CombatCritic's TravelValue™: tavern

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Showing posts with label tavern. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 1, 2020

Olhão, (Algarve) Portugal: Quaint, Tiny And Tasty - A Definite TravelValue ... HOOAH!

Tasca O Galo

Rua da Gazeta, 7

8700-396 Olhão, Portugal

Phone: +351 964 709 746

Facebook Page

Reservations: Yes

Prices: €€€€ (€40 for Two - Including Wine)

On a tiny alley in the back roads of Old Town Olhão, you will find a tiny tasquinha with old world charm, excellent service, and outstanding food at very reasonable prices. It is called Tasca O Galo, some calling it Tasquinha O Galo, roughly translating to tavern of the cock (get your mind out of the gutter, it's a rooster dammit).

TripAdvisor told us that they opened at 18:00, but they often get things wrong (leading me to tell them to shove my 'Top Contributor' designation a few years back) and we were 30 minutes early for dinner. No worries, we will come back shortly, I told the nice lady who spoke pretty good English.

A cute little place, maybe a wine cellar a couple of centuries ago, they have three four-tops and two tables for two, so you had better get there early if you want to eat. There are cocks all over the place in tribute to their name and to the Rooster of Barcelos, one of the most common symbols of Portugal. This tavern has a comfy and homey feel, the perfect spot for a tasty southern Portuguese meal with some influence from a few other delicious cuisines (Belgian/French, Thai, Japanese, Italian, and others).

We started with a bottle of 2016 Herdade Grande (€15), a robust red (tinto) from Alentejo, the gastronomical capital of Portugal well known for their excellent wines. Along with the tasty red, we ordered a basket of fresh, homemade breads (€1.50), a delicious olive tapenade (€1), and a bowl of fried potato cubes with slices of savory chorizo (€4) ... YUM!

My better half ordered a spinach and cheese omelette (€8.50), more like an Italian fritatta than an omelette, coming with a side of hot, crispy fries. My wife gave me two thumbs-up, a definite winner in her book.

I decided on the filet with roquefort sauce (€18), cooked medium/medium-well, also coming with a side of fries, a savory cooked cabbage, that I thought were onions, and a dab of pureed plum compote. The filet, three good size medallions, was one of the most tender cuts of meat in memory and the roquefort sauce sublime, plentiful enough to coat my crispy fries as well. The only faux pas, and I am not sure it was unintentional, was that my filet was cooked much closer to rare than medium/medium-well. I am not a blood lover and normally would have sent it back, but after giving it a try, I found it tender and flavorful without gushing blood all over my decadent roquefort sauce. The chef obviously knows what he or she is doing, but following orders is obviously not a forté.

Finishing our meal off by splitting a dark chocolate mousse sprinkled with sea salt and a hint of chili pepper (€3.50), we left very well satiated with thoughts of 'what will I have next time'. Being new residents of Olhão, we will likely be returning to Tasca O Galo for years to come. Less than €38 for a bottle of wine and a meal like that, all I can say is ... HOOAH!

CombatCritic Gives Tasca O Galo 9 Bombs Out Of 10 ... With A 1 Bomb Deduction For A Chef Who Thought They Knew Better Than The Customer ... More Bombs Are Better!

Nine Bombs Equates To:

Translation for Civilians: "U.S. Marine Response To A Verbal Greeting Or As An Expression Of Enthusiasm"

Monday, February 17, 2020

Santa Luzia, Portugal: This Tavern On The Sea Is A MUST SEE If Near Tavira

A Tasquinha do Bruno
Rua Marechal Gomes da Costa, 5
Santa Luzia, Tavira
Phone number: 918876304
Hours: 07:00 – 24:00 Monday - Saturday
Prices: € € € € (Cash Only)

Holy crap Bartman, it does not get much better than this!

Recommended by our Dutch pro, Bart ... aaargh, at nearby Benamor Golf Club, I stopped in to check out Tasquinha do Bruno and was blown away! First they brought me a basket of fresh bread along with a shot glass filled with EVO, garlic, and a sprig of fresh rosemary as well as some marinated local olives and sliced carrot. Off to a great start. I then ordered two glasses, in succession, of delightful, local vinho tinto (red wine - 2.50), roasted chili peppers to die for and just like my Zia Gina in Italy makes (3.00), and a combo I had never envisioned, fresh, sliced mozzarella topped with a mild, warm, orange curry sauce (6.00).

This tiny place sits on a corner in the main square of Santa Luzia, a fishing village famous for their polpo (octopus), and is rustic and quaint on the inside with just five or six tables and a couple of stools to belly-up to the bar.

