Your Favorite Food on the Primitivo?

[ebrandt]

We will be walking the Primitivo in June 2015. We love to try new foods and especially to make sure we have sampled local specialties. So I am curious, what were your favorite Primitivo foods? Do you remember where you had them?

Liz

 

[isabelle304]

We will be walking the Primitivo in June 2015. We love to try new foods and especially to make sure we have sampled local specialties. So I am curious, what were your favorite Primitivo foods? Do you remember where you had them?

Liz

My favourite meal while on the Primitivo was definitely the seafood paella we had for dinner at the albergue at Ponte Ferreira. It looked glorious and tasted great washed down with a nice glass of red wine.




I also loved the fried bread "buttered" with apple sauce we were served for breakfast at the Casa Herminia restaurant/albergue in Campiello.

On a more basic level, I bought some tarta de queso (Spanish cheesecake) in an Oviedo supermarket on my first day - I loved eating it for breakfast over the next 2 mornings - convenient and filling. Alas I was unable to find anymore tarta de queso for the remainder of the my primitivo

 

[Kiwi-family]

Ice cream at the establishment just up the hill from the dam. Not cornettos - real ice cream in a bowl! But then we have pretty simple tastes!

 

[ebrandt]

Oh my, Isabelle, that pic is just mouthwatering!!!

 

[peregrina2000]

I'm not much of a foodie, but I have a great memory of eating pulpo in Fonsagrada. There are two pulperias in town, I've been to both of them, and they both were terrific. For me, the ambiente is just as important as the food, and both of these places are lively and well-loved. I also remember a great comfort food kind of meal in the pension down the street from the church in Grandas de Salime.

I have to agree with Isabelle on the fried bread in Herminia's restaurant. Fried bread may sound gross, but it really hit the spot early in the morning before a long walk, especially when lathered with home made jam!

If you go through Pola de Allande, have a meal in the restaurant of the Hotel Allandesa. People come from Oviedo to eat there on weekends. But you have to be a meat eater!

Oh, I love the Primitivo!

 

[kellyz]

This question is killing me. I am a total food person, but sadly, I as much as I loved the Primitivo, I don't have any stellar food memories between Oviedo and Lugo. The food wasn't bad, I just didn't run into anything that was particularly special to that region of Spain or that was particularly delicious.
Overall favorite eats on the Camino: sopa de ajo with smoked trout in Hospital de Orbigo; razor clams in Finistere; pulpo at any fair in Galicia; bacalao and sardines (separately) in Portugal; gooseneck barnacles (percebes) on the Costal Route in Galicia; fresh cheese with marmalade in O Cebreiro; fried calamari on a sandwich in Portomarin; pimientos de padron (Galicia); bacalao/raisin empanadas in Galicia; and any squid, really. So, I guess most of my favorites are in Galicia, where you will eventually arrive!

 

[MKalcolm M]

If you are into local specialties, then make sure you drink the sidra - locally produced cider, which the bartender pours holding the bottle above his head and the glass at waist height to oxygenate and put some fizz into the drink. This is an acquired taste, but with several pilgrims sharing a few bottles it starts to go down well. Follow this up with some orojo, the local spirit, either plain (strong), or flavoured with herbs, honey, or coffee. A few of these and you will laugh and sing all the way back to the alberge.

 

[lettinggo]

I am with Peregrina2000 here.
Pulpo and more of it thank you.

 

[Pelegrin]

I also agree with Peregrina 200o, pulpo in Fonsagrada is very good. There are organised trips from east Galicia and western Asturias just to eat pulpo in the two places (O Caldeira and Candal) . Also caldo galego is very good in O Caldeira.
I'm Galego and I love caldo. I know that it is not an easy food for people who are not used to it, but it's a very healthy food. Their vegetables berza and grelo have the same properties as broccoli.
I had also a very good caldo at the first restaurant entering Cadavo-Valeira (sorry I don't remember the name).

