After dropping our bags at our apartment, our next stop was for helado from Boco de Xeado. Eric got a scoop each of coconut and intense chocolate, while I opted for a (solo!) pistachio cone. All flavors were excellent and as the line ebbs and flows throughout the day, it is worth standing in line for if it’s not terribly long!
Xénese, Bar de viños is a charming little wine bar on the east side of the old town. We ordered a small carafe of the Clarete to share but it was a bit too funky for me. Eric thought it had a long finish with mild sweet fruit, some cherry, then cola and some bitterness on finish. I switched to a Portuguese red which I preferred. Drinks were served with olives and it wasn’t too crowded or loud during our visit.
On our first evening, we had a reservation for 9pm at Restaurante Gaia Medieval. We arrived a few minutes early and had to wait for a table to clear out as they were only seating people in the front room of the restaurant. Glad we waited though because our window seat gave us the perfect view of a group of locals trying to rescue a fledgling crow that fell out of a tree. One woman captured it in a sweatshirt then held it for several minutes while another person fashioned a cardboard box into a sort of nest and climbed on a garbage can to nestle it into the tree, before depositing the bird into the box. It was quite the entertainment.
While enjoying the exterior antics, we sipped on a bottle of the house white, Reviravolta, a blend made by a local producer, Bodegas Lodeiros. Overall, an unmemorable white wine but it went fine with our dinner. Eric ordered the pork tenderloin which was good but a bit plain. I had the beef cheeks that came with tomatoes and cucumbers. A side of delicious crispy potatoes showed up at the table at some point – gratis! A good place to visit for grilled meats but I wouldn’t rush back.
For lunch we picked up sandwiches from FAME – Focaccería Artesanal to eat in Parque da Alameda. Eric had the Castellana (ham, cheese spread, semi dried tomato and rucola) and I had the Galega (chorizo, arzua cheese). Both were stuffed with ingredients but very messy to eat given the olive oil.
The street we stayed on was full of restaurants, so we tried one out for aperitivo before our next Bib Gourmand dinner experience. A Taberna do Bispo was super packed but we managed to grab two stools at the bar for a glass of wine each and a small bocadito with tuna, anchovy and pepper for me. Eric had the Torre la Moreira albariño (good acidity, tropical notes, banana, lime with medium finish). I had a red wine, the Candado de Horiza Ribera del Duero. We found both pleasant and easy to drink.
Continuing our trend of Bib Gourmand restaurants on this trip, we went to A Horta d’Obradoiro, which was, alas, also a mixed bag. We started out with a bottle of the Feitizo da Noite albariño sparkling (fairly dry, with dust, green apple, a little marzipan; balanced acidity with a fairly short finish). We both liked the wine at Tresmallo better. For his main, Eric chose the Iberian Pork Sirderloin with Arzúa cheese sauce and I went for the Monkfish loin with spicy sauce, peas and mint. Service started out friendly but then just disappeared. Our waiter forgot to bring our bread and it took us a while to flag someone down. Then both dishes were delivered to us with rapid fire Spanish descriptions, even though tables next to us were spoken to in English. Food-wise, the pork tenderloin came out lukewarm and the cheese sauce had started to congeal, so presumably it had waited for a while. The monk fish was very saucy and looked hastily plated compared to other tables around us. Overall we we expected better given the reviews.
