Tapas Tuesday

The Temple Bar, one of our favorite places to eat here, has been doing Tapas Tuesdays this month, so with my birthday falling on a Tuesday, it was easy to decide where to celebrate it.

We wanted to be there by 5 p.m. to get a window seat, which we managed despite the considerable attractions of that area of Bellingham in the late afternoon sunshine. Although we would have enjoyed everything on the menu, we were sensible and decided on cups of delicious roasted fennel soup to start (not on the tapas menu), followed by the Catalan greens for me, and shared the outstanding baked oysters, Manchego cheese with membrillo (quince paste) and fresh basil leaves, and boquerones (marinated white anchovies), which we'd never had before but loved.

Phil enjoyed an interesting beer, and I opted for a glass of the 2007 Cava 'Mas de Monistrol,' wanting bubbles for my birthday.

To finish, we shared a dessert of mascarpone and ricotta cheese topped with honey to spread on slices of apple and warm baguette, having had our fill of chocolate earlier this week, and a warming cassis liqueur.

The Temple Bar is a splendid place for a local food lover, with occasional excursions to the local food of other countries, like tonight!

(To see this local food lover in action, click here.)