 

[Tia Valeria]

As a local speciality then Tarta de Fonsagrada, in Casa Manolo and also elsewhere in town. Difficult to describe, but think of a trifle with almond sponge or a spoonable creamy tarta de Santiago.
We liked all the food and the cafe we ate at in Cadabo-Baleria was Las Tres Espuelas Avda de Lugo 5 - great platos combinados. Was this where you were @Pelegrin - it is in the centre of town.
We love caldo Galego and make it here at home now.

 

[katdavis]

Hi Liz,

Cabrales cheese comes from Asturias, so you must try it in Oviedo, though trust me, a little goes a long way! Wash it down with some sidra

I have to agree with Isabelle about Herminia's fried bread and apple jam... the apple jam was incredible! Casa Herminia, Campiello.

The best meal I had was at Meson Catro Ventos, I stopped there for lunch and shared the menu del dia. A starter of a local mushroom omelette, followed by some of the best bbq beef I've ever had, arroz con leche for desert, and a delicious glass of rioja to wash it all down. This was the day from Grandas de Salime to Fonsagrada.

I had the best flan I've ever eaten in Spain at Meson Manger in Lugo. I found it in your guide Liz, recommended by CSJ. The soup and stew I had there was also very good and all for only 8 euros.

I'm getting hungry!

Kat

 

[waveprof]

Asturias is known for grilled meats, cider, and a bean/soup dish called fabada. All can be amazing but beware, like most of Europe, there are more bad tourist versions out there than can be counted. Avoid peregrino type places.

 

[Pelegrin]

As a local speciality then Tarta de Fonsagrada, in Casa Manolo and also elsewhere in town. Difficult to describe, but think of a trifle with almond sponge or a spoonable creamy tarta de Santiago.
We liked all the food and the cafe we ate at in Cadabo-Baleria was Las Tres Espuelas Avda de Lugo 5 - great platos combinados. Was this where you were @Pelegrin - it is in the centre of town.
We love caldo Galego and make it here at home now.

Mine was not in the centre of town, maybe it was Hostal Restaurante Moneda but I'm not sure.
For me a good caldo has to have plenty of vegetables (grelos or berzas) and low fat. Usually the caldo galego for tourists has a lot of potatoes, beans and fat (chorizo, blackpudding) trying to hide the vegetable taste, but the authentic caldo has low fat. Pote Asturiano has a lot a fat in my opinion. In my Primitivo I noticed those differences from the super strong (and famous) pote in La Nueva Allandesa to the soft caldo in Fonsagrada and the transition pote/caldo in Arreigada (Grandas). So I carried out an interesting research.

 

[peregrina2000]

Kat's post about cheeses reminded me that I always order a plate of varied Asturian cheeses in any decent bar in Oviedo. The cabrales is too strong for me but there is a creamier and less pungent blue called La Peral, which I absolutely love. Personally I think Asturias has the best and most varied cheeses in Spain so if you're a cheese lover you probably can't go wrong asking for local cheeses in any place you eat. Yum!!!

 

[angulero]

Asturias is known for grilled meats, cider, and a bean/soup dish called fabada. All can be amazing but beware, like most of Europe, there are more bad tourist versions out there that can be counted. Avoid peregrino type places.

Por eso se la conoce, pero no sólo es eso. Hay muchos platos que a lo mejor no son tan conocidos y están muy buenos. Hay buena carne (ternera, gochu, pitu caleya, etc etc), buen pescado (merluza de pincho, bonito del norte, pixin, etc) buen marisco (percebe, centollo, ñocla, etc), buen embutido (el chosco de Tineo, morcillas, cecina, etc) muy buenos postres (casadielles, frixuelos, carajitos, etc, etc)....
¿Sabíais que Asturias es la mayor mancha quesera de Europa?. Casi cada valle tenía su tipo de queso y los hay de todos los tipos.

