What could be a more ideal setting for a romantic getaway than Rome? It is full of secluded spots where you can get close and reveal your feelings to your loved one – ring at the ready, if you’re one of those. But, not just anything goes and it is not always easy to find the right spot. Here, then, is a selection of possible settings where you could take that “giant step”, or else just enjoy a pleasant getaway with your partner.

Warming Up – a Romantic Stroll Through the Historical Centre

All good things are worth waiting for. We recommend you take your time and seek enjoyment in strolling with your loved one. Rome’s historical centre is full of narrow streets to wander down, and public squares with surprises, be it an interesting church or palace facade, or the sight of a magnificent fountain.

At dusk, Rome turns into an idyll for romantics. That is the time to head for the Tiber riverbank and delight in the interplay of light from the setting sun.

The Fontana di Trevi, or How to Turn Your Declaration into a Romantic Comedy

Some of you might be puzzled by the bit about a romantic comedy, but this is basically how it will play out in that unique Roman setting. Dispel all recollections of that idyllic picture of Marcello Mastroianni and Anita Ekberg in La Dolce Vita. They were alone there, while you will be surrounded by hordes of tourists. And, worse still, by hawkers peddling roses and selfie sticks ready to pounce on all the couples they see filing into that priceless spot. Not to mention the fact that you won’t get around to slipping the ring onto your loved one’s finger before someone comes up and asks you to take a snap of them throwing a coin into the fountain. Hence, we advise you be real quick – make a beeline for a secluded corner and forget about getting down on your knees, unless you’re prepared to take a round of widespread applause and the ensuing avalanche of hawkers. And, you’re going to need an iron-cast sense of humour. This is the perhaps the most carefree option of them all.

Rome’s Gardens – for Nature Lovers

Rome boasts several green areas where you can get a different angle on the city, take a breather from the bustle and go for a delightful walk with your sweetheart. Our first choice is the Villa Borghese Gardens, and we recommend taking the access route through the Piazza dei Popolo,which affords splendid views of St Peter’s Square and the city. If you’re art enthusiasts, be sure to go into the Galleria Borghese and see how Bernini’s incredible sculpture of Apollo and Daphne has withstood the test of time. Who would have thought that such a sad love story could spawn such a beautiful statue!

Our second choice is the less frequented Savello Park, better known as the Giardino degli Aranci (Orange Garden) located on the Via di Santa Sabina. It is the perfect spot for soaking up views of the city. If you happen to be there in spring, you will be blessed by the incomparable scent of the surrounding orange blossom.

A Romantic Dinner – A Classic that Never Fails

The only thing about Rome that is likely to satiate is the sheer surfeit of restaurants. There are venues of all possible types, qualities and prices. But, for an occasion such as this, you have to curate your selection carefully and, if possible, splash out on something great. After a fine dinner in a special place it is virtually a given that your beloved will succumb to your charms and respond, “I love you, too”. Here are our suggestions:

- Casa Bleve. Housed in the incomparable setting of the Palazzo Medici Lante della Rovere, this is the ideal place for drinking fine wine accompanied by excellent sausage, cheese, pasta and other dishes with a refined touch.

- Osteria del Sostegno. Hidden in a backstreet near the Pantheon, this oyster bar offers delicious traditional Italian cuisine in an eminently inviting venue. Perfect for lovers of simple, fine things.

- Il Convivio Troiani. Such a special occasion warrants shelling out more than usual, like here at this excellent, two-star-Michelin restaurant. Delicious modern cuisine managed by the Troiani brothers in an elegant, congenial restaurant located in the centre of Rome. For lovers who wish to splash out.

- Spirito Divino. Located in the popular Trastevere quarter, this restaurant has a formidable wine list. While wine is their forte, so too are their dishes based on locally sourced, organic produce. If you’re a slow-food devotee, this is your restaurant.

Bring out the romantic inside you – get your Vueling and surrender to love!

