Here at Huerta Montero we would like to offer you the chance to taste some of these wonderful dishes. All of them are freshly prepared with,local ingredients and where possible we use free range and organic products. Wether you are arriving to late to cook your evening meal or you just would like a night off from cooking this may be the solution.
WHAT ARE TAPAS?
Tapas are small portions of foods, both hot and cold, served in bars, bodegas and tascas to accompany a copa of fino-- dry Spanish Sherry--or draught beer.
Tapa-hopping is part of the convivial Andalusian way of life. With a few friends you stop in at several bars to have a glass of wine and sample the tapa specialities of each. It's customary to stand up at the bar. You can enjoy tapas in most bars before the lunch hour (in Spain this is very late--tapas at 1 pm, lunch at 2 pm or after), and here's a tantalizing taste of some of the dishes--hot and cold-- you might find in a tapa bar in southern Spain.
Certainly the superb ham, both serrano , which just means mountain-cured, and the pricey iberico , produced from special Andalusian pigs which grow sweet on acorns. This salt-cured ham is served raw, very thinly sliced. It makes a marvellous combination with fino Sherry. And, of course, Andalusian olives. They can be the famed Seville olives, sweet, meaty manzanillas ; or gordales , the size of small plums; or home-cured ones, slightly bitter, flavoured with herbs and garlic, or olives stuffed with anchovy. A tapa of mixed olives might include fat caper-berries too
Tortilla Paisana- As above but with vegetables and chorizo.
Tortilla de Patata - A type of omelette with chunks of potato & sometimes onion
Helpful Menu Glossary
pinchos: bite-size portions pinchito: tiny portions tapas: snack-size portions raciónes: larger meal-size portions media ración: half a meal-size portion fritos: fried la plancha: sauteed Quanto cuesta un tapa?: How much for a tapa? aceitunas: olives almendras: fried almonds bombas: fried meat and potato ball caracoles: snails champiñones: mushrooms croquetas de : crispy-fried croquettes with... empanadas: pies filled with meat or seafood ensaladas (rusa): salads (Russian) espinaca: spinach gazpacho: cold garlic and/or tomato soup guiso: stew pan: bread paella: saffron rice dish with fish, shellfish or meat picos: little breadsticks (usually free) pimiento (relleno): peppers (stuffed) pisto: mixed sautéed vegetables queso: cheese queso manchego: sheep cheese rabo de toro: oxtail stew revuelto de : scrambled eggs with setas: wild mushrooms tabla serrana: a plate of cured meat and cheese.
Fish and seafood tapas words.
almejas: clams atun: tuna bacalao: cod boquerones (al vinaigre): fresh anchovies (in vinegar) boquerones fritos: deep-fried anchovies chiperones: fried whole baby squid cazon en adabo: marinated white fish gambas (a la plancha, al ajillo): prawns (sauteed, with garlic) mejillones: mussels pescaditos fritos: assortment of fried little fish pulpo: octopus rabas: squid tentacles sardinas: fresh sardines variado fritos: typical Andalusian plate of mixed fried fish
Meat tapas words.
charcuteria: selection of cured meats salchichon: sausage jamón serrano: dry-cured ham jamón iberico: best quality ham from Iberian pigs chorizo: cured spicy sausage (usually eaten un-cooked) lomo: cured pork loin
Tapas snacks.
bocadillo: baguette sandwiches montadito: tiny bocadillo pulguita: small closed-baguette sandwich flauta: sandwich made with a thin baguette pepito: another word for a little sandwich canape: tiny open-faced sandwich sandwich or tostada: common sliced bread (usually toasted or fried) with a choice of fillings con jamon/queso/mixto: with ham/cheese/both
Desserts.
flan: crème caramel arroz con leche: rice pudding helados: ice cream fruta del tiempo: fruit in season queso: cheese
Drinks.
aqua con/sin gas: bottled water with/without fizz Un vaso de aqua del grifo: glass of tap water Una jarra de agua: jug of tap water refresco: soft drink caña: small glass of draft beer cerveza: beer vaso or copa: a glass vino de mesa: table wine tinto de la casa: red house wine blanco de la casa: white house wine rosada de la casa: rosé house wine un tinto: a glass of house red wine Rioja: the best known of the Spanish wines (red, white or rosé). For better quality wines ask for crianza (old), reserva (older) or gran reserva (oldest). sangria: a mix of red wine, brandy, fruit and anything else they might have handy. (Strictly for the tourists, this one!) tinto verano: red wine with a light lemonade afrutado: fruity seco: dry dulce: sweet vermu: vermouth ‘Salud!: cheers!
And finally, just when you were enjoying your tapas: la cuenta por favor: the bill please.
One last thing: if you are in Spain and make a small effort to say something (anything!) in Spanish, you will find that a warmer welcome and a bigger smile awaits you, wherever you go.