Therefore it is known, but not only that. There are many dishes that maybe are not as well known and are very good. There are good meat (beef, gochu, caleya Pitu, etc etc), good fish (hake, white tuna, monkfish, etc) good seafood (barnacle, crab, ñocla, etc), good sausage (chosco Tineo, sausages, jerky, etc) very good desserts (casadielles, frixuelos, carajitos, etc, etc) ....
Did you know that Asturias is the largest cheese spot in Europe?. Almost every valley had its cheese, and there are all types.

http://www.lacarrozal.com/quesos-asturianos.html

Mine was not in the centre of town, maybe it was Hostal Restaurante Moneda but I'm not sure.
For me a good caldo has to have plenty of vegetables (grelos or berzas) and low fat. Usually the caldo galego for tourists has a lot of potatoes, beans and fat (chorizo, blackpudding) trying to hide the vegetable taste, but the authentic caldo has low fat. Pote Asturiano has a lot a fat in my opinion. In my Primitivo I noticed those differences from the super strong (and famous) pote in La Nueva Allandesa to the soft caldo in Fonsagrada and the transition pote/caldo in Arreigada (Grandas). So I carried out an interesting research.

Para mí, donde esté un buen pote asturiano, que se quite el caldo gallego . Un buen pote debe de llevar buenos embutidos para que coja sabor. Nunca probé el pote de la zona de Allande, pero la berza que se utiliza en Ibias (y posiblemente en Allande y Grandas), no es la misma que se utiliza en el resto de asturias. Para gustos...

For me, where is a good pot Asturian, Galician broth to remove . A good pot should bring good sausages to take taste. Never tried the pot Allande area, but the cabbage used in Ibias (and possibly Allande and Grandas), is not the same as that used in the rest of Asturias. To taste ...

 

[ebrandt]

I also agree with Peregrina 200o, pulpo in Fonsagrada is very good. There are organised trips from east Galicia and western Asturias just to eat pulpo in the two places (O Caldeira and Candal) . Also caldo galego is very good in O Caldeira.
I'm Galego and I love caldo. I know that it is not an easy food for people who are not used to it, but it's a very healthy food. Their vegetables berza and grelo have the same properties as broccoli.
I had also a very good caldo at the first restaurant entering Cadavo-Valeira (sorry I don't remember the name).

Pelegrin -- my husband and I found Caldo Galego when we walked the Frances. I didn't care for it, but my husband loved it -- he has made a hobby out of trying to make it here in the US but says he can't get the same variety of berza or grelo here. The berza in Galicia seems like it was a cross between what we call kale and collards but as you say, with a broccoli flavor. And the grelo is more flavorful than our turnips. So he is anxiously waiting to return for some authentic soup! He will be thrilled to know a good place fo caldo! Thanks, Liz

 

[ebrandt]

Wow -- thanks for so many suggestions. I am busily taking notes and including tips and suggestions in my guide!

 

[mikevasey]

Try Calle Gatona in Oveido there are about 10-12 places all competing with each other, you follow the directions for the Norte in front of the Cathedral and you are on it in about 100 metres. We stayed in a pension on it for the 2 nights and in the mornings there was always vans lined up delivering crates of all types of fresh seafood.
Another vote for Fonsgrada, there are two outright pulperias, I had pulpo at one of them before going to my hostel, it was very good. That evening went to the Restaraunt Cantibrico which is part pulperia and very good eating place, which suits when the group you are with has mixed tastes.
When arriving in Lugo before we went to our hotels we went in the old streets near the cathedral and sat for a couple of hours in various bars drinking and eating the excellent selection of free tapas that came with them, we did the same in the evening, Lugo is made for wandering the old streets and trying the Tapas on offer. One of group was going back to Murcia the next day so we ended up in very posh pulperia at midnight, it was next to the bus station. Everything was very good quality but expensive, the tables were in giant wine barrels and you could fit 8 into ours.

 

[Pelegrin]

Angulero: The berza in ibias and Allande is not the same as in the rest of Asturias because it is the same berza as in Galicia: darker and curly with a long white stem. It was another interesting point of observation for me in my Primitivo: From Oviedo to Tineo only Asturian berza, from Tineo to Grandas both (Asturian and Galician) and from Fonsagrada only Galician berza.

