Art Folk Types

After catching a fantastic free flamenco show we were narrowed down on eating options. Seville is a city that totally closes around Midnight on weekdays and if you dont eat before then your options are Burger King around where we were. On our walk to the free show we passed a place that was packed both inside and out and made a not we should try it on the rebound home. They served smaller plates as well as large ones and we were able to try a few of them. First up was marinated and fried dogfish. So good we ordered more. I loved the curry spice in the breading. The paella was ok. No crust on the bottom but still a nice rice dish. The grilled calamari was also really good. Nothing fancy here but good food for those from the neighborhood.

Good Home Cooked Spanish Food

Flamenco in the city where it as born

Note: I'm choosing not to include addresses because they're easy enough to find online. However if you're headed this way, feel free to email me and I'll forward my list of all the spots I deemed worth of a stop, many of which I never made it too. That said Spain as a whole was worthy of a second visit so I'll have another crack at them someday soon. See ya next time @chibbqking