Breakfast is difficult for me in Spain. I like it early and protein-rich. For those who agree, stay away from Spain. If you must be here and break your habits, try Los Niños del Flor. This place serves the best breakfast in Sevilla, not just for the food but also because no tourists come here, which greatly improves the food. When I write "no tourists," I exclude myself from that category. I've been in Sevilla some five weeks now, and I speak Spanish. Los Niños del Flor is the least painful attempt at breakfast that I can find. If you go to a place that attempts to serve eggs for breakfast, you are either in a hotel, a tourist trap, or a wanna-be tourist trap. As I write that last phrase, I feel very guilty about all the kind people who attempted to scramble me some eggs for breakfast. I hope I haven't damaged my karma. They did their best. I won't write them a review for it, however, because I love scrambled eggs, contrary to the general nation of Spain before noon, which left to its own devices doesn't do protein for breakfast. If the chefs attempt a change, they scramble eggs as if they had a personal vengeance against the egg. This hatred operates according to strict schedule, apparently, as I have seen lovely photos of egg dishes served as tapas, always in the p.m.
The secret of Los Niños del Flor, which I am trying to bury in the present review so that only those who truly depend on breakfast can find it, is that it opens MUCH earlier than stated on Yelp. So...if you are a well-behaved, non-tourist-like person who is willing to play by the rules of a richly local restaurant, go here for breakfast. Joaquín will probably be the chef behind your plate. He is a genius. Joaquín multi-tasks in a way that makes my entire day better. Watching him handle the orders come in reinvigorates me.The guy does it all with a smile, too. I only learned his name because the locals usually call him out from behind his position at the bar when they want something to do with him. He ducks from around the column without really pausing at the toaster station. Note: I only go here for breakfast, so this review only has to do with the clientele involved with Joaquín before 10 am. I cannot speak to any interaction later in the day, and really, who am I to judge. Before 10 am, Joaquín knows everyone. Everyone. He remembers what you like, he guesses what you might like, he prepares it well, and he will get the person or people helping him out with the coffee to serve you and quickly.
Okay, so I just reread that last adverb and I have to add a note: I mean "quickly" in terms of Spain. It might be a while before you get your coffee and even longer before you have your food, if you are judging the process by foreign standards. I think we can all agree, no matter what your baseline standard, if you are eating breakfast in Spain, you are subject to Spanish time. And you will get your coffee as quickly as protocol allows at Los Niños del Flor, which might be longer than you think it should take if you are not from Spain. Protocol involves a number of orders that will be invisible to you if you are not from here, so just stand in line (or something like it) and wait until you are asked for your order and then wait a bit longer. They never, ever, go out of order here, and if you find yourself shuffled to the end of the line, it's because that's where you're actually standing. Your eyes just can't see it because you don't understand the line-up...Eat here every morning, and you'll get it. Again, this restaurant doesn't serve tourists.
If you are a tourist and you read this review, and later you post something negative on Yelp, you are an unfair judge of this lovely establishment. I'm not writing this advice for the "I need eggs" crowd. I am one of you, but Spain has forced me to adapt. Under conditions of forced change, Los Niños del Flor is by far the best breakfast in Sevilla. It opens early. The chapata bread is good, and better than the mollete when it comes to breakfast because the air pockets in the chapata bread are less like a hamburger bun. The olive oil is unstinting, and if you need butter, Joaquín will make sure that you have enough. The staff is unfailingly cool. The coffee has actual caffeine, and the quality of the olive oil, ham, tomatoes (have I exhausted the breakfast list yet?) is outstanding, yet not hipster. It's outstanding within the range of everyday Sevilla and what the locals' economy will bear. Go here. Be happy. Go back. You're welcome. read more
