Well I was not on vacation quite yet, as I was in Madrid for work. But knowing there would be a business dinner hosted by the partner, I was all ready for my first Spanish food in Spain!

It's a well known fact that dinner time in Spain is considerably late. The dinner organizer said that she had asked the restaurant to open for dinner at 8:30pm only for us, the foreigners. People usually do not start eating until 9:30 - 10:00pm here! Following what locals do, we started off at a tapas bar enjoying a few aperitifs with olives. All day my mind had been focusing only on this dinner. No lunch, no snacks on the plane. I am so ready!

The restaurant was called Menta y Canela - a traditional/contemporary Spanish cuisine.

As my manager and I were guests to the dinner, we asked one of the Spanish partners to select appetizers and wine. Here are the appetizers:

Jamon Iberico, Fresh white anchovies, and white fish mousse. And, then of course - Gazpacho!

You can add any toppings of your choice to the soup.


I had never eaten gazpacho like this before. Gazpacho I knew was more sour and tangy that two spoons were usually enough. But this cold soup is creamy but not heavy. It tasted almost like good broth. With all the topping added it makes it a very soothing summer soup. On a hot, muggy night, it really hit the spot.

I just did not realize at this point how many gazpachos I would end up eating in the next few weeks.

OK what's next? Oh my god, squid ink, already!? I was thinking about trying something with squid ink during the trip but did not expect to have it on the first night.
Deep fried Merluza with baby squid ink sauce


Merluza is nice any fatty, although its flavor is rather bland.But this concentrated squid ink sauce was perfect in adding such deep "squidy" taste.

To be honest howerver I do not remember details of the dishes I had. Part of it is because it was a business dinner after all, so I was not completely relaxed to enjoy the food.

Well, next day my real vacation starts!