Liz: I didn´t mean the berza had the same flavour as broccoli (though yes mabe it´s similar). What I meant was that grelo and berza have the same anticancer properties (unless they say that) as broccoli. I recommend your husband the menu in O Caldeira (Fonsagrada) that includes a good caldo, pulpo , pimentos de Padrón, dessert, wine and Galician bread (12 euros). They had also meat and fish but I didn't try them.

 

[peregrina2000]

Try Calle Gatona in Oveido there are about 10-12 places all competing with each other, you follow the directions for the Norte in front of the Cathedral and you are on it in about 100 metres. We stayed in a pension on it for the 2 nights and in the mornings there was always vans lined up delivering crates of all types of fresh seafood.

I'm pretty sure Mike means Calle Gascona, you can't miss it. It's a great place to watch the way life is lived and enjoyed by a bunch of friends sitting at a simple wooden plank table, drinking sidra and talking on and on for hours. Sidra is a social drink, no doubt about it. I will confess that I have tried, and failed, MANY time, to enjoy it, but just can't. They say it's an acquired taste, but I've not acquired it in more than a dozen tries. But I still love the Gascona and would recommend going there just to soak up the wonderful ambiente. Buen camino, Laurie

And just a quick note about Lugo -- Mike's comments also reminded me that when I was there last, there was only one café open early in the morning, and that's the one at the bus station, which is not at all far from the albergue. If you don't have an electric coil, and if you can't face walking without caffeine, that's the place to go.

 

[mikevasey]

Thanks, yep its Gascona it has the big bottle(or cask) at the other end. We had a €9.60 four course meal and before it came I was doubtful about quality and quantity for that price but it was excellent on all fronts from the chorizo in sidra to the very lightly battered chicken in cabrales sauce, the other places vary in price up to quite expensive but still very good value because they are trying to get a lead on the similar places on the street.

Not a fan of the Sidra, it reminds me of British Scrumpy.

 

[fraluchi]

This question is killing me. I am a total food person, but sadly, I as much as I loved the Primitivo, I don't have any stellar food memories between Oviedo and Lugo.

You're not the only one!. The above list of suggestions will probably give new insights to future pilgrims. Whilst more important are convivial experiences, and if the food is good (bless this Forum)....so much the better.

 

[ebrandt]

You're not the only one!. The above list of suggestions will probably give new insights to future pilgrims. Whilst more important are convivial experiences, and if the food is good (bless this Forum)....so much the better.

Fraluchi and Kellyz -- Your comments about the food echo with my experience on the Frances. My favorite meals mostly had nothing to do with the food and, as you note fraluchi, much to do with the company. And I did find some wonderful foods. I loved cheese and especially enjoyed the cheese we were able to get for lunches. And I am looking forward to having cuajada again! Yum!

Both my husband and I love good and interesting food and we want to try to avoid the McPilgrim menu this next time if at all possible! So, this question is part of my research!

Liz

 

[kellyz]

Actually, some of my best primitivo meals alone or in company were cured meats and cheeses from my backpack...

 

[mralisn]

Chocoflakes!

 

[Icacos]

A can of sardines (in olive oil) and a baguette, on the side of the trail

 

[ebrandt]

A can of sardines (in olive oil) and a baguette, on the side of the trail

Charleen -- Are you from the UK by chance??? You comment instantly brought to mind my British grandmother. One of her favorite lunches was a sardine sandwich. As kids we thought this was the most awful thing! I've grown to like sardines as an adult but I haven't thought of a sardine sandwich in years. L

 

[Icacos]

Charleen -- Are you from the UK by chance??? You comment instantly brought to mind my British grandmother. One of her favorite lunches was a sardine sandwich. As kids we thought this was the most awful thing! I've grown to like sardines as an adult but I haven't thought of a sardine sandwich in years. L

Glad that it reminded you of your grandmother, Liz. I don't often lunch on sardine sandwiches; it was something that sort of resurrected itself when I was on the Camino casting about for something to picnic on while on the trail. I expect I was introduced to sardine sandwiches by my father (a great fan of them) who probably learned of them from his father, who was originally from the UK.

