My host family is appalled by 1) the amount of coffee I drink and 2) how horrible my Spanish can…read moreget if I don't have enough coffee. Tu Pana Tu Cafe is there for me when the afternoon grogginess and pangs of headaches arrive. In addition to a wide range of coffees, the shop also offers a number of teas and specialty tea drinks. This also appears to be the neighborhood spot to purchase a fresh loaf of bread for the day - many patrons come and go throughout the day to purchase una barra gallega. (This bread is like heaven on earth.) My cafe solo is always excellent - it is smooth and robust, without any bitterness or odd aftertaste. When I have my coffee to stay, instead of receiving the customary complimentary dried-out cookie, I receive a miniature pastry. These pastries are decadent, to say the least. My favorite (so far) has been the "elephant ear" - the flaky pastry drenched in a coating of honey. Each cafe solo constitutes the most utilitarian 1.05 euro I have ever spent.

This coffee/bar is right under the Hotel. They were open at 9 am and closed very late at night. Our…read moreserver was Lucia - a very nice Brazilian. We had a breakfast and it was great. I paid 20 Euros a breakfast for 3 people (natural orange juice, a huge croissant, cafe com leite and a " bombon" - a cafe with leche condensado....delicious but you need to like something very sweet and loaded with caffeine early in the morning to enjoy it.

My quest continues: global domination in the form of Yelping every cafe and espresso bar in the…read morePontevedra province. After losing miserably to the son of my host family at Call of Duty, I had to treat the winner to a coffee. We descended upon Muffins Café, due to its proximity to the ATSA bus stop (God only knows how many of those buses we've missed) and its inviting outdoor patio. The cafe itself is very modern and trendy, even by the standards of my very modern and trendy Spanish friends. The decor is sleek (I think the bar stools are from Ikea) and the photos and paintings that adorn the wall are international in both feel and scope. Despite the departure from the traditional cafeteria ambiance, Muffins Café does not come off as pretentious. I received an average café solo. The consistency was a little thin for my liking, although the coffee did not lack in flavor. It was also strange to receive a gominola (gummy candy) with coffee, but I suppose there's a first for everything. For those that prefer tea, Muffins offers a selection of tea much larger than all of the cafeterias in the area (and probably all of Pontevedra combined). After a caffeine break, it was time to head to a local bar to play some futbolin and do something about my losing streak...

Even the most disciplined will find it hard to resist the temptation of the following at O Chusco:…read moretarta Santiago, café solo, and magdalenas [1]. For the birthday of the father of my host family (who IS like a father to me), we decided to throw a surprise party. We went to O Chusco to purchase a cake fit for the occasion. We settled on a very typical Galician cake - it resembles a tart more than a typical American layer/birthday cake. Although the cake is normally topped with nata, we asked our server if she could also drizzle chocolate on top. She was very glad to and even provided us with a candle when we mentioned the cake was for a birthday celebration. The cake was a huge success! Everyone loved the fluffy, spongy, slightly sweet interior and the contrast of the sweet creamy nata and bittersweet chocolate topping. For me, it was interesting to taste the nuances in flavors and I was surprised that the cake was not as rich as I imagined it would be (in a good way, because we all went for second helpings!). I have also stopped to drink coffee at O Chusco, as the location is very close to an office where I have had many job interviews. Both the café con leche and the café solo are strong, smooth, and robust (and also fairly priced!). The cup of coffee always comes with a little extra "something" - churros, small cookies, or a small slice of cake. After sampling coffee at a few of the panaderias in the area, O Chusco pulls the best shots of espresso. [1] Magdalenas are like muffins, except they are not as sugary, cloying, and sweet as a normal muffin.