No other Spanish dish has spread throughout the world like the Valencian paella. Along with toros and sangria, these are the very first words all tourist learn when they step on these lands. Likewise, when they get to Spain, they are flooded with posters of "typical spanish" or "spanish paella" to end up having any low quality mixture of rice or directly frozen, nothing to do with the original recipe.

No other course shows as much controversy in its preparation and ingredients required like it. As it happens with other traditional dishes such as the fabada in Asturiana or the Andalusian gazpacho, when the valencians speak about paella they light up watching the original recipe distorted.

Imagine that there is even a wikipaella to protect and defend the original paella where the basic rules of the Valencian paella are manifested. Such as:"The original paella has its origin in the Valencian community", "The best paellas are cooked with firewood and rice from the Valencian community" or "authentic paellas are made according the tradition of each area of the Valencian community ".

In general, there is consensus that the authentic Valencian paella uses other ingredients besides rice, the garrofón -big beans-, chicken, rabbit, ripe tomato, ferradura beans - flat green beans- olive oil, salt, water and saffron. And in some cases they also add snails, rosemary or paprika.

Some will say that the best paella is the one they eat at home - and they are probably right-but if you go to Valencia and want to eat some of the best paellas in the world, you can find some of the winners and finalists of the Sueca’s International Paella Competition , a prestigious international competition that rewards those cooks who prepare the best Valencian paella of the world.

Restaurant Ampar (third winner of the 2014 edition)
Navarro Reverter Avenue, 14, 46004 Valencia

The Ampar restaurant, located on the ground floor of the Hotel Hospes Palau de la Mar, in the historic center of Valencia, won the third prize in the 2014 Sueca’s International Paella Competition .The first prize went to the Miguel y Juani restaurant –from the chefs Julian Garcia and Mercedes Vacas – from Alcudia (Mallorca), where 35 of the best paella cooks were brought together.

Casa Picanterra, from Cullera (second prize of the 2013 edition)
Calle den picanterra nº3, 46400 Cullera

In 2013, the Picanterra chefs won the second prize of the contest.

El Redolí, from El Palmar (finalistas edición 2013)
Calle del Arzobispo Aliaga, 0, 46012 Palmar, Valencia

Other restaurants in Valencia where paella is prepared according to the original recipe:

La Pepica
Passeig de Neptú, 6, 46011 València

Casa Ripoll
Playa de la Malvarrosa, Paseo Marítimo, Módulo 7, 46011 València

Casa Roberto
Carrer del Mestre Gozalbo, 19, 46005 València

La Riuà
Carrer del Mar, 27, 46003 València

Casa Carmela
Calle Isabel de Villena, 155, 46011 València

Restaurante la Herradura
Paseo Marítimo, módulo 2 (Malvarrossa), 46011 Valencia

El Racó de la Paella
Carrer de Mossèn Rausell, 17, 46015 València

Picture from Jan Harenburg

Makes you want to go, right? Do it! Check out our prices here!

With the huge, varied offerings in its restaurants, Seville is well worth a culinary visit. From the oldest in the city, Rinconcillo (Calle Gerona, 40. Seville), where the waiters write your order down on the bar counter with a piece of chalk, to the modern Eslava (Calle Eslava, 3-5. Seville), award-winner for such tapas as Un cigarro para Bécquer (a cigar for Bécquer), which emulates a cigar, made of brik pastry filled with algae, cuttlefish and squid-ink calamari.

Then there is the canned fare of La Flor de Toranzo (Calle Jimios, 1-3), the varied side-dishes of Catalina Casa de Comidas y Más (Plaza Padre Jerónimo de Córdoba, 12. Seville) and the legendary piripi (sousing) at Bodeguita Antonio Romero (Calle Antonio Díaz, 5, Antonio Díaz, 19 y Gamazo, 16. Seville), a bread roll filled with bacon, cheese, tomato and mayonnaise, with a touch of garlic and pork fillet.

If Seville is worth visiting, its environs also deserve a culinary tour, either to taste the local fare or to find out more about such emblematic products as their cured ham.

