Bar a huîtres - Paris

As soon as I knew I was visiting Paris I started craving oysters like crazy!

 I happily ended up having lunch at Le Bar a Huîtres close to the place de vosges. The selection of oysters available at this restaurant was amazing. All products were super fresh. They offer seafood platters including crab, lobster, mussels, shrimp and also a la carte dishes. The platters are great to share and to taste a bit of everything. I went with a tasting of "Grand Cru" oysters; escargots, and a rich in flavor fish soup. 

Although the food was delicious and the place beautiful, the service was just ok. I still recommend it to every oyster/seafood foodie visiting Paris.

It's s kind of cool to have the menu on an iPad. It's a good tool to learn about the different types of oysters, its geography and taste amongst other dishes. However, it could easily become confusing and at the end of the day I value simplicity

Bonjour place de la Madeleine! - Paris

This is a must do in my Paris list. The first thing you'll see at the square is the stunning Madeleine Church, the second most amazing thing in the square is the fine food shops surrounding the Église. Give yourself over the gourmet pleasures! 

It's also a perfect plan if you're in the mood for a picnic along the Seine or in Tuileries because you'll find everything you need. From exclusive Hediard, to modern Fauchon, la Maison de la Truffe and Maille-which offers 30 different flavors of mustard. Take a look at the pictures to see more!

Église de la Madeleine

 

 Hediard. Excellent products! oils, spices, fantastic wines and much more

1,2,3 Mini leek quiches - Thelirecipe

 

I'm starting to like more and more the "mini" versions of food. They are cute, perfect for dinner parties, kids, and right at your fingers tips just like any other finger-food. An easy way to make small portions is using your cupcake mold!

Asturias, a delicious discovery...What to eat and see?

This post is to invite you to take a few days and visit Asturias. It has so so much to offer! The landscapes and nature are present everywhere. The region is lucky enough to have withing a few minutes both the countryside and the coast. Between natural reserves the contrasting landscapes are seducing. The nature reflects on their food, you can find really good and fresh meat and fish from the coast. I made a route according to the days I had and want to share it with you! Of course, including what and where to eat and what I loved about the trip.

First I visited the pectacular Picos de Europa National Park. Once there, I visited Cangas de Onis where I tried the best fabada ever! at restaurant Molin de la Pedrera. After I visited Covadonga, a small village in the mountain full of history and sanctuary of the virgin la Santina from whom comes its name Covadonga or "Cavern of the Lady." Also head north to visit the Covadonga lakes.

Once in Picos de Europa you can visit Cabrales, where the famous blue cheese is made. There's even a museum explaining the traditional and modern process of producing this characteristic cheese. There are other cheeses besides the well known Cabrales. I encourage you to try the Afuega'l Pitu, my favorite from the region!!

Continuing the route I discover in a little town in Arriondas, a bit closer to heaven Casa Marcial where I had the cherry on the top before heading to the coast. In the coast I visited Ribadesella, Gijón, Cudillero and Ribadeo. Some of which I explained best with the pictures ;)

I hope you find this useful and that by the end of the post you are planning already your next trip to Asturias! Enjoy!

You'll find cider all over Asturias! I have to admit it didn't get to me...I didn't love it

Casa Marcial - Asturias

Casa Marcial is a precious restaurant very deserving of its 2 Michelin stars. The magic starts with the beautiful setting in La Salgar, Arriondas. Located up in a mountain you'll find an old kind of farmhouse full of family memories for the chef and owner Nacho Manzano. Manzano who is truly a world class cook reinvents classic local ingredients from Asturias and offers delicious and innovative dishes. I had the chance to try one of three menus they offer. They have a classic menu, a traditional one and a super delicacy one plus a la carte choices. I had the classic tasting menu for lunch, for €69 I had an amazing experience and extraordinary food. To that you have to add the correct and great recommendations for wine pairings of Juan Luis, the sommelier.