Text by ISABELYLUIS Comunicación

Images by François Terrier, Juan Llanos, brunifia

The capital of Tuscany is a striking city packed with appeal which is well worth spending a few days in. Awaiting you, among other inducements, is Michelangelo’s famed David, Spring by Botticelli, the Ponte Vecchio, the famous dome of Santa Maria del Fiore and the Piazza della Signoria with its bold Perseus by Cellini. A highly manageable city which lends itself to strolling about and can be enjoyed both day and night – the latter has a charm of its own. And, of course, it has to be tasted and savoured.

Wine is part of the city’s DNA, as is art, and you are duty bound to stop and have a drink in any of the salumerie (delicatessens) or wine bars, where they also offer boards of local sausage, cheeses and panini, which spice up the drink experience even more. There are loads of them but, to help put you on the right track, here are some recommendations:

Ino

Hidden in the back streets near the Uffizi gallery is this eatery – a must-visit – run by chef Alessandro Frassica, who you will see behind the bar counter or dancing in front of it. Panini made on the spot, with a long list of more or less classic options. When we were there we wolfed down one with bresaola (a cured beef), ricotta and zucchini, and another with mortadella e salsa al tartufo (mortadella and truffle sauce) which tasted divine. The food is freshly cut, the bread is good, a great atmosphere and a very trendy ambience. Needless to say, you have to wash down your panini with two glasses of local red wine.

Alimentari Uffizi

A delightful store with just three tables where you can purchase wine and drink it on the spot for an uncorking surcharge. To go with it –tastings of cheese, sausage, olives and a delicious homemade sobresada.Behind the counter is the helpful Alessandro, ready to guide you successfully through your culinary choice. Pure produce.

All’Antico Vinaio

One of Florence’s oldest wine bars, now run by a group of youngsters who have set a new seal on the business while maintaining its centuries-old essence. Chalked up on the blackboards are a host of panini options with seasonal ingredients which you can combine at will. Don’t let the queue in this eatery put you off, as it is well worth the wait. Order some wine and enjoy – it is sited in one of the liveliest streets for “wine crawling”. Apart from wine, they also have anosteriaif you prefer to eat at a table.

A Special Dinner at Il Santo Bevitore

We left the panini behind – but not the wine – and sat down in a restaurant offering Italian specialities in order to taste regional Florentine cuisine. And we made the right choice! A young, lively atmosphere and a cuisine that soars above the Italian standards we are used to, as well as a wine list with hundreds of Italian varieties. We followed their recommendations and ended up with a table full of terrina di fegatini de pollo (a tasty, typical Tuscan paté on a bun), tagliatelle alle castagne and risotto ai porcini (field mushrooms). The menu changes with the season and their wine bar on the same street is handy for whetting one’s appetite.

Shopping at Il Mercato Centrale and Sant’Ambrogio

So, we went shopping. The Central Market, located in the heart of San Lorenzo, is the most important market in Florence. Their display ranges from pastas of all types, cheeses, wines and olive oil to fresh delicatessen, fruit and vegetables, as in any market. One of their main draws is the food area on the first floor, influenced by street-food culture, where you can find all kinds of snacks. Another must-visit venue that will delight even the most seasoned foodies is the Mercato di Sant’Ambrogio. Located on the Piazza Lorenzo Ghiberti, it features both inside and outside stalls where locals crowd around in search of the best titbits. Genuine and lively – before you leave, make sure you buy at least some olives and a birra (beer). Have a seat in the surrounding area and soak up the atmosphere. And, while you’re at it, head for the Trippiao Pollini street stall and pluck up the courage to try their tripe sandwich – you won’t regret it!

Let yourself get carried away by the flavours of Florence – check out your Vueling here.

 
Text and photos by Silvia Artaza of Gastronomistas.com

That Seville is famous for its tapas is a well-known fact. But the city also happens to be riding on a burgeoning culinary wave and, instead of just limiting itself to culinary tradition, it has jumped onto the internationally inspired bandwagon of carefree, innovative and excellent process of reinvention, as well as implementing novel techniques and flourishes of modernity.

