butterfly

Marisquería Norte-Sur is new? I've been going there for years... Did it change hands? I haven't been for a few months.

Xentes--the place in La Latina? This is just a neighborhood mariquería... nothing special at all in my opinion. If I were going to go to a place of its ilk, I'd instead go to Mariquería Norte Sur in Cuatro Caminos... or El Cantábrico in Salamanca... or the down and dirty marisquería in Tetuán (name escaping me) or many other spots. Tempranillo is good for its by-the-glass wine selection. And a nice cheese plate (tabla de quesos--but it's to be shared among many people). It's not really known for tapas. For Cava Baja tapas, el Camarillo is much better. The poster is right, though. If you've had "tapas" in the US, the real experience here in Madrid (and the rest of Spain) is very, very different. The food is obviously much better here, but you can't sit down and have an American-style dinner as you can in the US. You have to think it through more.

Thanks for the lead, Ptipois. I found tantalizingly little info on the place online (under the spelling Ti Saozon, just in case anyone is looking in the future), which leads me to suspect that it's the kind of place that people like to keep to themselves... I know just the buttery, crispy gallette texture you are talking about... I had the great luck in college of living for a year with a woman who formerly ran a creperie but was stuck at home (cooking!!) with a bad back. She spared no butter, because she thought we were all too skinny. Ah, memories. Thanks again!

Hello francophiles... I'm reviving this thread... I hope this topic hasn't been covered elsewhere... I'm looking for a recommendation for the quintessential Bretón creperie... nothing fancy, just that magical crossroads of ambience, perfect ingredients, and delicious food. Any ideas? It can be anywhere in Brittany... perhaps there's an article out there already on the topic? I haven't been able to turn anything up googling, but I can read French if there's something good out there. Ah, just thinking about Brittany is bringing back such happy, buttery memories.

You could catch the local train to Durango and then (maybe) get a cab to Axpe... I don't think there is a local bus service to the town, but I could be wrong. Why don't you give the restaurant a call to see what they recommend (and report back!)? I would adjust those lunch times back a bit to 2:00-3:30 (with 2:30-3:00 generally being the flash mob) and a bit later on weekends. At least here in Madrid most places are completely empty until at least 2:00. Northerners tend to eat dinner a bit earlier, but I haven't noticed earlier lunch times. It's usually not a great idea to visit restaurants outside of the normal mealtimes since things are either winding up or down.

There's a recipe for the bizcocho de pistacho in the little cookbook that came free with El País a few months back (#1 of the Cocina con Firma series)... I don't have a microwave, so I haven't tried it, but it doesn't look too difficult.

At the market that we normally go to they are sold live--though I'm sure they are also sold pre-cooked in certain stalls with cooked mariscos. I've never seen them pre-peeled here, though I haven't looked, either. I do know that the red "Louisiana" style crayfish are viewed as an ecological scourge, since they their introduction helped to decimate and displace the native (and allegedly more delicious) species.

Hmm, interesting. the crawfish that I've seen at the market here in Spain aren't peeled. I can tell you that crayfish are pretty cheap here, mainly because they just aren't as prized as the plethora of salt-water crustaceans (cigalas, langostinas, gambas, camarones, etc.). I do know that the species of crayfish native to Spain is nearly extinct due to persistent droughts and plagues. The farmed crayfish are obviously another story... I'm going to try to look into this a bit more, though, because I find it pretty surprising that Spanish crayfish are ending up on the table in Louisiana, too!

Thanks so much for the suggestions. Things were a bit out of whack because of the Palm Sunday mobs, so in Cuenca proper we ended up eating at one of the open places on the tapas strip near El Ponderosa (which was closed). But later, on the way to the Ciudad Encantada, we got to check out Nelia, which was great find in this beautiful and still very remote (but somehow still-so-close-to-Madrid) area. Especially at this time of year when so many places are still closed for the winter. Next time we'll check out La Muralla. We brought back lots of honey... my dad was an amateur beekeeper and it brought back some great (taste) memories. Thanks again.

Hello foreros-- We're going to be in Cuenca (the city) tomorrow and I thought I'd ask for lunch recommendations since I don't see much on the forum... any ideas? We're spending the rest of the week in the northern sierra de Cuenca... any local specialties in this area that we should know about?

You might look into Cádiz. It's a very alluring town (definitely more off the beaten track) and it's in a region with great seafood, sherry, etc.

