Graham and I, along with two other couples and their toddler sons, drove out to Olvera on Saturday. We had seen Olvera from the road before when making trips to Ronda, and it looked like a charming pueblo blanco. It is also known for it's extensive olive groves and olive oil production, so our plan was to get some oil from the source then enjoy a delicious lunch. Neither of those things happened.
We arrived in Olvera and walked around for a bit. As far as pueblos blancos are concerned, it does not have as much character as many of the others. (In all fairness, there are some really gorgeous white villages in the area, so the competition is steep.) There were some pretty vistas, a hilltop church, and ruins of a Moorish fortress.
After stopping in at the tourism office, we learned that the olive oil producers are closed on the weekend (I would have guessed that was the case for Sunday, but was hopeful for Saturday). There was still hope for a great lunch, but the recommendation that we were given turned out to be underwhelming. Despite this, I had one of the most memorable (and strange) food experiences since living in Spain.
Our (rather gruff, less than welcoming, and somewhat offensive) waiter randomly appeared table-side during the meal with a plate of radishes, which appeared to have just been pulled from the ground.
He then proceeded to peel them, chop them, sprinkle them with olive oil and salt, then served them up to us. Is fresh radish service the Spanish version of table-side guacamole?
My friend's face in the background of this picture pretty much says it all.
Despite being not at all what we expected (seriously, how spoiled are we that we were less than impressed with this town?) it was a great day - good company, lovely weather, and a cheap and oddly memorable (if not delicious) lunch.
Ever had a memorable (for better or worse) restaurant experience?
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