I really recommend you to visit the area, it's so so beautiful!  Really worth the ride, I feel so happy for this discovery and I plan to go back to Casa Marcial next time I'm around Asturias! Enjoy

Click here to read about what to see and eat around Asturias

and here it is! we finally found it...Casa Marcial

Taberna del Capitan Alastriste - Madrid

 This is a very traditional restaurant. The kind of restaurant to which you'll bring friends visiting Madrid who want to try the typical gastronomy of the city. It goes back to the 18th century. At the time it was "a popular place in the Villa frequented by soldiers, ruffians, poets and swordsmen." The dining rooms are found in original caves. The history behind makes it mystic...as it happens with many other rests in the area of Cava baja and Cava alta in Madrid de los Austrias.

Their specialty is Cochinillo (suckling pig), excellent. Also you’ll find a variety of traditional dishes perfect to share before you dig into the main. Pimientos de padron, migas, chistorra. They cook in a rustic oven de leña, which gives an extraordinary flavor to food. The service and price are right.

I have to recommend also La Posada de la Villa just across the street where the speacilty is roasted lamb.

Enjoy!!!

Calle Grafal, 7. Website here

 

Pimientos de Padrón, unos pican y otros no! Green peppers, you eat them in one bite

Espai Kru - Barcelona

Eating at Espai kru is an amazing experience. Alucinante! Both your eyes and taste buds will take pleasure from this meal, I assure you. This could easily be the best fish and seafood in the city. The very best one may be Rias de Galicia, its parent restaurant which is just downstairs. The difference is that at Espai Kru you'll find anything but traditional simple seafood. The restaurants are collaborators with Ferran and Albert Adrià, they are part of Tickets and 41º. You can get an idea what having that kind of seal of approval means, awesomeness in your plate!

 Espai Kru's setting is kind of informal but pleasant. The great winner is the ingenious food inspired by the times "before fire"...most of the menu is based on cold and raw products and served as tapas (little dishes).  Sashimi, tartare & carpaccio. I really recommend you to go and experience it for yourself. Enjoy!

Good seafood comes with a high price tag so expect to pay between €50 to €65, including wine. 

Great Oysters with Ponzu sauce and Salmon roe. Heaven on earth, mouthwatering

Salt-Baked Sea Bass

Or lubina a la sal. I want to share this recipe with you because I know, believe me, how many of us think cooking fish is something difficult and we run away from it! Well I have great news: it isn't! It's actually easier than making other recipes that require seasoning and a cooker's touch and attention - well at least in this case. The principal ingredient in this recipe is the sea bass and it's essential that it's from the best quality since it will make this recipe fabulous or not

You'll need (4 servings):

- Around 1kg sea bass (as the one below)

- 2,5 kg of coarse salt 

I will explain the recipe step by step with the pictures. 

You want your sea bass to be ready and clean to go to the oven - I prefer to ask for this at the market.
So first, pre-heat your oven at 200º
 Place the coarse salt on top of a roasting tin large enough to fit the fish comfortably 

Potatoes Provence - Recipe

This is a perfect side dish for white meats and fish, so good with duck. They are very aromatic and flavorful!

Brunch á la home

If you love having friends over it doesn't strictly have to be for dinner. Invite your friends over for BRUNCH! You already know by now how much I love brunch...such a great invention. 

This post is to show you how you can host a great but very easy brunch at home. You'll see that is very little work! the trick is on getting the freshest and best products at your local market and a variety of them so everyone has a choice. Remember to serve fruits, cheeses, bread, croissants, coffee and tea. And in order to be complete, fresh orange juice and a bottle of champagne to make Mimosas

Brunch are a happy start to the day. I used my most colorful cloth despite of the winter! Set your table however you feel it looks pretty. You can put your savory on the left and sweets on the right, or a cheese corner and a fruit corner

Goat Cheese and Green Onions Muffins - Recipe

I love this mini muffins! They are a twist from the usual sweet ones. They were very successful among my friends and they are perfect for a brunch. 

Eggs en cocotte - Recipe

From the french Oeufs en cocotte, this recipe is super simple to make and delicious. You'll need individual oven proof pots, eggs, crème fraîche and any veggie or ingredient that you can think of! I made my eggs en cocotte with smoke salmon. 

Ingredients for 6:

- 100 gr smoke salmon

- 6 eggs

- 12 spoons of crème fraîche 

- parmesan cheese

First preheat your oven at 180ºC. Spread a bit of butter on each pot. Divide the salmon and add

Arzábal - Madrid

Arzábal is my recommendation this week. It's a great tapas and cozy restaurant located next to the Retiro park. It offers great service and great food. The food can be described as just traditional tapas made with high quality ingredients with a twist in their preparation. 

