Savory Spain & Portugal: 2009
When you take your tongue out sightseeing in Spain and Portugal, what are its favorite taste treats?
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Great Vegetarian Food in Madrid
Isla del Tesoro offers great vedg meals in a lovely atmosphere. Service was excellent too!
Barb
Incline Village, NV USA Wed 11/18/2009
Viamina in Mardid
This isn't necessarily an inspired choice but Vitamina in Madrid offers 30 fruit smoothies and various healthy sandwiches if you are trying to eat right.
There are at least two locations on or near Grand Via. The price is also very economical.
USA Tue 11/10/2009
Madrid Restaurant Recommendations
In advance of an upcoming visit, I just received a few restaurant recommendations from the Spanish family of a friend and colleague I thought I would share here. I can't personally recommend any of these yet but thought I would do a little research and try a couple while I'm in Madrid. These are from native Madrileños. If anyone has experience with any of these places, please share. Otherwise, perhaps this will be helpful to fellow travelers. Thx.
Madrid: La Vaca Argentina (chain), La Casa de Valencia (paella), Casa Lucio (king dines here often), Casa Botin, Corte Ingles (dept store chain w/cafeteria & more elegant restaurant), Arandaduero (roast lamb and roast baby pig), Alkaide (Basque or Galician), and Las Cuevas de Luis Candelas (big menu plus tapas off Plaza Mayor – fun & good for kids).
Segovia: Casa Candido and Casa Duque (roast lamb and roast suckling pig).
I'm going to try to squeeze in a visit with this family, as I have always found travelling most rewarding when there's an opportunity connect with local folks in a really sincere and intimate way.
Cheers!
Michael
Des Moines, IA USA Tue 11/03/2009
Eating in Madrid
As a Spaniard who knows well Madrid (and Barcelona), and if you want not just to have lunch, but to have a truly local experience, I would suggest you to visit the "Ermita de San Isidro"in the morning, where the master Francisco de Goya is buried. This Ermita -little church- is an outstanding masterpiece of art by Goya -Frescos all over the church. Entrance is free. Spend half an hour looking the impressive paintings and after this, you can have lunch at the very madrilenian (and "asturiano" ) and tipic "Casa Mingo", just in front of the Church. Try their chicken in Spanish way and the "empanada" and drink a "sidra" -a special champagne made with apples). It is a very old restaurant, very charming, cheap prices, simply food, simply special -Paseo de la Florida street-
If you want another typical madrilenian food, go to Casa Lucio -Cava Baja street-. If you are lucky, perhaps you will find the very King of Spain eating and laughing here. Great.
Mestre de Cabestany
Girona, Spain Sun 10/04/2009
Less touristy but near Puerto del Sol
We stayed just off Plaza Santa Ana in Madrid and had great luck in the area. The best wine experience was Museo del Vino Madrid, Calle Nunez de Arce 4 - a dozen regional pours by the glass, generous tapas, and staff that was genuinely happy to see us!
Kara
San Jose, CA USA Sun 09/27/2009
BACK DOOR TREASURE
I believe the most hidden treasure in Southern Spain is Rota Spain. Inexpensive, beautiful Beaches, Not crowded, Safe and friendly. Easy to get to by train or bus. This is truely a back door kind of place.
Mike B
Auburndale, , FL USA Fri 09/18/2009
Attention Meat-lovers!
A Picanha is heaven for steak-lovers. They only have one thing on the menu: Picanha. Picanha is a large beef steak grilled on a stick with lots of garlic. It is then carried around the restaurant and sliced directly onto your plate. This place has great atmosphere and really great Caipirinhas.
Caroline
Westport, CT USA Sat 09/05/2009
MADRID - Eating Near Puerta Del Sol in Madrid!
So we were wandering around looking for good non-touristy tapas near Puerta del sol -- boy did we hit the jackpot!! La Calle Barcelona is a short little strip jam packed -- we had to pass by a few times to find a seat - -which was more than worth it of course -- lots of locals and the best Tapas the entire 10-day Spain tour!! Look it up -- I couldn't direct you but it's La Calle Barcelona....
Tucker Antell
Boston, MA USA Sun 07/19/2009
Great Food in Madrid
In Madrid, visit La Taperia for wonderful, fresh tapas and terrific service. The young waiters speak English and they actually seem to like tourists, although few tourists eat there. We dined at this restaurant three times in May. The restaurant is located on Calle De San Bernardo, just south of Calle De Carranza. Best tapa? "Wrinkled Potatoes" with three sauces. Yum! And a toasted baguette with a slice of smoke salmon topped with Brie cheese then broiled. Yum!
