Monday, August 04, 2008

CAFE OCHO


Once a month when I go to see my doctor in Malaga, my husband and I always stop for a quick coffee with a pan con tomate at this little cafe - Cafe Ocho- right below my doctor's office on Malaga's main street - the Avenida de Andalucia. Ten cafes name is taken from the eight different types of coffee traditionally served in this part of Spain from the solo (espresso) to the nube (meaning cloud, it's a small glass of hot milk with a drop of espresso).

Matteo (actually Matthew), the proprietor, is from Northern England but has lived in Malaga for many years and speaks Spanish fluently, albeit with a distinct accent. One can see that he loves what he does and enjoys interacting with his many regular clients, remembering their names and what they usually order. The coffee he serves from Cafes Castel is very good and the Catalana (toasted bread with Jamon Serrano, crushed tomatoes and olive oil) is very good plus a steal at the set breakfast price of 2.70 Euros. If you ever find yourself in Malaga, drop by and see what I mean, I'm sure that you'll enjoy the service, the ambiance and the coffee.

6 comments:

Miguel said...

wow...I miss the cortados I used to drink in barcelona...and yes the pan con tomate...tried doing it here in the Phils but the tomatoes are not the same...

Gourmet Traveller said...

Hi Miguel,

What about trying with those vine-ripened tomatoes that they sometimes sell at the farmer's market? Those might work.

G.T.

Anonymous said...

I prefer the Spanish coffe from Cafes Baque. Castel is not so good.

Gourmet Traveller said...

Thanks for the tip! I wonder if they Cafe Baque here in Marbella. Maybe you know where I can try it?

Julie said...

hello there........do you have mateo's email address or web page? we have moved and lost his phone number.......thank you!

Gourmet Traveller said...

Sorry Julie but I never took down the cafe's phone number as I always dropped by after seeing my doctor. I'm sure that the address is Planta Baja, Avenida de Andalucia 13 though. Why don't you try to send Matteo some snail mail instead?