Blog
Restaurant stories, chef interviews and Spanish food education.
- La Feria, Detroit: Sevillian family recipes on Cass Avenue
La Feria on Cass Avenue in Detroit is run by Pilar, a chef from Seville cooking from her mother's and grandmother's recipes, with co-owners Naomi and Elias.
- Restaurante Estella, Karuizawa: Spanish cooking in a Nagano resort town since 2012
A small Spanish restaurant in Karuizawa, Nagano, founded in 2012 by owner-chef Sato, cooking with imported Spanish ingredients and local produce.
- How to order vegetarian at a Spanish restaurant: pisto, escalivada and where the ham hides
Plenty of Spanish dishes are meat-free, but ham, chorizo and fish stock turn up in unexpected places. What to order, what to ask and what to watch for.
- La matanza and San Martín: Spain's pig tradition and the food it leaves behind
In the cold months, rural Spanish families turned the household pig into chorizo, morcilla, lomo and ham. What the matanza was and the foods it gave Spanish menus.
- Pescado a la sal and pla pao: whole fish in Spanish and Thai cooking
Spain bakes whole fish in a salt crust; Thailand grills it in a salt coat with lemongrass. How each kitchen cooks, serves and shares a whole fish.
- A Spanish weekend in Cardiff: Westgate Street, Quay Street, Guildhall Place and Penarth
Three Spanish venues in central Cardiff plus a Bar 44 with daytime hours in Penarth, with the opening hours we have on file to plan around.
- Carabinero, gamba roja and langostino: how to order Spain's prized prawns
Gamba, langostino, carabinero, cigala and camarón are not size grades. Here is what each one is and how Spanish menus serve them.
- Spanish Christmas food: Nochebuena, turrón, the twelve grapes and roscón de reyes
For many Spaniards, Christmas runs from the lottery draw on 22 December to the Three Kings on 6 January. Here is what gets eaten along the way.
- Rabo de toro and sup hang wua: oxtail in Spanish and Thai cooking
Spain braises oxtail in red wine until it falls off the bone; Thailand simmers it into a soup. Same cut, two very different bowls.
- Spanish restaurants in Chile: a Santiago guide from Vitacura to Bellavista
Our four Chile listings are all in Santiago: a Basque restaurant, a Valencian paella house, a Murcian chef's tavern and a new Barcelona-style tapas bar.
- A Spanish weekend in Dublin: Temple Bar, South William Street, Wexford Street and Dundrum
Five Spanish tapas spots in Dublin and when each is open, from Port House pintxos in Temple Bar to Las Tapas de Lola on Wexford Street.
- Chuletón and txuleta: how to order a Spanish steak
Spain's big bone-in rib steak is sold by weight, grilled over embers and served rare. What the menu words mean and how to order one.
- Las Tapas Shanghai: Spanish tapas since 2004, from Hongmei Road to Jinqiao and Sinan Road
Las Tapas opened on South Maoming Road in 2004 and grew into three Shanghai listings. What the group's record says, and where each branch is.
- Vinagre and nam som: vinegar in Spanish and Thai cooking
Spain ages vinegar from sherry; Thai noodle shops put chilli vinegar on the table. How each kitchen uses sour, and dishes to look for.
- Bocadillos and montaditos: how to order Spain's sandwiches
A bocadillo is a split bread roll with a filling; a montadito is a small one. The words, the classic fillings and how to order them.
- Pinchos Tapas Bar, Kuala Lumpur: Spanish tapas on Changkat Bukit Bintang
Pinchos Tapas Bar serves tapas, Spanish wine and sangria on Changkat Bukit Bintang, and has been in Kuala Lumpur since 2008. What its record says, and its late hours.
- Almendras and thua lisong: nuts in Spanish and Thai cooking
Spain grinds almonds into soups, sauces and sweets; Thai cooks scatter roasted peanuts over noodles and salads. How each kitchen uses nuts.
- Spanish restaurants in the Dominican Republic: Santo Domingo, Santiago, Juan Dolio and Bávaro
The four Spanish restaurants we list in the Dominican Republic, each in a different city: two family-run, two inside coastal hotels.
- Spanish restaurants in New Zealand: Auckland, Waiheke, Christchurch and Arrowtown
All five Spanish restaurants we list in New Zealand: a Valencian arrocería on Banks Peninsula, shared plates in Arrowtown and three Auckland listings.
- A Spanish weekend in Cartagena: Getsemaní, Las Bóvedas and La Boquilla
Three Spanish restaurants in Cartagena de Indias, in Getsemaní, Las Bóvedas and La Boquilla, and how to fit them into one weekend.
- Platos de cuchara: Spain's spoon dishes, from fabada and cocido to callos and lentejas
In Spain, cold weather means platos de cuchara: bean, chickpea and lentil stews eaten with a spoon. What they are, how to order them, and where to find them abroad.
- Menú degustación: how a Spanish tasting menu works and how to book one
A menú degustación is not a menú del día. What a Spanish tasting menu involves, what maridaje means, and where to find one abroad.
- Galician wine beyond Albariño: Ribeiro, Ribeira Sacra, Valdeorras and Monterrei
Galicia has five wine DOs, and Rías Baixas is only one. How to read Ribeiro, Mencía from Ribeira Sacra and Godello from Valdeorras on a list.
- Bib Gourmand Spanish restaurants abroad: what Michelin's value award means
The Bib Gourmand is not a Michelin star. What it rewards, how to read it, and five Spanish restaurants abroad whose records mention one.
- Spanish restaurants in China beyond Shanghai: Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and six more cities
Seventeen of our 50 China listings sit outside Shanghai. Here is what each record says, from Sanlitun in Beijing to Xiamen and Xi'an.
