Rio DOC
Where? Rio DOC (Sant Marti, Barcelona, Spain) Map
When? Friday May 19, 2017
Who? Me
Food Style? Brazilian Casual
I usually go for a quick sandwich or something I can eat on the go for lunch, just so I can maximise my time exploring. However, this tapas thing is too good to pass up, so I'm going to try and tapas as often as I can. Near the zoo is this little cafe, and I'm stopping by here on my way to the beach.
Tapas #1
Hummus - classic, beet, and piquillo pepper, with tapiocas and vegetables
I dig into the hummus first. Each pot is tasty in its own way. The classic one has that nice chickpea flavour with lots of olive oil and herbs, the pepper one has a good spice to it, and the beet one has that slight sweet but earthy flavour. The tapiocas look like plain white bread, but they're actually slightly crispy and more like wafers. They're perfect for eating with the hummus.
Tapas #2
Meat rissoles
The rissoles are really good. Nice and crispy batter with delicious meat on the inside. This is the half portion, because variety trumps quantity for me!
I'm having fun trying all sorts of different combinations but I think the pepper hummus by itself is my favourite. There's a lot of hummus to get through and the meal is surprisingly filling from the dense tapiocas. For €11.80 including a drink, that was excellent value.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:28am on Saturday June 10, 2017 :: 0 comments :: 
Irati Taverna Basca
Where? Irati Taverna Basca (Ciutat Vella, Barcelona, Spain) Map Menu
When? Thursday May 18, 2017
Who? Me
Food Style? Pintxos
It's time for tapas round two. I purposely had an early and smaller meal at Ramblero so I could eat again. This time I've ordered my sangria. Teehee.
Pintxos
It's hard to talk about everything individually. What I will talk about is the experience and the ambience. Tapas begs company. It's like yum cha. At Irati, it's more catered to the solo traveller; instead of ordering plates of food, you ask for a plate and then you pick what you want from the bar. At the end, the number of toothpicks is tallied and you're charged €2.10 for each. In fact, this type of tapas is called pintxo, which means skewer. Stand at the bar and eat, and watch others enjoy themselves while you type up a food blog on your iPhone.
The food here is excellent. Lots of flavour and variety, and interesting combinations. Most of them are bread based, with various meats and garnish piled on top. There's tuna, sardines, smoked salmon, cured meats, cheeses, crumbed prawns wrapped in bacon - try everything once, and try them again. The staff are extremely friendly and helpful and I felt much more at ease than last night. I had eight items in total and my drink, and that came to about €20.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:22am on Saturday June 10, 2017 :: 0 comments ::
Ramblero
Where? Ramblero de la Boqueria (Ciutat Vella, Barcelona, Spain) Map Menu
When? Thursday May 18, 2017
Who? Me
Food Style? Tapas and Seafood
In the chaos of the Mercado de La Boqueria on La Rambla is a kitchen called Ramblero. Walking by, it smells amazing. They have all this fresh produce mere metres away and my mouth drops open as I watch platters of seafood leaving for tables off to the side. I'm sitting the bar and probably can't eat a whole platter to myself, so I've ordered a few dishes to try.
Solo Tapas. Is there anything more sad :( Just let me down the white wine and I'll drop my inhibitions. I should have ordered sangria.
Tapas #1
Iberican Chorizo
The iberico chorizo is solid and meaty, but isn't very spicy. I like it though. I can see it matching with some bread and cheese.
Tapas #2
Croquettes
The croquettes are very good. Perfectly crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. In fact, they balance the saltiness of the chorizo.
Tapas #3
Grilled Prawns
The final dish to arrive is the prawns. They're surrounded by mushrooms and I involuntarily grimace. Despite that, the prawns are fantastic and melt in my mouth. They're so full of flavour. I even try the mushrooms. Nope. Not for me. There's a bit of chilli in the dish and I accidentally take a bite - it's hot!
It's a bit expensive for what I ate but the quality is there. I got a free shot of some traditional liquor too, but I'm not sure what it is.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:20am on Saturday June 10, 2017 :: 0 comments ::
O Retorno
Where? O Retorno (Eixample, Barcelona, Spain) Map
When? Wednesday May 17, 2017
Food Style? Spanish Seafood
My first night in Barcelona and I'm a bit nervous about eating out since tapas is such a big thing in Spain, and being a solo traveller I'm not sure if it's the norm to have tapas by yourself. It's certainly not as fun, and I imagine it's like eating yum cha by yourself. My Spanish is also terrible, so I think the language barrier will be hard to overcome if the restaurant staff don't speak English.
Any fears I had were immediately compounded by the fact I spilled my bloody drink all over the counter and myself. Oh well. I can never come back here. I don't know what I'm doing and I just order some random bits of seafood. Being by the Mediterranean, seafood is a big part of the cuisine here.
Entree
Patatas Bravas
I got some patatas bravas, because carbs are good. They're nice and crispy on the outside and the spicy mayo is not too bad, just not that spicy.
Mains
Pimientos
I thought I was ordering seafood here but fried pimientos have appeared. I think something got lost in translation. Oh well. It's nice though. I hope my grilled prawns get here.
Mains, For Real
Grilled King Prawns
It takes a little bit of confusion and another patron to translate what I want, but yes it turns out my prawns got lost too. I'm so embarrassed at the lack of language skills. They do arrive though, and damn they're good. Lots of garlic and herbs, juicy and perfectly cooked. I don't know what is the proper way to eat them so I eat them the only way I know: savagely, with my fingers. At one point in time, a splattering of oil hits my face because I'm useless at this dignity thing. I power on. I won't finish everything but I'll do my best.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:13am on Saturday June 10, 2017 :: 0 comments ::
Cafe Creperie Saint Pierre
Where? Cafe Creperie Saint Pierre (Geneva, Switzerland) Map
When? Tuesday May 16, 2017
Who? Me
Food Style? Crepes
I haven't eaten out much in Switzerland, it's very expensive here and they inconveniently do not use the Euro, but also I'm staying with friends so we've opted for some convenient options, like a picnic by the river instead. Today though, I was wandering around the city centre and made my way to the cathedral. Next door is a small creperie recommended by a friend who used to live here. It's very expensive at over CHF10, but I'm hungry so I give it a go.
Crepe
Purée de Pommes Cannelle
The crepe has the perfect texture. Slightly crispy on the bottom and soft and fluffy on the top. There's plenty of cinnamon and icing sugar to go with the stewed apple in the middle. I wouldn't have minded a little bit more sweetness but I'm quite happy with what I have.
They have a huge list of other crepes that I would have liked to try - ones with bananas, pineapple, chocolate, Grand Marnier, rum - next time!
Posted by Jeremy at 8:51am on Saturday June 10, 2017 :: 0 comments ::