This is a very good neighborhood cafe in a small industrial town outside of Seville.
For lunch, this is the only cafe that is open ... although the town has plenty of bars and restaurants that open at night.
In the white light white heat of midday, no one is on the streets.
The old people keep their doors and windows shuttered.
The young people are off at work.
People who do not want to be stuck inside gravitate to La Chispa.
The day we were there, the inside of the bar had a good crowd - 80% middle-aged or older, with a few young people.
Mostly males but one young woman.
They all knew each other.
My guess is that there were some family ties.
Conversations were loud and argumentative - but friendly.
There was an election on, but for all I know they could have been arguing about TV or sports.
Outside on the terrace, people actually ate lunch.
That afternoon lunch was served to three whole tables.
Most of the day's action was serving drinks to the arguers.
One of the outside tables had Samuel C. and the missus.
* * *
How was the food?
Outstanding.
The house specialty is a chicken breast with a sauce invented by the owner.
But the majority of the menu is fish fish fish and fish.
You walk into the bar, and it smells like you are walking into a fish market.
The fish cooking is outstanding.
Most of the fish is served the same way ...
Broiled or possibly pan-broiled.
The fish itself is very high quality.
The quality of the broiling is outstanding.
The fish is charred on both sides - but the inside is perfectly cooked without being dried out.
The taste of the char makes the dish.
Accompaniments are fairly standard for Spanish restaurants:
Fries served naked, and lettuce and tomato served with just vinegar on top.
It was all good.
Dessert was a plain old flan (boring ...) with huge piles of whipped cream (well hey!)
I have never seen what anyone sees in a standard flan.
But if you serve five times as much whipped cream as flan ...
Which is what they do here ...
Suddenly you get an interesting dessert.
The house espresso is outstanding.
* * *
All in all, an outstanding establishment.
Would you move to Pedrera to eat here?
I don't know ...
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