Meal at Mare's

Time to celebrate another birthday, Anissa’s 21st! We had been out the night before and had to be up early the next day for the ESN trip to Tarifa and Conil, so Anissa decided that we should go out for a meal. We had a discussion about where to go, we tried booking a table at one restaurant in the Old Part of Cádiz, but it was full so we chose somewhere else which luckily had plenty of space available. The restaurant we chose was called Mare’s (http://restaurantemarescadiz.com/) it was overlooking the Santa Maria beach in the newer part of Cádiz. So we arranged to meet there at 9, those of us who lived near Plaza de Espana met at half 8 at the bus stops in Plaza de España to catch the bus (number 1) down to the beach. It was the first time that I had actually gone to the beaches in the new part of Cádiz, some of the others had been during the day and assured me that they were very nice.

So Claire, Alice, Geo, Emma, Sophie, Verity and I met at the bus stop and got on when the bus arrived, there had only been 3 other people at the bus stop and the bus was empty when we got on yet out of nowhere loads of people appeared and all of a sudden the bus was crammed full. It was really odd. We got off the bus and all followed Claire who knew where she was going down the road along the seafront to the restaurant, there were a couple of people already there when we arrived and the waiter ushered us over to the table and asked if we wanted any drinks. I had checked the place out earlier on TripAdvisor (because I’m a cool kid) and one review had mentioned that the Mojitos were really nice there, so being quite partial to a Mojito, I ordered one. When my Mojito arrived I was glad of the tip, it was presented very nicely on its own little plate and tasted delicious. The rest of the girls ordered their drinks too, mostly sangria or tinto de verano, Geo also ordered a cocktail, only hers was some kind of chocolate liquor thing, which was also very nice. The drinks prices ranged from €3-€6 so were a little more expensive than other places in Cádiz but worth it. The rest of the girls arrived and we were all given menus.

There was plenty to choose from and it all sounded great, so much so that we decided to have starters as well as a main course. I ordered meat croquettes to start, although I didn’t make it clear enough that I only wanted a half portion rather than a full, so had to eat a lot more than expected – what a shame! For a main I had loin of beef with a potato cake. Some of the girls chose to order several starters and have them as a main course and some people just ordered salads, but I don’t think the waiter quite understood this, so all of these arrived before my starter. The meat croquettes were very nice, something I haven’t really eaten before so it was definitely an experience, although not one I am in a rush to repeat, something about puréed meat just doesn’t quite sit right with me. Geo got a surprise with her seafood cocktail, it was sprinkled with fish eggs, which was a bit unexpected, but once she got past those she very much enjoyed it. Verity ordered the stuffed peppers which again were not quite as expected, rather than whole stuffed peppers it was small bundles of goats cheese wrapped in pepper, it was presented very nicely and went down a treat. I was very impressed with the presentation of all the food, everything looked great, like a mini art piece. After I had finished with my starter I waited a while for my main, none of the food arrived together, rather all at different times. The cut of beef was really big which was great and cooked just how I like it, rare, I wasn’t asked beforehand how I liked my meat, so if you don’t like bloody meat then I’d suggest telling them when you order. The potato cake was also very nice, topped with some kind of mushroom sauce, good thing I like mushrooms as that wasn’t mentioned on the menu!

Mid-way through dinner the heavens opened and it started to rain, again, at which point we were glad that Sophie had booked a table inside. There was the option to eat out on the deck which I’m sure on a nice day would be great, but as it was everyone having drinks out there quickly scurried inside again. The whole restaurant was decorated very nicely, quite modern and everything was clean, also all the crockery and things matched which I quite liked, have been to a few places in Cádiz where there just seems to be a random assortment of crockery used, which is fine, but matching is nice. It’s all in the little details! We sang Cumpleaños Feliz to Anissa and gave her a card and some little presents from the sweet shop on Calle Ancha. Those who wanted desert ordered from the menus that the waiter handed out, although I was tempted by some of them I was absolutely stuffed from my meal so I didn’t have anything. We settled the bill and then all headed home for some rest before a busy day with ESN. I will definitely be taking my parents to Mare’s when they come to visit, although perhaps during the day so that they can appreciate the great view of the beach that the restaurant offers.

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