At Sanlúcar la Mayor, some 25 kilometres from Seville, is the restaurant Alhucemas (Avenida del Polideportivo, 4. Sanlúcar la Mayor), an eatery serving deep-fries which, according to many chefs, have the best fried fish in Spain. While they have not yet earned a Michelin star, the managers are regulars at gastronomic congresses, where they reveal their culinary secrets. The restaurant is also frequented by shrine pilgrims seeking their spicy skewered meat known aspinchos morunos,and their lobster salad.

A bit further afield – just one hour away by car – is the must-see ham museum unveiled five months ago at the Cinco Jotas (Calle San Juan del Puerto, s/n), in Jabugo, Huelva. The trip is rewarding as it reveals all the secrets of the production and curing of 100% Iberian bellota ham via a series of talking panels, graphics, videos, interactive screens and a 12-metre-long cyclorama which plunges you into the meadows where the hogs roam free… There are three unforgettable moments: walking through the impressive cellar, where 50,000 (maybe more) legs of ham are kept, the room where a contest is held – with screens, as if in a TV set – where visitors are quizzed about what they see and awarded virtual slices of ham, and the end of the visit, where you are treated to a tasty delicacy, washed down with red wine or sherry.

Nearby the museum you can visit the Gruta de las Maravillas (Calle Pozo de la Nieve, s/n. Aracena) in Aracena, a complex of monumental, millenary caves with interior lakes and figures so incredible they seem hallucinatory. You can have lunch at the Arrieros restaurant (Arrieros, 2. Linares de la Sierra) in Linares de la Sierra, where they serve one of the best hamburgers in Spain, made of tenderloin and field mushrooms. (According to Martín Berasategui, it’s the best hamburger he’s ever tasted, and he must be right.) Indeed, the menu is based on Iberian pork, field mushrooms, fruit and vegetables from their allotment and local aromatic herbs. In a nutshell, what their chef, Luismi López, describes as alta cocina serrana (“highland haute cuisine”), which materialises in the form of excellent dishes, notably Iberian game carpaccio, foie gras and vinaigrette del Condado, tomato soup, strawberry gazpacho, scrambled blood sausage and king prawns, toast with semi-cured cheese and herbs…

Text and images Ferran Imedio (Gastronomistas)

1. - Seafood, seafood and more seafood

Vigo is a paradise for the senses but, especially, for the taste of gourmet travellers. There is no doubt that the main product here is fish and seafood, which you can find in its diversity at the old fisherman’s quarter of O Berbés or around O Pedra market.

One of the most interesting places  is Fish Street, which offers a unique spectacle when ostreras tirelessly open oysters on the street while preparing the dishes. You can buy oysters directly to them, give them a squeeze of lemon and you eat them accompanied by a good Albariño. There is no such a better pleasure!

But, although oysters are one of the products Vigo is better known for, we cannot forget mussels, modest and versatile. You can try them in many different ways at the mejillonería Tarugo (C/Carral, 9). Affordable portions and rare options are available, like the curry or beer mussels.

In order to eat the best seafood you should go to Bar el Puerto (Rua Arenal, 30). More than 50 years of experience attests to the recognition of this restaurant. When you seat at your table, you will find out there is no menu; the waitress will tell you directly the fish and dish of the day. Other well-recognized seafood restaurants in the area are Follas Novas or Casa Marco but, generally speaking, any option around here is worth going if you are looking for good seafood, at a reasonable price.

Furthermore, Vigo celebrates many food festivals and events during the year and is possible your visit coincides with one of these activities. The most popular is Fiesta del Mejillón (Mussel party) in Vigo, happening in September. In the same month, there is a party dedicated to seafood at the harbor in Vigo and another celebrating the best seafood cuisine at Bouzas quarter.

2. - Appetizers time

Visitar Vigo es una excelente oportunidad para disfrutar de un ritual inevitables como el aperitivo de tapas y cañas a los que los vigueses tienen una férrea devoción, especialmente los sábados y domingos por la mañana: el paseo y el aperitivo de antes de comer.