Their menu seems complete and not lacking options, but I end up ordering the same dishes every time I go. I love it anyways! They have two menus, one for the bar and one for the tables, the best option is to order from both regardless on where you're seating and share. For a table (which is the best option for me) make a reservation...it tends to be super crowded on weekend nights. 

The house wine is Terrible, actually really good, red one is a Ribera del Duero and white one is a Verdejo from Rueda. 

Dinner for two, including wine, €70. Enjoy!

Croquetas de boletus...one of their best bites and one of the best boletus croquetas in the city! a perfect dish to start ... Do try the Jamón Ibérico ones as well, they are made with sheep milk. Thelicious 

Le Cabrera Brunch - Madrid

I love Le Cabrera and I love it's so close to my place! I keep getting happier and happier with my choice of neighborhood. Some call it the "boho chic" of Madrid. Today I want to recommend to you this place, not only for its brunch but also for a cocktails and modern tapas night out. It's completely thelicious and trendy. The brunch is a fix menu (€25) but you do get to choose one choice for a starter, a main, and dessert. 

Barbara de Braganza, 2.

Enjoy!!!

Restaurant Massana - Girona

A Michelin starred dinner for Valentine's? Yes!

Having a tasting menu dinner is one of the best experiences for me. Better yet if the restaurant has amazing food and a well deserved solid Michelin star. Massana's menu is a combination of flavors, ingredients and presentation than turns the dinner into a real experience. This restaurant is in Girona, a beautiful city in Catalonia, close to the spectacular beaches of Costa Brava. Even if you're not close enough to dine at Massana this 14th you can treat yourself and your loved one to a tasting menu dinner at a local restaurant!

The menu consists of seven tapitas, seven plates and two desserts. Overall the dishes were of high quality and the service careful. Massana follows to some extend the molecular trend of other top and starred restaurants in the area, with some deconstruction, foams, gelees... Chef Massana visited the dining floor a few times and stopped at some tables, a nice touch.  I don't have pictures of all the dishes included in the menu, but I do have some yummy ones. Enjoy!

Bloody Mary

Bombon helado de "clara" y cabello de angel de limon
This is a sorbet of clara, which is a drink mixing beer with lemon soda, and lemon angel hair on top

baby Scallops C E V I C H E - Thelicooking

Ceviche is popular in Latin america and it is basically seafood "cooked" by being marinated in citrus such as lime and orange. The acidity of the citrus is what makes the shrimp, fish or any other seafood to be ready to eat! although of course you can always eat your seafood raw you will find the ceviche to be  fresh and an easy dish to impress your friends. It's a perfect appetizer or first course. 

Last night I made baby scallops ceviche in a bed of avocado, also a very popular ingredient in Latin american countries...it was delicious and so so full of flavors...and also my friends loved it!

Ingredients (for 4):

- 24 small scallops (zamburiñas in Spain), around 6 per serving

- one small red onion, around 1/2 cup diced

- 1/2 cup of fresh cilantro

- around 1/2 cup of cherry tomatoes

- 1/2 cup orange juice

- 1/2 cup lime juice

- 1 or 2 small chili peppers, depends on how spicy you want it

- salt 

Combine the finely diced red onion with the cilantro, chili pepper and tomatoes in a bowl that's either glass or plastic. I used my food processor for the tomatoes and this made them more juicy than just normally chopped

Then add the "zamburiñas" or "baby scallops". You can use either fresh scallops or frozen. They both taste perfect in this recipe

Picnic - Brunch - Barcelona

Did you go for brunch last weekend? If you didn't and you're craving one, I have a thelicious option in Barcelona for next weekend.
What makes PICNIC's brunch a great one is their ambiance and their food of course. Their dishes have a nice latin twist that I'm sure you'll love. Located close to el Born and la Ciutadella park, the crowd visiting the restaurant is both hip and of very diverse nationalities. 

They offer brunch Saturdays and Sundays from 11:30 to 17:00. I recommend you make a reservation. I went once for dinner but for some reason it wasn't as memorable as their brunch. 