Nice report, I look forward to more. Has anyone had the morcilla dessert? Combining morcilla, chocolate and mandarina sounds like a really delicious idea.

The place near the Plaza Mayor in Plaza Herradores is the Museo del Pan Gallego. Another, more everyday sort of place that I like is La Tahona on c/Humilladero. I really like their chapata. I lived in DC for a long time and really enjoyed Furstenburgs breads, but lets not kid ourselves... his places aren't at all indicative of the state of bread in the US... And I'm not sure there's much of a market here for a 10 euro loaf of bread. Bread is quite a bit more democratic here. I've had some great bread in unexpected little remote places in Asturias and Leon in little pueblos that still have their original bakeries. Some of the stuff from Leon seems to make its way to little markets/stalls in Madrid.

Ambience and schtick aside, I have to say that I find the wine at La Casa del Abuelo to be inexcusably foul (especially given the plethora of great wine by the glass in Madrid).

I really like a place down the street from us, Croccos (a Venozolano run spot, right across from Mercado de la Cebada in La Latina at Plaza de la Cebada, 9). You can eat there or call and get it to go. I like the Croccos (arugula, jamón, tomatoes, parmesan) the calzone are good, too. I've run across some other good Argentine pizzarías sprinkled around Madrid. Not sure about the names, though I could get them next time I go by. Also there's a place in Ópera... Ouh... Babbo!. It has a woodburning oven, though I still prefer the pizzas at Croccos.

Aha--this is just what I was hoping for. I've been to Mercado de la Paz, but missed this stall. Thanks for the tip!

Thanks for the responses (and keep them coming, please!). I haven't tried either one of these producers, but they both look great. Pablo: have you seen Riofrío's products for sale anywhere in Madrid? Or do you mail order them? I wonder if there is a market stall or store here that specializes in ahumados...

Hola foreros-- We all developed a deep and abiding love of atún ahumado on a recent trip to Barbate. We brought a bunch back, but our stash has run out. I've been looking for it in the markets in Madrid and can't seem to find anything as good as what we had there. Does anyone know where I can get my hands on some of the good stuff? If not, it looks like we'll be mail ordering it... And, while I'm at it, if you have any other tips on places that carry other great ahumados (like bacalao), I'd be happy to get them. Muchísimas gracias.

It's Jamonísimo (one "s"): http://www.jamonisimo.com c/Provenza, 85 Tel. 93 439 08 47 http://www.google.com/maps?hl=en&q=jamonis...li=lmd&z=14&t=m

I haven't run across any literary references that would support that people in the late Middle Ages/early Siglo de Oro felt the same way about cats. If anything, they were still the subject of much superstition and generally reviled by "good Catholics" (and perhaps even more by those who weren't and had something to prove). And, although it comes a century after the existing copy of Sent Soví, the Ruperto de Nola book is still a very old and important text (and from a literary standpoint puts modern cookbook writers to shame).

A philologist at la Complutense put together a cookbook of Siglo de Oro recipes: María Inés Chamorro La cocina del Quijote: Gastronomía del Siglo de Oro español I think the roast cat one is in there. I don't have the book anymore, but she may give more explanation and specific literary references (other than the famous Roberto de Nola recipe).

In my readings, I've run across several literary references to eating cat (mainly in 16th and 17th century lit, if I remember correctly). I probably have something specific in my notes somewhere that I could dig up. One professor that I had mentioned offhand eating cat in Zaragoza (this would have been in the sixties or seventies, I believe). If I remember correctly, some diseases or ailments were associated with ingesting poorly or undercooked cat. I think the expression dar gato por liebre refers to the culinary uses of the animals... Cat obviously being the less desireable of the two.

Sporting tickets are purchased and have a monetary value. A restaurant reservation does not have monetary value. You still pay for the meal--a reservation is given freely and in good faith like a doctor's appointment... And, if you purchase a restaurant reservation, the restaurant has every right to refuse to accept it. I would certainly hate to see the day when restaurants charge for mere reservations. Or when a food enthusiast site like this is used for the purpose of auctioning off reservations (unless it were for charitable purposes and with the participation of the restaurant).

Does egullet (and El Bulli for that matter) condone and/or facilitate the sale of reservations? It seems opportunistic to me.

Every neighborhood--rich or poor or in between--has a couple of marisquerías. Even the downscale ones (sometimes just a bar) have good stuff.