Meals on El Transcantabrico



Lunches and dinners were taken at local restaurants.  This gave us the opportunity to sample the local specialities and delicacies together with some excellent local wines.  The meals were as excellent as they were varied with a strong emphasis upon local produce, particularly fish and shellfish.  Many of the meals were spectacular and gave us an opportunity to participate in local customs.

Perhaps the most memorable meal was dinner at El Restaurante Louzao at Viveiro where "Seafood in Season" turned out to be a plate of large crabs with roe in a thick sauce, followed by small crabs, followed by gambas a la plancha, followed by large langostinos.   The main course was an excellent steamed hake served with potatoes and leeks in a saffron sauce. Dessert was an almond tart followed by queimada which is aguadiente, sugar and apple, flamed and served hot.  The meal was prepared with extremely fresh ingredients and simply prepared.  There was a choice of  Galician white wine (Ribadeo) or Rioja red followed by a choice of liqueurs (aguadiente, coffee cream or licor de hierbas).

Meals were taken at tables generally seating 6-10 people.



We were invited into the Restaurante los Templarios
in Villalcazar de Sirga to sample a pilgrim's meal.




The Albada soup looks interesting

House style black pudding and pickled pork loin.

Cheese and hard pork sausage.

Baby lamb roasted in a wood oven.


Preparing Queimada



This shows just the highlights
Santiago de Compostela - Parador
scallop in a shell
Viviero - Restaurante Louzao
wonderful shellfish and exceptional hake
Ribadeo - Parador
Caldo Gallego (Classical Galician Soup)
Luarca - Restaurante Villa Blanca
asparagus stuffed with sea urchin caviar
Oviedo - Restaurante El Raitan
fabada (Asturian stew of beans and pork blood sausage, sausage and bacon)
Gijon - Restaurante Bellavista
octopus salad
Niembro (Llanes) Restaurante San Pelayo
spider crab and fresh cockle lasagna in prawn sauce.
Santillana del Mar - Parador
bison croquettes/bison stew
Santander - Restaurante La Mulata
brown crab in its shell/ grilled turbot
Bilbao - Restaurante Zuria
fishermans plate/steak
Mercadillo - Restaurante La Peņa
leek terrine/cod fillet - wonderful use of strongly flavoured olive oil
Villalcazar de Sirga - Restaurante Los Templarios
Albada soup (Castillian soup)/roast lamb
Cisternia - Restaurante La Arquilla
sirloin



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