Cheese Empanadas...crispy, yummy, nice starter to share

Roasted Bone Marrow - Thelicooking

Either you LOVE it or HATE it! Yeap, that's the case when it comes to bone marrow...it's greasy and full of flavor, I personally love it! 

I had a craving this week so I started researching how to make it at home since it was hard to find the dish at a restaurant. It turned out to be pretty easy. I went to my local butcher (@ Mercado San Antón) and asked for the bones -either beef or veal- also they were surprisingly cheap. So I was headed home with excitement and a bag full of bones :p 

Ingredients:

- beef or veal bones cut

- coarse salt

- cilantro

- one small onion

- 1 tbsp of capers

- 1 lemon juice

- olive oil 

- french baguette or toasts 

This is how they look. You want them to be cut around this size. Place them in a baking sheet with their wider side down so they don't fall and you don't risk losing the precious interior. If they are bloody (it's ok, they are bones!) don't worry you can place them in a bowl with water and change the water a few times. After that, press the marrow down with a paper cloth to absorb the remaining blood

Biltmore Champagne Brunch - Miami

There is not enough space in this blog to write about the Biltmore's Sunday Champagne Brunch. I absolutely love it! I was in Miami for NYE and so this was the perfect first brunch of 2013. I'd been before but this time I looked like a crazy person taking pictures of everything! I had to share it with you. First, the Biltmore is a National Historic landmark and a Four Diamond awarded hotel. Everything about it cries glam and beauty. And so does its brunch. The ambiance is delicate and comfortable at the same time. You have the option to seat outdoors, which in my opinion is the best because you can listen to the live music performance. The brunch is an amazing buffet offering a varied array of delicacies. From my beloved oysters, to caviar, pastas and sushi to a room full of desserts that I could have never dreamed of. Topping all the food is the non stop champagne and mimosas.

No hay suficiente espacio en este blog para escribir sobre el Champagne Brunch del Biltmore. Lo amo! Estuve en Miami durante año nuevo y tuve la suerte de que este se convirtiera en mi primer brunch del 2013. Ya había estado aquí pero esta vez parecía una persona demente tomando fotos de todo! Tenía que compartirlo con ustedes. Primero, el Biltmore es un edificio histórico nacional y un hotel galardonado con cuatro diamantes. Alrededor todo grita glamour y belleza. Y su brunch no podía quedarse atrás. El ambiente es delicado y comodo al mismo tiempo. Tienes la opción de sentarte afuera en un hermoso patio, donde en mi opinión es mejor porque así escuchas la música en vivo. El brunch es un buffet espectacular que ofrece varias delicias. Desde mis queridas ostras, a caviar, pastas, y sushi hasta un cuarto lleno de dulces que ni en mis sueños habría imaginado. Además de toda la comida, la champagne y mimosas no paran de llegar a tu mesa.

Santo Resto - Madrid

If you're looking for a nice and cosy dinner I have a great suggestion in Madrid. Santo Resto is a small restaurant offering quality comfort food. All based on seasonal and mediterranean products with a spark of Brazilian flavor...interesting....and thelicious!!! Their food is great, their service is great, and although their menu is not too large -quality reigns over quantity- you will not know what to order at first! 

Good for a friends night out, Santo is located close to the Opera and the Royal Theatre of Madrid. The price for dinner is between €25 and €35, and they are open Tuesday to Sunday for lunch 13h-16h and dinner from 20h30. Enjoy!


Si buscas un lugar bueno y acogedor para cenar tengo una gran recomendación en Madrid. Santo Resto  es un restaurante pequeño que ofrece calidad y comida con encanto, que gusta. Todos sus productos son estacionales y mediterráneos con una pincelada de sabor Brasileño...interesante y thelicious!!! Su comida es buenísima, su servicio también, y aunque su carta no sea muy extensa -calidad sobre cantidad- no sabrás que ordenar!

Está muy bien para salir con amigos. Se encuentra cerca de la Opera y del Teatro Real de Madrid. El precio por cenar es entre €25 y €35. Abren de Martes a Domingo para almuerzo y cena, de 13h-16h y a las 20:30h respectivamente. A disfrutar!

To start we had their amazing antipasto. Actually all of their first dishes are made for sharing! Veggies, the freshest mozzarella di bufala, and cold meats make this a great dish