One of the most famous places to take an appetizer is the Don Gregorio café. The tables are full of icing must (mosto con guinda), which is what everyone orders here.

You can also go for an aperitif to Puerta del Sol or anywhere at Plaza Constitución and its surrounding.

3. - Terraces in Vigo

The people from Vigo are always aware of the weather to go to pleasant terraces when the sun shines. It is always a great pleasure in this city.

One of the nicest terraces are Grettel (Plaza de la Constitución, 10), right in the old historic quarter of the city, where you can enjoy a refreshing drink under the stone porch.

You can also sit at the terrace in Detrás do Marco (C/Londres), a bit hidden by the Principe street, to relax a bit, away from the crowd in she shopping area.

4. -Come up to a Furancho

Furanchos are venues or private homes in which buy excess wine or try on the spot accompanied by a good home cooked meal. Usually, served with tortillas, empanadas, meats, sausages and cheeses in a family atmosphere at a great price.In the area of Vigo ther is over a dozen to choose , in which attention is always exquisite!.

5. - And when night falls…

The best option is to visit one of the modern pubs and terraces in the city. For example, Albatros is a cozy and modern place with a nice view by the estuary. You can find it at the rebuilt seaport.

A place well worth discovering! Check out our flights here.

Alicante is a synonym for Mediterranean cuisine and is not in vain that one of the best chefs worldwide, Ferran Adrià, said Alicante is, without question, the Spanish province where you eat better.

We love Mediterranean cuisine and this is why we want to offer a selection of 5 products that you have to try in Alicante, and we also advice you where to try them. Some of the products and restaurants might be missing, but take this approach to the gastronomy from Alicante as a starter. In this situation, a local would tell you: “anem a fer una picaeta” (a tradition from the little town of Alcoi, based in a round of tapas, toasts and little sandwiches).

Rice: The rice grows in Valencia and cooks in Alicante, or so it goes in a popular saying. If we want to fully discover the cuisine from Alicante, we must try paella at Restaurante Casa Riquelme. In paellas you can find all kind of ingredients, from fish and seafood to fresh products grown in the fields of the country, accompanied by chicken, rabbit or even snails. Eating at Casa Riquelme (Vázquez de Mella, 17), any midday from Wednesday to Sunday, is a synonym for fine dining. Find more information in this link

Wines: With its own protected designation of origin since mid-20th century. In Alicante you can taste a wine that mixes two kind of grapes, original from the region: monastrell and moscatel. The mistelle wine is original from this land. At Bodega de Meyos (Avenida Condomina, 40) in Alicante we can taste wine by the glass and accompany it with good food, all for a very fair price. We can also buy wine bottles; in fact this was originally a wine shop. 

Horchata: In hot weather, is common to see locals tasting a horchata in any terrace. This precious beverage made of tigernuts (chufas) is one of the most exported products. Don’t forget to go to Horchatería Azul (Calderón de la Barca, 36) to drink this refreshment and accompany it of fartons or the delicious almond pastry (coca de almendras). It’s closed on winter, but is considered for many people the best horchatería in Alicante, a traditional place.

Nougats: Another product Alicante is well known for. This is one of the main products to eat on Christmas, in Spain, and is always in the dinning table with the own local varieties: Jijona nougat and Alicante nougat. If you are in Alicante, try them at Espí (Avenida Alfonso X el Sabio, 4) and, if you want to make a very good impression, buy some as a gift for the upcoming Christmas time.

Pastry: cocas de tonyina (a fine pie stuffed with tuna) are very typical food for the Hogueras de San Juan, on the summer solstice. We can eat them at La Ibense (Calle de Portugal, 38), not only on summer. In this place you can also try delicious pizza portions or the traditional pastry (coca de mollita) with chocolate.

We could continue with other typical products of the region, like the worldwide known stuffed olives from Alcoi o the chocolate Valor, but we can keep that for upcoming gastronomic visits.

For now, as locals in Alicante say: “que aprofite”!!!!

Image from Les Haines

Why not take a trip to Alicante? Have a look at our flights here!