Sarah
Fallbrook, CA USA Sun 05/31/2009
Restaurants in Portugal
As promised, some of our favorites from Portugal:
Lison - Charcutaria Francesa, trattoria Il Sorriso, and Praca da Flores; all in the Principe Real neighborhood. In the Chiado, the Regency Chiado has a nice lunch on top the roof lounge with a gorgeous view.
Belem - yes, the Pasteis de Belem are fabulous. Take some to go :)
Salema - Restaurante a Casinha, Restaurante Boia Bar and the Aventura Bar is a great little spot for a drink
Paula
Seattle, WA USA Sun 05/24/2009
Fabulous food in Portugal
We just returned from 8 days in Portugal and LOVED the food! We spent 3 days in Lisbon (not nearly enough time) and 4 in Salema. Heard that the food was 'greasy' but we had fresh food everywhere. Try the little baked pastries for breakfast/brunch, we bought rolls and hearty croissants and added sliced meats and cheeses (YUM) bought at little markets, restaurant meals included sopas (soups), grilled fish such as white bream (ask for the daily catch) and salads, excellent desserts and great approachable and affordable house wines. I'll post again with names of restaurants and cafes soon!
Paula
Seattle, WA USA Wed 05/20/2009
Driving Routes for Food in Portugal
If you plan to do any driving in central Portugal, I recommend you search the internet for terms like Wine Route, Olive Oil Route, Cheese Route, Gastronomy Route, Castle Route, Megalith Route, etc. We saw signs for these things everywhere as we drove around. We had a different itinerary planned, so didn't follow the routes. But on my next trip, I would like to do it. I think it would provide an interesting reason to explore the Portuguese countryside.
Cindy
Honolulu, HI USA Sun 05/10/2009
Pigs Ears in Spain
Found in Toledo, Spain: Pigs ears (Oreja de Cerdo)in a garlic type of sauce. It tastes like large, crunchy, garlic-flavored bacon bits. Delicious!
KL
USA Thu 04/23/2009
vegetarian food in Madrid
Artemisa is a fabulous vegetarian restaurant in this meat eating land. The food is delicious and elegantly presented, generous portions and good service.
Anne
Sacramento, CA USA Tue 04/14/2009
Great, Cheap Tapas in Barcelona!
GREAT/CHEAP TAPAS IN BARCELONA: IT DOES EXIST!
We stayed at a B&B above this cerveseria while in Barcelona and put off eating there because we wanted to venture "out". We decided to eat there our last night, and couldve kicked ourselves for not going sooner b/c it was SO wonderful! It was also cheaper than any of the other tapas places we'd found. Sit outside, the wait is not as long. This place gets packed every night. We ate about 8:30-9:00 and only waited like 5 minutes. Outdoor host is very personable and friendly. Trust us, we tried every tapas place imaginable. It's worth a trip:
Cervesería Catalana Restaurant in Barcelona. Located at 236 Mallorca (about 4 blocks from Placa de Cataluna--headed away from La Rambla). Web:http://www.barcelona-guide.info/restaurant-cerveseria-catalana
LAO
Charleston , SC USA Fri 03/27/2009
Olive oil tour
We highly recommend the olive oil tour in Granada. I found it through a link on the Alhambra ticket site. They pick you up at your hotel and bring you back, and it´s a lovely tour through the countryside, with an excellent tour of facilities, an education in olive oil(and wine)tasting, and an excellent lunch in a lovely village in the mountains, all for the package price.
Laurie
Mahomet, IL USA Wed 03/25/2009
Grafitti in Spain
I'm enjoying my sojourn in Madrid but I'm taken aback by all the grafitti...
What's going on? Makes my native Los Angeles look grafitti free by comparison....
Tom Skalman
Las Vegas, NV USA Wed 03/11/2009
Port wine
If you want to have the widest choice of Port wine in one single place, go to the Port wine Institute, on the top end of the funicular that links downtown Lisbon to Bairro Alto. There you can find all brands of Port wine and for all possible prices and you can taste them too. Good ambiance.
Maria Ingwall (portuguese in Canada)
Lewiston, N.Y. USA Thu 03/05/2009
one day tour out of Lisbon
When you go to Nazare fishing village, dont miss a stop at Batalha and Alcobaca Monasteries on the way, as well as a walk on the streets of Obidos, a medieval walled little town nearby These four sites make a wonderful day tour.
Maria Ingwall (portuguese in Canada)
Lewiston, N.Y. USA Thu 03/05/2009