The Most Charming Restaurants and Tapas Bars in Seville

No article on the most charming eateries in Seville would be complete without an entry on El Rinconcillo. Seville’s oldest tavern dates back to 1670 and offers two spaces in which to enjoy the ornate decor and traditional cooking. Downstairs is for tapas, where you can prop up the old mahogany bar or gather around the whisky-barrel tables under hanging legs of jamon, while upstairs the restaurant is decorated in typical Andalusian style, with exposed brickwork and wrought iron lampshades. When you call for the bill, it’ll be chalked on the bar in front of you.

Casa Morales is one of the city’s most famous tapas joints, popular with locals and tourists alike. Its Sevillano dishes can be enjoyed at the gorgeous wooden bar – replete with a till that looks as if it should be in a museum – or further inside, in a seating area surrouded by giant old wine vats (indeed, Morales was a winery when it first opened in 1850). Recommended dishes are the meatballs and the spinach and chickpeas; drink-wise, customers like the crisp, chilled on-tap-beer and the spectacular sangria.

Located on the northern edge of Seville’s old town, this warm and cosy tapas bar/restaurant is a huge favourite among locals. At the weekends, they crowd into its inviting interior and catch up at deafening volume, making for a wonderful atmosphere. The food at Dos de Mayo is some of the best traditional tapas in the city, with the fresh (fried) fish and seafood, flamenquines and the foi grois and goats’ cheese open-toastie winning consistent praise.

Located on the Triana side of the river straight opposite the majestic Torre de Oro (‘Gold Tower’) this ultra-chic eatery boasts some of the best views in Seville. Tables meticulously laid with pressed white tablecloths and glinting silverware are spread out around a dining room that would be at home in any of the world’s finest hotels, As you’d expect, a meal at Abades Triana costs a fair amount more than the other places on this list; but you’ll hardly mind as you gaze out over the Torre de Oro and the cathedral’s Giralda belltower, both of which glow a rich orange after dark.