Mariscos Emilio is a fine old traditional tapa and seafood house in Sevilla.
They have two establishments.
This is the branch in Triana.
It is one of the best places in Triana you can possibly eat.
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The restaurant has two sides.
One side is tapas only.
The other side is tapas plus full meals.
They have a very full menu.
However, as is the case with many other tapas houses in Spain.
Seafood dominates the menu.
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Both sides of the house draw a crowd.
The waiters are old experienced professionals.
Most are at least forty. Some are much older than that.
They know everything there is to know about the food in their establishment.
They are athletic.
They serve a million tables a minute - and effortlessly transport huge amounts of food.
A very small number of waiters takes care of a very large establishment that is nearly always full.
They don't have much time for you to monkey around with your order.
They want to know what you want and they get it for you.
If you have a question, they rattle off the answer - which will be very complete and come at lightning speed.
You have a nanosecond to order.
There are 3,800 other tables waiting for them right now.
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Everything was good, but there were three utterly spectacular items.
1) The house clams in a butter and sherry sauce.
The price is sky high and you only get six clams.
But those six clams are an absolute treat.
The clams are absolutely huge.
But never mind that ... the butter and sherry sauce is to die for.
Technically, the dish is called Almejas (Clams) Marinera.
But this is not the tomato and wine sauce you know that goes with Mussels Mariniere.
This is more like a refined French dish than a roll up your sleeves date with a bucket of mussels in a sports bar.
I would order it again happily.
2) Taquitos Salmon. This is a true tapa - salmon with goodies piled vertically on top.
It was not unlike a Basque pinxto.
Neither my wife nor I remember just what was piled on top of the salmon.
But she was very very very very happy.
(I was too distracted with my clams to do a salmon census. But I remember trying one of her salmon bites and thinking it was utterly fantastic.)
3) Dessert is what they call a chocolate blanco. This is white chocolate, milk chocolate and dark chocolate made into a three layer tart. Lots of people serve this. You can get institutional versions of this in cheap cafeterias.
But a homemade or fine restaurant made version of a chocolate blanco is complete and utter dessert happiness.
They could have served me sawdust for my other two courses - and I still would have given them a five star review.
Start messing with layers of white chocolate, milk chocolate and dark chocolate at home.
Find the right formula and you too will have the secret of human happiness in your own kitchen.
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Mariscos Emiliano is not a cheap night out.
If you get the deluxe fish dishes, the place will definitely set you back.
You do not get fancy steak house decor.
You sit at a table on the sidewalk or you eat in a restaurant that looks like a diner - trying to please a waiter that yells at you.
But the food is worth absolutely every centavo that you pay at the end.
This is the kind of place that makes me love Spain. read more