Qantas

Eat, drink, shop

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For breakfast and coffee ASTERISCO CAFÉ-BAR

Avenida de Portugal 22, Logroño

At a safe distance from Logroño’s bar-crawl craziness, this friendly café-bar serves the city’s best espresso and cappuccino. Óscar Solorzano has won the Barista Championsh­ip of Rioja several years in a row and is also a talented latte artist. For solid fuel of the savoury kind, try the bar’s specialty, buen rollito, a gourmet rolled pasta starring mushrooms, chicken and pear.

For lunch

LA BODEGA DE RIVAS

Calle San Vicente 2, Rivas de Tereso +34 941 334 329 Since opening in 2013, this informal restaurant in the pretty Rioja Alta village of Rivas de Tereso has attracted a faithful local following for its market-fresh cuisine. In the cool, stone-clad interior of an old Riojan townhouse, chef Raúl Muñiz, who worked for 10 years at La Vieja Bodega (see below), serves flavoursom­e, beautifull­y presented dishes such as octopus roasted with garlic and cod cheek in pil-pil sauce, accompanie­d by some of the region’s finest wines. For such exalted fare, it’s great value.

For dinner

LA VIEJA BODEGA

Avenida de la Rioja 17, Casalarrei­na laviejabod­ega.es still the most reliable address in Rioja for a memorable meal. There’s a firm parallel between the setting – a large stone and brick 17th-century wine cellar jazzed up with discreet contempora­ry artworks – and head chef Félix Sarceda’s cuisine, which is rooted in local tradition but has equally subtle modern touches. The standout main dish is a share plate for two of cordero asado, tender lamb roasted to perfection in the woodfired oven.

For taking home

MANTAS EZCARAY

Calle González Gallarza 12, Ezcaray mantasezca­ray.com This family-run business keeps Rioja’s wool-weaving and dyeing traditions alive. It specialise­s in vibrant blankets, scarves and cushions made from mohair, cashmere and sheep’s wool that is cleaned then hand-rinsed in the Oja River before being dried and combed with natural thistle brushes. Spanish department store El Corte Inglés is a major reseller of Mantas Ezcaray products but it can’t match the mothership’s range or prices.

 ??  ?? This dining legend has weathered changing culinary fashions and a devastatin­g fire since opening in 1994 but it’s Enjoy an unforgetta­ble meal at La Vieja Bodega (top); Mantas Ezcaray specialise­s in traditiona­lly made woollen products (above and left)
This dining legend has weathered changing culinary fashions and a devastatin­g fire since opening in 1994 but it’s Enjoy an unforgetta­ble meal at La Vieja Bodega (top); Mantas Ezcaray specialise­s in traditiona­lly made woollen products (above and left)
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