My husband and I arrived at the rented Barcelona flat at 5:00 p.m. on a Wednesday. A quick shower unveiled the second wind’s face and off we went, into the streets crawling with people. Our quest? Locate a tapas bar from which we would kick off our one month food, wine and hiking adventure in northern Spain.

After much exploring, hunger pangs took over in front of Taller de Tapas, adjacent to the Placeta del Pi in the Barri Gotic (gothic quarter). We started with what I craved; Boquerones en Vinagre (silver backed anchovies cured in vinegar then drizzled with olive oil) and an order of tomato bread (slices of bread vigorously rubbed with garlic and a halved tomato then finished with a drizzle of olive oil). With a half bottle of rosado (dry rose), this was the perfect starter.

The waiter suggested we also try Boquerones Rebozados. For this, anchovies are butterflied, very lightly coated in batter, then fried. Wow!

Next, Espinacas con Pancetta Iberica y Garbanzos (sautéed spinach, Iberian pancetta and chickpeas) and Ensalada de Rúcula, Membrillo y Queso de Cabra de la Nuri (Arugula with Nuri’s goat cheese, quince paste and toasted almonds). Spanish cheese and Membrillo together are truly an extraordinary match….and another half bottle of rosado was required.

Then the Sardinas a la Plancha con Perejil (grilled sardines with parsley) arrived. Previously, we’d only had them from a can, so we were surprised that these were much bigger.

So the hubby asks how to eat them. Not being familiar, combined with the rosado and lack of sleep (we’d been up about 36 hours), I simply said “just cut them up and eat them,” so we did just that. SURPRISE! Crunch crunch, bones and all with the first one. What a mess. Looking sheepishly at an adjacent table we discovered ya gotta cut them in half and pull the main spine bone out of this larger fresh type. Duh. A perfect tourista moment, and an indication it was time for bed….and no need for the calcium supplement tonight!

(The pics are not the greatest as I forgot my camera and used my cell phone!)