In all of the years that I have been drinking cafe solo in Galicia (at least five now), I never remembered Semola being in the neighborhood. If it's a relatively new addition, it's definitely one of my new favorite bakeries and places to have coffee in all of Vigo! Although Semola is first-and-foremost a bakery, there is also the option of ordering coffee (for take-away; there is only one small table at the front of the bakery [1]) or a coffee with bizcocho or croissant combination "special" for approximately 2 euro. Not only does this happen to be an incredible deal for the quality of what you receive, but I realized how incredibly fast I was no longer fitting into my new jeans from Blanco. The coffee used is Illy brand, so the espresso is very smooth and has no sharp aftertaste. The big slice of bizcocho is moist, rich, and heavenly. Every day, there are two different flavors of this diet-sabotaging bizcocho to choose from; my all-time favorite is the chocolate (they do not skimp on the cocoa powder!), but the apple and lemon are also very good. I try to rationalize the health benefits of the chocolate bizcocho, which I could eat all day, every day, because chocolate contains antioxidants and the Galicians make the cake with olive oil, not butter, so it must be healthy, right?! And having eaten a lot of empanadillas while in Vigo, Semola makes some of the best in this "downtown" area of Vigo. The pastry crust is light and flaky and the filling is pretty much ALL tuna without being greasy. It's none of this "I'm going to fill the empanadilla up with air" (which happens more often than not) or having gross, not to mention messy, orange grease dripping everywhere while you're trying to enjoy your empanada on the go (which is why I like them, they're so easy to take along for a day at the beach). The woman who works at Semola (I imagine she must be the owner) is there every single morning and remembers all of her customers' orders, down to which kind of sugar they like in their coffee (or the fact that I love the chocolate bizcocho). She's the best, and so is Semola! [1] When I first visited Galicia, NO ONE sold coffee to take-away. The past few years, this seems to be an offering many cafeteria and bakery owners proudly tout. Do I sense Anglo-American influences or are Galicians in a hurry all of a sudden? read more