King, my brother, took a few days off his hectic schedule in London to enjoy a week or so back in sunny Spain (well, it rained for the first two days)

Anyway, that didn’t stop us from enjoying ourselves, especially on the food front.

Seeing as Oyster season is well and truly here, we couldn’t resist a dozen or more of our favourite mollusks.

When the sun showed up, we headed immediately to the beach.

IMHO, the best time to hit the beaches in southern Spain are late September and early October, they are empty and the weather is still great to get a tan!.

From the beach we moved inland and headed to Ronda, one of my favourite towns, that is also home to one of my favourite restaurants, Tragabuches.

Rose, me and King, at the beginning of a fabulous “Menú Degustación” (Tasting Menu).

I would spoil the surprise of this menu if I posted all of the dishes that we had, but I wanted to post two of my favourites.

“Royale” of Ceps and Mushrooms with Almond Foam.

Everyone complained that this dish was TOO SMALL!

Benito, the Chef is a friend of mine, and he prepared a few extra dishes, that were not on the menu for us.

Jellied Large Clams with Gazpacho.

The Clams are set in jelly (made with their own juices). A cool Gazpacho (cold Spanish soup) was then poured over them (not pictured).

***

Back in our town, and we headed off for dinner at a local restaurant, where Brava Beef is cooked on a hot stone. Taking advantage of the hunting season, that night we opted for some Venison Fillet. And it was King´s turn to cook.

As is customary with all Laocooks, a night on the town is mandatory.

Junior, King and Suri, at the beginning of a long night…burp…