Six weeks to go before our return. My elder sister is at this moment at 21 Benito Suarez where the water heater has packed up again. Those ********s are ******* useless. Another call to the Fagor man and another 40€ call out fee when we get back. If anyone has been following my garage saga (see Blog #2 'All the Excitement is Over') you'll be pleased to hear that after nearly 8 years I can use my garage. I went in twice before coming back to Brum and then the door wouldn't open so that was that. Our neighbour is now using it while we're away and the door is still working. Result or what? No. He's just called me to say someone has left a note on his windscreen saying that he's not allowed to be there. Hey ho.
While I was writing the last post about the visit of Los Reyes Magos I had a tweet from Epi, (Señor Sanchez to me) our alcalde (mayor) giving his condolences to the family of a child that had been killed during the procession. I presumed it had happened in Alora and me quedé pasmado (I was speechless). The tragic event did take place but in Malaga and I believe the child was crushed under a vehicle while trying to pick up sweets. Thanks to Peggy and Tom for putting me straight. Terrible thing.
I have just been contacted by someone wanting to know if I am alive.
Anyway, Chris Gray has said he likes the popular series 'Favourite Bars' so it's time for...
Lo D'Antonio (Antonio's)
In my opinion LoD'Antonio does the best tapas in town, certainly within the radius of 'The Vuelta'.
This bar is run by Antonio Gil who used to eat too many of the delicious platos prepared in her tiny kitchen by his longstanding (there's no room to sit down in there) cook.
This is what he looked like when he took over the bar.
When Antonio and his cousin Paco opened the bar it was called Bar La Rampa (on calle La Rampa) and still has that name on the sign outside. As a young man Antonio travelled round the world and had a motorbike. He is, therefore, worldly wise and does not say much. He has a white board on the wall and every week a quotation from one of the great philosophers is written there in felt tip in Spanish. He has a big flat screen telly in there which I believe has never shown a football match and these days not even 'Spain's most popular TV chef'' Karlos Arguiñano gets a look in.
Karlos Arguiñano
I must say something about this man. He seems to be on the TV. screens of every bar I go into and his programme is very popular with men in bars. They always find something about his cooking to argue about. Arguing is a popular pastime which sits comfortably with tapas and cañas (small beers). You could be forgiven for thinking that the men of Álora do a lot of cooking. They do not. They just know a lot about cooking and are almost prepared to come to blows about, for example, whether or not a calamarito is the same as a puntillita (they are both baby squids as far as I can make out) or how long to boil pulpo for a pulpo a la gallega. (best cooked from frozen apparently).
Mr Arguiñano does know how to cook. He is a Basque and the men there really do know how to cook and have their own 'cooking clubs'. He is also admired by Heston Blumenthal and Jamie Oliver. So there. He is now 64 years old, a multi millionaire and owns his own TV production company. He is a big investor in the Basque sport Pelota and owns part of La Sexta TV channel. His catchphrase is 'rico, rico y con fundamento'.( tasty, tasty and with nutritional value) and he uses parsley in almost all his recipes. Shrewd viewers of his show will notice that every piece of kitchen equipment from knives to nutmeg graters proudly displays the name of its manufacturer. I am told he has a luxury yacht too.
Except for during Semana Santa Antonio's big screen shows rock videos. He is a big fan of The Rolling Stones, (he has adopted the 'tongue logo' ) ,the Beatles ( he has a display of framed EP covers on the wall, most of which were not released in the UK) and a Spanish rock band called Tabletom. (he has a signed and framed t shirt on the wall) He likes Cowbell too. http://www.myspace.com/cowbelltheband
When times were better LoDantonio used to fill up at 2.00pm. with tapeanders and people just passing through the town. (The bar is the first one you will see after parking your car in the town car park). It was a favourite of Jaques Laurelhet and his 'coterie' too. Jacques was French and had been an Alora resident for many years. He was a painter and his paintings could be found all over town; in people's houses, in bars, public buildings and on most of posters for the annual feria and the flamenco festivals.
There is a photo of him on the wall in LoDantonio aged about 18 playing guitar in a rock group. A good drawing of Antonio Gil by him is up there too. Jacques was very popular in the town and everyone was saddened by his death.
LoDantonio
I have spent many happy hours with a tapa and a caña in front of me staring at the above scene. At the far end beyond the kitchen roll is the kitchen. The cook is in there somewhere. There used to be a clock on the wall where the bottles are that was a 36 hour clock (I think. Chris could tell you if you should meet him) which seemed to make more sense as the afternoon went on and somebody might say, 'Oh it's quarter past 36 we'd better have another'. Above the entrance to the kitchen is a diagram showing the origins and branches of the various palos of flamenco. One of them, the 'Malagueño' was invented in Álora. One of the town's two prominent cantaores (singers), Manuel 'El Pibri' is a regular at LoDantonio along with many flamenco aficionados, such as Pepe Rojas (of sheep's testicle fame) and El Rubio who rides around on a scooter and turns up at the bar with flowers, herbs and other cosas del campo like 'sweet lemons'.
'El Pibri' with Emilio Cortes (guitar)
The Peña Flamenca
Nearly all the bars in Álora serve tapas and even larger portions (media raciones or raciones). Some have a chilled display counter, as does LoDantonio but none that I know of has a chalkboard with the day's fare. Usually you have to ask, '¿Hay tapas?' or '¿Qué tapas tienen?' and listen to a rapid recital of what's on offer. Sometimes Antonio has more than 20 tapas to offer, most of them cooked.
For some reason, if I ask, '¿Qué hay de Tapas?' he always smiles and replies. 'Muy bien gracias'. (very well thankyou). I don't understand why and so I've stopped doing it.
If you haven't seen this yet you are in for a pleasant surprise
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/01/this-is-a-flash-mob-playing-here-comes-the-sun-in-a-spanish-unemployment-office/267084/#.UPE2ctkXswE.twitter
January 15th. 2013
No comments:
Post a Comment