After Eating in Spain – Valencia and La Tomatina, we flew to Granada for a couple of nights. The point of our Granada stay was to see the Alhambra – a stunning palace and fortress complex (worth seeing for the beautiful Moorish carvings!).
Bodegas Castaรฑeda
Our hotel was only a few metres away from Bodegas Castaรฑeda, so we headed there for lunch. We stood around for about 10 minutes, not knowing where to go to get a table. I didn’t realise that the restaurant was spread across two buildings and we probably should have gone to the bar to get some service. We flagged down a busy waiter for a table, who told us to go inside the smaller of the buildings for a table. There was only a table for four available, so I sat down, but then told to remain standing for a vacating table for two. After sitting at our table, more time passed and the waiter was busy chatting with others to notice us. We had to wave to get his attention simply for some menus. Service was not looking good. After we ordered drinks, a basket of bread arrived. This was not complimentary and the menu stated it was a couple of euro for the ‘bread charge’. At least they were giant loaves.
We ordered the ‘Castaneda‘ hot platter of croquettes, Spanish omelette, grilled pork loin, bacon, broad beans with ham, and salmon smothered in two types of cheeses. It was quite rich but I liked having a selection of items to try.
We also tried the chicken empanada which was a lot bigger than expected, but oh so good stuffed with chicken and vegetables.
This was the worst service we had in Spain so we never went back, which is too bad as I would have liked to try more of the menu.
Heladerรญa Los Italianos
Serving Italian-style gelato, this place was just around the corner from our hotel. We stopped in and tried the ever popular torta (a wedge of gelato cake) served in a cone. There are three flavours of torta – cassata, tarta de cafe, and tarta de chocolate. I decided to try the tarta de cafe with coffee, egg yolk and almond. Not bad but I think I’d prefer a regular gelato instead.
Taberna Mas Que Vinos
I had read that this tavern had reasonably priced good quality tapas so we headed here for dinner one night.
When we arrived, we were asked if we wanted to order from the regular menu or just tapas which affected which area we could sit. We stuck with tapas and found some stools around a wine barrel to sit on.
Mr FPJ ordered a sangria special (3.90โฌ), which came with a free tapa of Iberian pork and sun-dried tomatoes on bread, with a side of olives. The pork and bread was dry, but he enjoyed the olives. We loved the stuffed mushrooms with serrano ham, cheese and garlic (3.50โฌ). These were juicy and the filling just as good.
The beef sirloin with mushrooms (8โฌ) came served on a bread roll with a side of chips. The beef itself was soft and tender with gravy on top. The chips were a little dry so we left this on the plate, along with the bread, and ended up just eating the beef on its own.
The breaded cod with ratatouille (6โฌ) had a lovely crumb to it and we enjoyed the fresh ratatouille which seemed liked the healthiest item we had eaten in a long time.
Los Diamantes
Los Diamantes is famous for its fried seafood. We got there at around midday and it was already packed.
Luckily the two of us could slot onto one of the communal tables. There must be a lot of tourists that come by as we had a nice new English menu.
I ordered the navajas or razor clams (11โฌ) which I’d never had before. These long clams were meaty and soft, and fantastic with the garlic and olive oil, but still very gritty with sand which wasn’t pleasant.
As we had ordered drinks, we received a free tapa of mushrooms with garlic. It was a much bigger plate than expected, and so tasty.
I really wanted to try the mixed fried fish surtido de pescado (13โฌ). I was really happy to find that it wasn’t just fish, but included prawns, calamari and squid. I liked the light batter so the fried goodness didn’t feel too heavy.
Without knowing that the fried fish mix would include other things, I also ordered the fried calamari (11โฌ) which we didn’t end up finishing.
Piononos
A famous item in Granada is the pionono originally from Santa Fe. Piononos are small sweet pastries that are rolled, drizzled in syrup and topped with toasted cream. Google tells me it is named after Pope Pius IX’s Italian nickname, ‘Pio Nono’. I walked past the shop Croissanteria La Blanca Paloma along the main street with a Pionono’s of Santa Fe sign out the front, and walked in to get one (unsure of price).
I thought that they would be warm, but these are served cold which makes sense as it’s hot and humid in Granada at that time of year. It took 2-3 bites to finish a pionono. Wonderful, sweet with a bit of cream on top. The perfect dessert if you’re on the go!
