Gijón, Asturias, Spain— (21/6/2023) Exploring a new dining spot is often considered a love language, whether it’s a gesture of self-care or an expression of affection for someone special. So, I got to try Shanti Coffee, a newly-opened expresso bar in the city of Gijón. They offer specialty drinks, baked goods, and a cozy ambiance for clients to enjoy their coffee.
Great quality latte!Homemade peanut butter for a freshly baked croissantFancy and instagrammy breakfast Grilled croissant with Shanti homemade peanut butterScrumptious Ham Sandwich
For the overall rating, I would give it a 7.5/10. The breakfast was great, though the café is a bit far from the city center. Regarding pricing, the breakfast approximately costs 12€ (13.14 USD / 730 PHP).
Do you like this post? Tell me about your fave breakfast! 😉
Oviedo, Asturias, Spain— Special food for a special day so I opted out to indulge in a whole new fine dining experience. Since I love Sushi and everything Japanese…Konnichiwa! 🎌🤗 I’ve got some good recommendations about a known Teppanyaki restaurant in Oviedo.
Teppanyaki is a Japanese dish of meat, fish or vegetables cooked or fried on a built-in hot steel plate in the center of the diner’s table.
The restaurant is called Umami which is located outside the city center in the street of Jacinto Benavente.
Umami is a Japanese word means “savory” which also refers to one of the five basic tastes such as sweet, sour, salty and bitter.
The restaurant can only accommodate up to 8 people at a time. Everybody will be sitting around a Teppanyaki banquet as seen in the photo below.
One thing that surprised me was the menu – it’s bomb! 💥 Anyone is sure to leave with a full stomach after the meal. Moreover, it’s informative and interactive, as the chef explains (in Spanish) the ingredients of every dish while cooking in front of the customers. They offer a fixed menu, and as I’ve heard, they try to change it every week.
The Menu
⬇️ Starter: Fish balls in a caramelised sauce with grated turnip on top.
⬇️ Sushi plate: Gunkan with ginger caviar, Salmon maki, Tuna maki with truffle sauce. They also served two types of Wasabi sauce: Common (left) and Cooked Wasabi root (right)
⬇️ Sake-steamed clams. Sake is a Japanese alcoholic drink made from fermented rice.
⬇️ Sautéed Asian noodles with 🥕
⬇️ Monkfish with sautéed Shimeji mushrooms and fresh Spinach leaves in Hoisin-Sake sauce.
⬇️ For the last course, instead of meat (I’m a pescetarian), I had a soybean cake with a veggie side dish.
⬇️ Dessert: Panna Cotta Bailey
Price point
The almost 2-hour meal consisted of a starter, three pieces of sushi, unlimited servings of Miso soup with tofu, four main course plates elaborated in Teppanyaki banquet, a dessert, a drink,and a hot Gyomu ichi tea and a Japanese-style Syphon brewed coffee. The cost was approximately €33 ($37.56 |₱1,981.12)
Such a great deal! 👌👌👌
Aside from that, what I like more about this experience was their excellent service and hospitality.
Oviedo, Asturias, Spain— Late in the afternoon, nine days after the school opening, at 17:00 (5:00 pm), everyone finally felt relieved as the much-awaited parade in the city, called ‘El desfile del Día de América’ (Day of America Parade), took place today. The local government of Oviedo, the capital city of Asturias, has been organizing this event since 1950, and they have already hosted 68 parades to date.
Kids staring at the participants
As soon as I finished my errands, I immediately made my way to the center of Oviedo, where a crowd of 60,000 spectators, comprising both locals and tourists, had assembled.
A girl on the float was waving to the crowd of people.
Dances, music, floats, confetti, bright costumes, and big smiles are the wonderful things to look for in the yearly event celebrated on the 19th day of September, four days before the fall season, as part of the ‘Fiestas de San Mateo’ (Festivity of San Mateo).
Definitely not a normal day on Uría Street, Oviedo’s principal arterial district.
The parade lasted longer than I expected because it started earlier than usual but still ended at the same hour.
Accordions on the wayReal Banda de Gaitas Oviedo (Bagpipe Musical Group of Oviedo)
Approximately 12 floats and 20 performance groups, featuring around 3,000 participants, were seen in the parade.
Trolls Float
The event was dedicated to New Orleans, a city in the state of Louisiana located in the southeastern USA, in commemoration of its 300th founding anniversary.
McPueblo 😂
Band styled in Gatsby
Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Mexico were among the Latin American countries that participated in the event. It’s no wonder why I’ve never missed the parade for three consecutive years; they always contribute to making the event livelier.
Traditional Colombian Dance, Cumbia.
Not to mention how expensive this celebration is, what I find even more interesting is the way people gather…
Freezing the moment
… and despite the long history and differences, there’s one thing that I’ve observed in people, and that is the sense of ‘amistad’ (friendship), which remains the same for everyone.
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Pola de Siero, Asturias, Spain— Complimenting food or writing a review isn’t really my thing unless it can give me a Foodgasm 😋 (a pleasurable sensation from eating). Additionally, being a pescatarian (a fish-eating vegetarian), if I were a food taster, I’d be totally useless, as trying out all the food out there is a big NO for me.
Therefore, while the experience is still fresh on my palate, I’m blogging about the best Italian meal I’ve ever had in Spain, and without a doubt, it was at ‘Ginos’, located in Parque Principado, the regional shopping center of Asturias.
Without further ado, I was lucky enough to have tried their “Menú del día“ (Menu of the day) and personally, it was an absolute satisfaction!
Well, let’s start with the price point. In addition to the food, I had to take into account the restaurant’s ambiance. In my opinion, I consider it ‘Above Average’ based on its service, location, creativity, cleanliness, and vibes. There are a lot of factors to consider!
The meal costs 12.95€ (15.07$ / 816.72₱), which includes Entrante (starter), Plato Principal (main course), Postre (dessert), bebida (drink), and pan (bread).
Below are my chosen delicious plates from the menu:
Main course: Merluza Provenzale con ensalada (Hake Provenzale with salad) ⬇️
Dessert: Profiteroles con salsa de chocolate caliente (Cream-filled morsels bathed in a warm chocolate sauce) ⬇️
A meal costing less than 13€ is quite a good deal, considering the overall satisfaction.
As I conclude my blog, I hope reading it has left you with a full and satisfied stomach. If you’ve tried meals at Ginos or have any restaurant recommendations, I’d be grateful for you to let me know! 🤗
ERIKA VAGAY 