We decided to take a cooking class and learn how to make some traditional Spanish meals. We headed to one of our favorite traditional Spanish restaurants called “Taberna Iberica.” Our Chef Francesca was very friendly and greeted us with a kiss on each cheek. She spoke only Spanish and the entire cooking demonstration was in Spanish. We entered the small galley kitchen which is used for the entire restaurant.

She demonstrated the techniques and processes for the making of several traditional meals. The first meal we began making was Paella with chicken. She began by chopping up a half chicken which included the bones.

Chef Francesca then demonstrated how to cook the chicken and make the paella. The process involved olive oil, water, peppers, a few spices and very easy to make.

We then began another Spanish dish “tortilla de potatas” which is a breakfast meal. The process was surprisingly easy and simple to make. It used potatoes, olive oil, and eggs with a few spices.  The tortilla de potatas was made using a frying pan.

The final dish we made was a seafood paella. The process was somewhat different with a few changes. One of the differences was the boiling of fish pieces in water then removing the fish and using the water to make the rice. We then added some cuttlefish and prawns.

Once the three dishes were finished we took them upstairs to our table.

We sat down at our table to enjoy the paellas and Tortilla. There was also red and white wine, freshly baked bread and water. We enjoyed the food and ate until we were all full and content.

We were relaxing and enjoying ourselves when they owner presented us with an after dinner drink.

We toasted the Chef and enjoyed the after dinner drink, before heading out.

As we were leaving the restaurant, Chef Francesca came and gave us a Spanish kiss on each cheek and made us feel like we were family. It was an amazing feeling to be so welcomed into a restaurant. It was more like a family meal than a restaurant.

“Adios y que tenga un gran dia”