We always walked past Ysla, a corner patisserie near our hotel, which sold three different flavours of piononos, so I made sure to make a stop there too. The flavours were original, mango and chocolate.
Of course I had to try one of each! The mango was quite sour, and the chocolate just tasted like a light chocolate cake topped with chocolate custard. I still prefer the original to the other flavours, there’s just a nice balance of pastry, syrup and cream.
Ysla is a big shop and there were a lot more cakes other than piononos available, but we didn’t have stomach space or time to try it.
Viandas de Salamanca
We wandered down the west-side of Calle Reyes Catรณlicos (away from the Alhambra) and discovered Viandas de Salamanca. This shop sold local meats, sausages, and sandwiches and had iberico pork legs hanging from the wall. What was in the window caught my eye!
The giant sandwich looking thing on the left is called hornazo de salamanca which is a pork loin, chorizo and egg pie. We were leaving Granada the next day and looking for some take away lunch options, and purchased a wedge of this pie to go (3.95โฌ). Wonderfully savoury with big chunks of meat, while the pie crust was savoury yet sweet. So glad we got to try this.
We also bought one of the bocadillos – a jamon iberico baguette (4.50โฌ) to go.
The store inside has a range of packaged cured meats that can be purchased.
I was impressed that people still slice the jamon Iberico by hand with a sharp knife!
Cafรฉ Pastelerรญa Lรณpez-Mezquita
One of the must-visit patisseries I had on my list was the Cafรฉ Pastelerรญa Lรณpez-Mezquita. Unfortunately when we got there, the roller doors were down and a sign advised that the cafe was closed for another few weeks due to the summer holidays. Darn. But how cute are the roller doors? I like to think that’s what the patisserie looks like.
Heladerรญa Giolatto
Being a hot day, we went in search of ice cream nearby. We stopped by Heladerรญa Giolatto which had a high star rating on Google. I picked two scoops in a cup of pistachio and coffee. I don’t remember the exact cost but Mr FPJ did comment that it was a lot more expensive than other ice cream shops we had passed. Oops. We should have visited some of the earlier ice cream shops as the flavours were very subtle and almost non-existent. The pistachio was rubbish! Not a fan.
Sabor e Espaรฑa
Although we only briefly visited this shop, I wanted to mention it. Sabor e Espaรฑa is famous for its nougat, but also sells nuts and all sorts of snacks. We walked in and it smelled amazing – probably from the caramel being mixed into some nuts. There were so many samples on the counter of some of the products. Worth a visit!
Restaurant Arrayanes
On our last night in Granada, I felt like something a bit different for dinner. Given the Moorish influence in Granada, we tried Restaurant Arrayanes for some middle-eastern cuisine. The restaurant is dimly lit with oil lamps on every table. We started off with house made Moroccan mint lemonade (unsure of price) when a platter with olives and crackers arrived.
We ordered the Moroccan chicken tagine with vegetables which came with a serve of bread. I loved this! The chicken was so tender and juicy, and I loved that there were plenty of vegetables piled high to enjoy.
We also tried the lamb skewers with salad and rice. This was a little gristly and not as enjoyable as the tagine.
Being a tea-lover, I regret not trying out one of the many teterias or tea rooms around Granada. The majority have shishas set up, comfy cushions and seats you can sink into, to spend the afternoon. We just didn’t have enough time.
That’s all for Granada. Next stop, Seville!
Eateries visited:
- Bodegas Castaรฑeda – Calle Almireceros, 1, 3, 18010 Granada
- Taberna Mas Que Vinos – Calle Tundidores, 18001 Granada
- Heladerรญa Los Italianos – Calle Gran Vรญa de Colรณn, 4, 18001 Granada
- Bar Los Diamantes – Plaza Nueva, 13, 18009 Granada
- Croissanterรญa La Blanca Paloma – Calle Reyes Catรณlicos, 48, 18009 Granada
- Ysla – Avenida Constitucion 3, Granada
- Cafรฉ Pastelerรญa Lรณpez-Mezquita – Calle Reyes Catรณlicos, 39, 18001 Granada
- Heladerรญa Granada – Giolatto – Plaza de Cauchiles, 4, 18001 Granada
- Sabor a Espaรฑa – Plaza Nueva, 14, 18009 Granada
- Restaurant Arrayanes – Cuesta de Maraรฑas, 4, 18010 Albazyzin, Granada
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