Lalola – A Gourmet Tavern
I should perhaps dare introduce this restaurant as one of the best in Seville. Tasting the creations served up in this self-proclaimed “gourmet tavern” is well worth the long walk, as it is located far from the bustle of the city centre in the quarter of Los Remedios. Lalola is the domain of chef Javier Abascal, a youngster you are sure to hear about in the coming years. And, it’s just as well. His menu is an ode to his four loves – quality product, cooking over a slow fire, reminiscences of Sephardic cuisine and offal, which has its own section on the menu, allowing you to taste anything from boned pig trotters with creamy potatoes to beef sweetbread with aniseed  crumble and bamboo or monkfish foie gras. But, it doesn’t stop there, as the other shared dishes provide another surprise – organic chickpea hummus, La Vera red peppers and sesame, tuna tartare and algae noodles… Average ticket: €20 per head.

Mercado Lonja del Barranco – Variety For All Tastes
Go inside Mercado Lonja del Barranco and you can watch dapper gentlemen arriving in what is possibly the trendiest spot in Seville, with its Nordic, vintage aesthetic. Quite a shock after having strolled through the old Jewish quarter and come across a religious procession in the Triana neighbourhood. But, it rocks, as its taste lies in the variety. And, here, there is variety in abundance, highly recommendable for the hesitant, for foodies eager to taste a bit of everything and for parties of guests. Mercado Lonja del Barranco offers over 150 dishes, both local and international. Here, it’s no easy task deciding from among such a broad selection. I can recommend dipping into the seafood section and trying the typical shrimp omelette. Likewise the gourmet salmorejo stand, where you can taste the different varieties of this local speciality, and the cut ham stand… Tickets from €3.

Séptimo Wine Bar
Séptimo, because seven is a lucky number. And, Isabel and Floriant, the Hispano-French couple who run this locale, seem to have hit the jackpot. Some luck in it, of course, but you can’t detract from their job well done, driven as they are by a tireless passion, which you notice as soon as they start talking about a tuna fish in the kitchen with a sparkle in its eyes. Indeed, they have managed to continually fill to capacity their small, inviting premises ever since they first opened just over a year ago. Their offerings are gourmet tapas, “inspired by whatever”, accompanied by “whichever wine goes well”. That is how Isabel puts it and she adds, in the Sevillian accent we have grown to love, “we make our own style of tasty food”. Hats off to their duck pie, marinated tuna or tartare, the three dishes they rate as the star items on the menu and which are virtually always in stock, while the rest of the offerings are seasonal. Now, for instance, you can taste a marvellous sautéed artichoke with pumpkin, field mushrooms and presa ibérica (Iberian shoulder of pork), highly tender lamb nuggets in sweet potato sauce and the pièce de résistance – a milk torrija (French toast) served with a ball of ice-cream likely to make you shed more than one tear. Average ticket: €20 for two.

Perro Viejo – International Fusion
There just had to be a hipster sanctuary in Seville, and that is Perro Viejo. Located in the heart of the Andalusian capital and inaugurated just two years ago, this stunning, three-storey tapas bar features ultra-cool, ultra-modern, ultra-gorgeous interior design – everything is wood, iron and greenery, clearly inspired by an industrial aesthetic. Here, the tapas are a blend of tradition and international fusion (there are distinct Thai, Japanese and Peruvian influences in their cuisine), with the emphasis on new culinary trends, as evinced in their exquisite Japanese butterfish tataki, pulpo a feira (Galician-style octopus) with migas, organic egg and Iberian broth, glazed pork dumplings with chilli vinaigrette, charcoaled papas bravas (spicy sautéed potatoes) and ceviche (lemon-and-garlic marinade). All of this livened up with a great wine list and, above all, spectacular cocktails. Average ticket: €40 for two.

Book your Vueling to Seville and gear up to savour the best gastrobars in town.

