>>Restaurante Barbiana en la Prensa
"In the heart of Seville's business district, not farm from the town hall and the Plaza Nueva, is this engaging fish restaurant with tapas bar up front and several small dining rooms, simple and homely as those of a pension, in the back.
In the mood for seafood with rice, we booked for dinner, only to learn that this dish was served exclusively at lunch. Not to worry. Our waiter, who spoke no English, gamely, with the operatic gallantry of a matador, constructed a meal for us, beginning with an appetizer plate combining items we'd requested with those he thought we ought to taste. It was superb.
I have an enormous affection for tortillitas de camarones, latke-shaped fritters of flour, chick pea flour, tiny shirmp and green onions. Those at Barbiana are the best I've ever tasted and had the texture of deep-fried lace.
Ortiguilla, deep-fried sea anemone, is another popular Andalusian starter. And Barbiana's version is stellar: bite through the delicately crunchy exterior to release the near-liquid filling, the flavor of which seems a blend of oysters and sea urchins.
Grilled sargo, or rockfish, is served with roasted red pepper and a garlic-infused juice. Rustic and satisfying, with a flavor reminiscent of cod, it is one of Barbiana's singnature dishes and a very popular tapa - which we learned on a return visit for that seafood and rice.
Dinner at Barbiana is, as our waiter put it, "tranquilo". Lunch is a three-ring circus, particularly in the classic tapas bar, filled with men in suits and well-heeled couples. Vendors push through the crowds hawking lottery tickets. It's enormous fun and the food is terrific.
We started with a homey, not and thick tomato soup, moved on to a piquant salad of shrimps, onions and peppers, and ended with tasty little casseroles of seafood and rice.
Desserts are not a strong point, though Joyce, who normally loathes whipped cream, adored the crema de canela here - really just whipped cream flavored with cinnamon. The wine list is rudimentary, but we enjoyed the '98 Protos Ribera del Duero ($14,25), a deep, dark red, and you can't go wrong with the house manzanilla ($1,25 a glass). "