- Barcelona Wine Bar: Spanish tapas at 21 US locations, from New Haven to Miami
21 Barcelona Wine Bar locations across the US, what their listings say, and which ones open for weekday lunch.
- Tabancos of Jerez: how Spain's sherry taverns work, and where to find the feel abroad
A tabanco is a Jerez tavern where sherry comes straight from the barrel. What they are, how to order in one, and the bars abroad that borrow the idea.
- A Spanish weekend in Budapest: Andrássy Avenue to Bartók Béla út
Two days of Spanish food in Budapest: charcoal-grilled meat near the Opera, Basque-influenced cooking on Henszlmann Imre utca and a Sunday on Bartók Béla út.
- A Spanish Weekend in Taipei: Da'an, Xinyi and Zhongshan
Seven Spanish restaurants in Taipei, and which ones are open for lunch, dinner or breakfast on a Saturday and Sunday.
- Basque cheesecake: how to order Spain's burnt cheesecake
A dark, almost burnt top and a soft middle. What Basque cheesecake is, how it differs from New York and Japanese styles, and how to order it.
- Spanish Restaurants in Indonesia: A Jakarta and Bali Guide
Our directory lists five Spanish restaurants in Indonesia, two in Jakarta and three in Bali. What each one serves, where it is and when it opens.
- Bulla Gastrobar: a Spanish-style gastrobar group from Miami to Plano and Charlotte
Bulla Gastrobar says it is inspired by Spain's gastrobars. Our directory lists eight of its US locations, with hours and addresses.
- Mercado and talat: market cooking in Spain and Thailand
Spain's covered municipal markets and Thailand's fresh and night markets shape what ends up on the plate. Here's how the two compare, and where abroad to taste the Spanish version.
- Boquerones or Anchoas? How to Order Spain's Two Anchovies
Same fish, two very different tapas. What separates vinegar-cured boquerones from salt-cured anchoas, how each is served, and what to ask for.
- Sydney Spanish weekend: Bligh Street and Pitt Street to Bondi
A two-day Spanish eating plan for Sydney, using listed hours: a city lunch and dinner on Saturday, then Bondi on Sunday.
- Spanish restaurants in Brazil: São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Salvador
Where to eat Spanish food in Brazil: tapas bars and paella houses in São Paulo, three Otaviano branches in Rio and a taperia in Salvador.
- Ribera del Duero explained: Tinto Fino, ageing labels and how to order it
A short guide to Ribera del Duero: where it is, which grape it uses, what crianza and reserva mean on its labels, and how to order it abroad.
- Huevos fritos and khai dao: fried eggs in Spain and Thailand
Spain and Thailand both often fry eggs in plenty of hot oil for crisp, lacy edges. Here is how each country eats them.
- Spanish restaurants in the UK beyond London: Cardiff, Liverpool, Bristol and more
Ten Spanish restaurants outside London in our directory: Cardiff's Bar 44 group, Lunya in Liverpool, Baserri in Leamington Spa and more.
- Melbourne Spanish weekend: Queen Victoria Market, Hosier Lane and Flinders Street
A two-day Spanish route through central Melbourne: El Rincón at Queen Victoria Market, MoVida on Hosier Lane and sherry at MoVida Next Door on Flinders Street.
- Castilla-La Mancha food explained: pisto, migas, gachas and Almagro aubergines
Don Quixote's home region is known for Manchego and saffron. Its everyday food is simpler: shepherds' dishes, game, pickled aubergines and a lot of wine.
- Tablas: How to Order a Spanish Board of Ham, Cheese and Cured Meats
Tabla de quesos, tabla de embutidos, tabla de ibéricos: what each board holds, what comes with it, and what to ask before you order.
- Fumet and Nam Sup: Seafood Stock in Spanish and Thai Cooking
Spanish rice dishes and Thai soups both lean on stock. In Spain the rice drinks it up; in Thailand you drink the broth.
- A Spanish weekend in Tokyo: Ginza, Nihonbashi, Roppongi and Daikanyama
Two days of Spanish food in Tokyo: Catalan cooking in Ginza, Nihonbashi and Roppongi, plus paella and rice in Ginza, Marunouchi and Daikanyama.
- Tapa, media ración or ración: how Spanish portion sizes work
Many Spanish menus list one dish in two or three sizes. Here is what tapa, media ración and ración mean, and how much to order.
- Jaleo by José Andrés: from Washington DC in 1993 to Las Vegas and Disney Springs
Jaleo opened in downtown Washington DC in 1993. Our directory lists three of its US branches: DC, Las Vegas and Disney Springs.
- Amontillado, oloroso and Pedro Ximénez: how to order Spain's nutty and sweet sherries
Beyond fino: what amontillado, palo cortado, oloroso and Pedro Ximénez are, how they taste, and how to order them abroad.
- Spanish Restaurants in Colombia: Bogotá, Cartagena, Cali, Medellín and Beyond
All 24 Spanish restaurants we list in Colombia, from a Bogotá restaurant founded in 1953 to a two-Michelin-star chef's 10th-floor room in Cartagena.
- Tiles, Porrones and Hanging Hams: How to Read a Spanish Bar
Painted tiles, hams on hooks, a glass porrón, a soda siphon, barrels for tables: what the objects in a Spanish bar are and where they come from.
- A Spanish Weekend in Lisbon: Cais do Sodré to Rua Castilho and Campo Pequeno
Andalusian raciones, Basque pintxos and cider, regional tapas and a Spanish beer hall: four Lisbon stops, plus Sagardi if you go on to Porto.