Text by Laia Zieger of Gastronomistas.com

Two clichés about Santander. One is 100% true. The other is gradually becoming less so. The first (true) one – you simply have to visit Santander, as it is one of the most beautiful cities in Spain. The second (dispensable) one – you have to eatrabas(deep-fried squid rings). Well, no, you don’t need to because the Cantabrian capital’s culinary offerings have grown in quality and diversity, something we went to try out on our palate.

Umma

Modern, informal cuisine tends to be a ploy. On the pretext of being modern and informal – wham! – they pull a fast one on you. This is not so with Umma. On the contrary. The dishes are recognisable, the produce good and, above all, the sense of taste is above average. Well above average. Miguel Ángel Rodríguez has turned an erstwhile family restaurant into one of the must-visit eateries of Santander. His flair for toying with new ingredients in the same dish, balancing them and bringing out the best in each recipe is prodigious. He takes it in his stride, and it stands to reason, as he has done it all at Noma (Copenhagen), Mugaritz (Rentería) and Cenador de Amós (Villaverde de Pontones, Cantabria), all distinguished by the Michelin Guide and the magazine, Restaurant.

Star dishes; each better, tastier and more dazzling than the next, refining and updating the flavours of Cantabria. Starting with the scrumptious croquettes – round, crisp on the outside, and creamy, almost liquid, on the inside. Then the Santoña anchovy pizza, pork jowl, Gomber cheese, black olives, rocket and dried tomatoes, and ending with two symphonic dishes – beef tongue, mushroom and hazelnut carpaccio and organic eggs with jerky and mushrooms. Take note of the home-brewed beer and the wines, far removed from the wine-cellar establishment. Noteworthy, too, are the exhibits gracing the walls, and the jazz and soul concerts held on Thursday nights.

Umma is what the Japanese exclaim when they like something a lot, and umma is what you’ll say on leaving the establishment after lunching or dining there.

Average price: €35-40 (lunch menu, €18; fast-good menu from Tuesday to Friday, €14, and tasting menu, €39).

Mexsia

When you enter Mexsia and catch sight of the glasses placed any old how, teetering on the edge of the table, you think, “This must be a special place”. Well, yes, because, as you came in, you noticed the background music and the lighting that made you think you were in a pub, rather than a restaurant. Maybe, no… well, yes – this is a gastropub. It is the brainchild of Óscar Calleja, holder of a Michelin star at Annua (in San Vicente de la Barquera). Mixture, fusion, delight. Mexico and Asia – “Mexsia”. Pungent, spicy sauce, like serrano-chile green gazpacho and charcoaled scallop, shrimpaguachile with Chamoy sauce – a fine dish with citrus accompanying excellent produce; exciting like fried maki in tempura with spider crab, masera and avocado pear, or like singed salmon nigiri with crisp nori algae. Sharp, like the homemade nachos served with three, likewise homemade sauces…

Average price: €25-30 (fast-good lunch menu from Tuesday to Friday, €15, and tasting menus for €25 and €30).

El Remedio

They might as well have called it El Paraíso, because the spot where the restaurant is located is paradisiacal, dream-like, marvellous, beautiful… A 19th-century hermitage, a deep green meadow, a cliff, with the sea in the background – unsurpassable! Here, you can live out the Stendhal syndrome for yourself. But, El Remedio is also a good name because, while you are there, you forget about all your concerns; so, it is a remedy for all ailments, albeit a temporary one.

While splendid when the sun shines, in a storm it must be spectacular. A gift on the eyes and the soul, bolstered by the cuisine of Samuel Fernández, attached to the land and sea seen from his restaurant. You must order the megano (a tiny squid done on the griddle) with potato in squid ink, scallop with boletus sauce and cured bellota ham (with a long, intense flavour), dried beans with field mushrooms, a finger-licking, long-simmered stew, fried bull’s tail with beetroot mustard and barbecue sauce. And, all this eaten while gazing out over the horizon. And dreaming away…

Average price: €40.

Goodness me – what gastronomic diversity! Why wait to relish it all? Check out our flights here.

Text and photos: Ferran Imedio (Gastronomistas.com)