It's interesting that persons sometimes find certain food combinations strange. A favourite kids' snack in my former island country was a condensed milk sandwich (actually a condensed milk 'bun-wich'). When I mention this to persons here in my adopted country, Canada, they are positively aghast. I was therefore delighted a few years ago when I came across mention of a condensed milk sandwich in The English Patient - either the book or movie, I can't remember........But we are really getting off-topic now.

 

[peregrina2000]

Speaking of deeply rooted food traditions, and even though I think that paella in Ponte Ferreira looks yummy, I have never met a Spaniard who would do anything other than express shock and disapproval towards anyone who suggested eating a paella at night.

Maybe I've just met a rare subset of all Spaniards, but I don't think so. It may also be, though, that food conventions are disregarded even by Spaniards after they've walked 30 kms!

Buen camino, Laurie

 

[Jabaldo]

What a great question. I must admit the food along the Camino was not all that great. There were a couple of high lights that stand out in my mind as well as my wife. The tapas in Pamplona, or is it Iruna. The real deal from what I can determine. On ever corner and in every bar. Outstanding. The stuffed pepper in don't remember where, stuffed with squid in a black ink sauce. What a treat and then of course the wine, the Rioja. The wine was by far the best part of the Camino. Now that we are home I have gone to all my local wine stores without mush success. The Rioja here is not the best, even the grand reserve. The Spaniards and who could blame the keep the best for themselves.

 

[Theatregal]

The five course dinner at Herminia's place in Campiello was the most memorable (and delicious) meal on the Primitivo for me. VERY full at the end of that evening! Don't usually photograph food but this one had to be documented! A fun night - tables set up in her shop with great company and conversation. And yes, the fried bread breakfast the next morning was pretty tasty too.

 

[ebrandt]

Theatergal-- the pics really make the food look wonderful! Thanks. L

 

[docpam]

Thanks for all this. Busy planning for next year.

 

[mralisn]

The five course dinner at Herminia's place in Campiello was the most memorable (and delicious) meal on the Primitivo for me. VERY full at the end of that evening! Don't usually photograph food but this one had to be documented! A fun night - tables set up in her shop with great company and conversation. And yes, the fried bread breakfast the next morning was pretty tasty too.

TOTALLY agree here! The food, drinks, company, lodgings were all great. I had the lunch menu and got stuffed. Later while drinking at the bar, I saw the dinner servings, holy heck! The morning "breakfast" sent me on the Way with a smile. Thanks for the reminder, Theatregal.

 

[oursonpolaire]

One surprise delight on the Primitivo is embutidos casero (the serving of sausage and preserved meat which can sometimes be found as the first plate in the menu)--- if you hit the village at the right time of year, not long after the local pigs are butchered and processed, you get the home-made sausage which can be incredible. I loved the fabada (the bean stew) but it did not at all agree with me. However, I became a sidra natural addict and found it went well with almost everything but fish. There are as well some good local cheeses, but I never kept track of the names, and I lazily just asked for queso de pais (local cheese) and got some great examples. Asturias is a meat and dairy area, and is not wealthy and a bit rough around the edges, but hardworking people love the pleasure of a good meal, and Asturians are very proud of the old ways. I have had some orujo casero which exempted me from flossing for a week.

 

[Silvester]

Covadonga blue cheese - more often available closer to Oviedo. Another cheese in a yellow wrapper with a boy with a red hat on it. Nearer the Santiago end, another cheese like a giant brie. Crusty fresh Galician bread. Foraged castanias, avellanas and walnuts. Blackberries. Seta - especially the large frilly one. Nata (in a little pottle like yoghurt) drizzled with miel.Tarte con queso at Grandas de Salime.