The staff could not have been nicer. The gentleman, who I assumed was Bruno, answered my questions about their wines and tapas in excellent English while the chef, likely his wife, prepared my delicious food. Finally, a sweet boy named Samuel, probably their son, grilled me on which of the 50 US states he should visit, listing every one in succession.

I had a wonderful evening, chatting with a Dutch tourist named Annika and savoring every bite and swallow of the tasty tapas and wine that were delivered to my table ... HOOAH!

CombatCritic Gives A Tasquinha do Bruno A Perfect 10 Bombs Out Of 10 And A Spot On My WALL OF FAME ... This Place Is The Bomb!

PS - I shall return often and update my review as I do as Bruno is just down the street from my apartment.

Ten Bombs Equates To:

Translation for Civilians:

HOOAH!: "Phonetic spelling of the acronym HUA, which stands for 'Heard Understood Acknowledged.' Originally used by the British in the late 1800's in Afghanistan. More recently adopted by the United States Army to indicate an affirmative or a pleased response." - Urban Dictionary

"The Department of Military Science and Leadership, University of Tennessee claim HOOAH 'refers to or means anything except no' ... Regardless of its meaning ... the term is an expression of high morale, confidence, motivation and spirit." - WarChronicle.com

"The U.S. Air Force stole 'HOOAH' from the Army because we were part of the Army until 1947 and rather than waste a bunch of time coming up with something new and unique like "ROO-YAH" or "HAL-A-LOO-YAH", we said 'screw it, let's go with HOOAH' ... thanks Army ... HOOAH!" - CombatCritic

Friday, January 20, 2017

Matera, Italy: "Crazy" Cold Night, Warm Tavern, Very Average Meal

Osteria Malatesta
Via San Biagio 45
75100 Matera
Italy
Phone number +39 331 2887242
Website: osteriamalatesta.com
Prices: € € € €

It was a cold winter's night with nary an open restaurant to be found on Befana Eve in snowy Matera (January 6th, Befana, is the morning where kids in Italy awake to presents brought by the legendary witch). We stumbled upon Osteria Malatesta (Malatesta is an old Italian (Rimini) family name and literally means "bad head" or "crazy") while walking down a back street toward the Sassi di Matera (old town - UNESCO site) where there seemed to be more action and open shops.

The place was full except for an open table and the two servers were running around taking orders and delivering food when we arrived. We were just happy to be in a warm room and out of the uncharacteristically bitter cold in Southern Italy. The server told us that the table was reserved, but there were seats available at the "tavola degli amici" (table of the friends), a table for eight where a young couple from Puglia was already sitting, one a forest ranger and his wife a Carabinieri (state police). They invited us to join them, not like they had a choice, and were quite welcoming and friendly.

For our antipasto, we decided to share the formaggi (cheese), olive (green olives), e salame (and salami) accompanied by fresh bread. For €8, the plate was a bit sparse with three small triangles of local cheese, about 9-10 green olives, and four slices of salami. I think €4 to €5 would have been a more reasonable price. A litre of local red house (della casa) wine was much more reasonably priced at €4.50 and was quite good.

For our entrees, we decided to go light and order only pasta (no meat course). My wife went with the local cavatelli in a pesto, gorgonzola, and almond sauce (€8). The portion was of decent size and the sauce rich and flavorful. THe combination of pesto and gorgonzola was unique, but they pulled it off quite well.

I wanted to try a local dish and the server recommended the Orecchiette Cruschi e Mollica Fritta (€8). Cruschi are sun dried sweet Italian peppers with the seeds removed, cut or crushed into tiny pieces, then pan fried in olive oil until crispy. The olive oil and peppers are then added to the cooked cavatelli, sprinkled with fried breadcrumbs. It was quite different than any pasta dish I have had and tasty enough, but there are many more sauces I prefer to this one.

The tavern was old with large arched stone ceiling, a bit plain but inviting nonetheless. The tables and chairs were old and wooden with candles burning on all except ours. The service was efficient, but as cold as the air outside, barely talking to us until we left and I told them that I was a food critic. They became all smiles then and treated us like old friends ... too late.

CombatCritic Gives Osteria Malatesta 6 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Six Bombs Equates To:

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Read Chris S.'s review of Osteria Malatesta on Yelp

Title: Matera, Italy: "Crazy" Cold Night, Warm Tavern, Very Average Meal

Key Words: Matera, Italy, Basilicata, Settembre, tavern, 14th, pub, bar, hamburger, sandwiches, panini, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp

Translation for Civilians: G2G = "Good To Go"

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