The hyper-observant of you will notice that there is a sex shop a couple of doors up from this back street tapas joint. When I sat down to eat at La Taberna del Gourmet recently, I started to wonder whether “Pikante” might offer better value, and possibly have more edible items for sale.
On the way home from Banús, and on Sundays many restos are shut. Our contorted journey this time, for some reason, comprised a bus to Marbella, a taxi to Fuengirola and a train to Malaga airport. Planes trains and automobiles! Good job we had the best part of a day to waste.
Apart from the travelling, our first waste of time was stopping at La Tasca de los Niños. The only excitement drawn from that place resulted from a couple of Spanish piss-heads already warming up for the European Cup Final (Spain were to deservedly beat Germany 1-0).
Fortunately tapas are served on small plates, so after the first two disappointments, we decamped to CervecerÃa Gambrinus right next door to the rail station.
When in dining mode, I am a grazer. I like to sample a range of flavours, and try new things as often as possible. Chinese banquets are great.  I like my Indian food to be served on as many plates as possible so I can play culinary Russian roulette with my taste buds. A spot of lime pickle on a spoonful of Vindaloo is like walking your tongue across hot coals, but this is far superior to pavement slabs of bland meat.
The ultimate grazer’s delight is a combination of three words: Spain, seafood and tapas. I think I may have found my mecca, ironically just to the west of the railway station in Fuengirola, Costa del Sol. This place is one of the best restaurants I’ve ever eaten in and almost certainly the best value.
Taking a bus from Banús, Paul managed to work out that we needed to get off after 11 stops. “This looks very like the centre of Marbella!” I shouted as we passed the 5th bus stop. Paul made us stay on board and was awarded the title of “knob of the holiday” when we finally alighted in the slums, some 2.5 kms past the centre.
On reflection though, I always say if you want to experience the true culture of a place, go into the back streets where the locals live. We found Bar Parquesol on the Avenida Navel Una first – very “local”. The owner of the tabac/newsagent across the street was cheerily drinking his profits at the bar.  Overheard voices were unsurprisingly Spanish and I imagined the word mañana being the most common in use. We had a couple of beers then decided to move on to the more touristy part of the port.
Exactly how many quarters has Manchester got? Can a city have more than four? I hear tell in the press of the latest campaign to create an “Irish Quarter” which is bringing England’s second city to the point of fractional incongruence.
Personally, I like the Spanish quarter and one of my fave tapas places is on Deansgate two forward rolls from the new Beetham Tower – Evuna.
Did you know that the Beetham Tower at 47 floors is the highest residential building in Europe. Has anyone told the residents on floor 36 that the fire brigade can only reach the fourth floor? Food for thought!
Stumble It!
