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Laguardia is less than 10 miles
from Logrono, capital of Spain's famed wine-producing
province, La Rioja.
But this village is in Basque country, and the menu
placed before me on the linen-draped table of Posada
Mayor de Migueloa's restaurant is in the Basque language.
It resembles but is not the same as Spanish, which means
ordering this meal could be more suspenseful than my
other meals in Spain.
Everything turns out well. With my Spanish-English dictionary
I decipher enough to recognize regional dishes such
as a sausage and potato stew, lamb entrees, various
cuts of oxen, and seafood staples of hake and sea bass.
I ask for pan -- bread -- and water (it must always
be ordered and it costs extra, as does the bread), and
house wine.
The bread is two large, crusty rolls; baked into the
crust of each is a colorful paper stamp bearing the
seal of the posada (another word for inn).
As is common, the waiter serves me an hors d'oeuvre
-- in this case, a tiny piece of toasted bread covered
with a red-pepper-flavored butter. In other restaurants
I was served three slices of an excellent pate and about
two teaspoonfuls of caviar.
Restaurant servings in Spain tend to be much larger
than in America. Sure enough, my cod appetizer is six
large fritters, flaked with red pepper and parsley,
and deep-fried. They are a golden yellow inside and
taste of fish, not batter or cooking oil.
My potato and chorizo (sausage) bowl of soup is served
with a plate of cooked hot green peppers, typical of
the region.
This is the most elegant restaurant at which I dine
during my nine-day visit. Tables are in a series of
side-by-side, whitewashed rooms with a traditional coffered
ceiling of dark wooden beams. Oriental rugs cover the
tile floor. Silverware and chargers are removed after
each course.
By ROBERT
N. JENKINS, Times Staff Writer
St. Petersburg Times
published October 6, 2002
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Restaurant
