From One Alhambra To Another

OK, so the only link to Yorkshire in this piece is the (extremely impressive) fact that within six days we had gone from the Alhambra Theatre in Bradford (an excellent production of Brief Encounter, seeing as you ask) to the Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain. But I don’t get out much, so when I do, I'm going to write about it!

The sleepy town of Alhama de Granada epitomises Andalucia, being either blissfully unaware or fiercely protective of its untapped potential, you’re never sure which. Just a few kilometres from Granada and its wonderful Alhambra Palace, Spain’s most visited tourist attraction and Monument to The Moors, and only an hour or two’s air-conditioned drive from Malaga and the Costa del Sol, you would expect the worst excesses of tourist trappings to have reached this far inland. Yet apart from the odd holiday cottage and ice-cream parlour, Alhama remains unspoilt, uncommercialised and frankly none the worse for it.

In turn, the town’s one formal restaurant, La Seguiriya, sums up Alhama’s lack of commercial vim perfectly. Its superb setting, with a roof terrace overlooking a spectacular gorge, is made for expensive, romantic moonlit dinners-a-deux, yet this USP seems to have completely passed the proprietors by. The poorly lit terraza is instead home to a noisy laundry shed, the restaurant’s smoking area and, on this occasion it appeared, the local binge-drinkers hangout.

To the British foodie’s eye, La Seguiriya’s menu is authentically local and rustic, if somewhat uninspiring. Stews and casseroles abound, and one can imagine the owner himself (former Flamenco singer Paco Moyana) nipping out and throttling a chicken or rabbit to order. Paco’s wife Lola oversees the kitchen with a homely pride which, unfortunately, is all too apparent in the ordinary food. My steak, whilst reasonably cooked, was of a texture and cut completely alien to me – I confess to ignorance of local butchery practices and traditions but to this day I am none the wiser as to its origins. My partner’s fish was swimming in a disappointingly bland and watery cheese sauce. A dessert of yoghurt, cream and pureed figs was unarguably as described, but was unimaginatively presented.

Unfortunately on the night we attended, we also appeared to have gate-crashed an impromptu celebration drinks party hosted by the owners which not only deprived us of the best table in the house, but also overwhelmed us in terms of its proximity, smoke and volume, and as a fellow proprietor the owners’ oblivion to its impact on our experience was bewildering.

I'm sure Paco and Lola are lovely people, who have successfully hosted many memorable feasts for friends and family. Making the transition from this to running a good restaurant however requires not only exceptional talent, but also the will and ability to do more than simply extend your domestic hospitality to a wider audience. Sadly neither of these attributes was in evidence.

But hey, it’s rural Spain, it’s hot, you’ve got all the time in the world, and it really doesn’t matter. The extremely civilised, laid back Spanish way of life with its early rises, siestas and late night socialising also lends itself to less sedentary eating habits, and another time in Alhama, I would go out later in the evening and simply flit from bar to bar enjoying the substantial tapas that come free with drinks in this region, but which were frustratingly surplus to requirements during our own post-prandial promenade. These snacks – mainly pork based - were consistently impressive throughout the region.

La Seguiriya also boasts a six bedroom hotel, not visited by us but which by all accounts is very comfortable with a homely welcome.

Address: La Seguiriya, C/ Las Peñas 12, 18120 - Alhama de Granada (GRANADA), Spain

Telephone: 958 36 08 01 - 958 36 08 46 Fax: 958 36 09 15
http://www.laseguiriya.com/