Tuck in!

SPAIN’S restaurants held their heads high at the Best Restaurants in the World Awards 2023’ staged at Valencia’s Les Arts Opera House.

The ceremony honoured the pinnacle of gastronomic talent from 24 countries across five continents, with three out of the top four coming from Spain.

But it was Central in Peru’s capital of Lima that was named the best restaurant in the world by 1,080 restaurant industry experts.

It edged out Barcelona’s Disfrutar, Madrid’s Diverxo, and Axtondo’s Asador Etxeberri, with Disfrutar’s second-place guaranteeing it the best restaurant in Europe award.

Further down the list, Quique Dacosta in Denia came 20th and Mugaritz

Many cheers

BEER drinking reached a record-high in Spain in 2022 helped by hospitality recovering after the pandemic and a surge in tourist numbers.

Figures released by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food in conjunction with Cerveceros de España showed that 42.3 million hectolitres of beer were downed last year.

That’s 6% more than in 2021 and beats the previous best of 41.3 million hectolitres in 2019.

In terms of production, Spain ousted Poland as the second biggest producer in the EU and is now behind Germany. Spain is ninth in the world standings, headed by China, the US and Brazil.

Almost all the beer consumed in Spain is made domestically: in total 41.1 million hectolitres were manufactured - 7.9% more than in 2021.

Exports rose by 13.4% last year, to 4.2 million hectolitres, with Portugal, the United Kingdom, China and Equatorial Guinea as the main markets. Imports meanwhile fell by 3.63% in 2022 compared to the previous year, to 5.4 million hectolitres with Belgium as the main seller.

Spanish gourmet dominates at awards night

At least ask the write questions to make sure you are covered

I REGULARLY extoll the virtues of Liberty’s fully comprehensive house policy. When asking the right questions, you will discover that many house insurance policies are inadequate.

Is your building size correct? Are your outside areas correctly covered – especially including pools and terraces? Do you have enough contents cover?

What Liberty Seguros offers today is the best. A specially designed policy for the Expats, with policy documents in English. The other very important issue when discussing house insurance is the amount of contents cover, always remembering that with Spanish Home insurance the kitchen is included in the contents, not the buildings.

There are optional extras that can be added to your policy, so that it is tailor made for your requirements, which include garden protection, Home Improved, which allows you to increase the aesthetic restoration and additional cover for valuable objects and jewellery (conditions apply)

A further extra you can add to your policy is accidental damage, which is unique to Liberty Seguros and covers many breakages and claims within the home.

Therefore can I please ask you all to double check the coverage of your home policies, whether you are with Jennifer Cunningham Insurance and Liberty, or another company, to understand the cover you actually have.

Finding out you have the incorrect and insufficient coverage when you want to make a claim is far too late.

If you rent out your property, there is further Landlord Protection which provides cover for acts of vandalism by the tenant and also unpaid rent covers up to 6 months once a final judgement has been made legally.

If you have any concerns or questions, please contact one of my offices and we will be able to give you the advice you require and answer any questions.

Just remember that your home is probably your most expensive asset, but there are also your personal belongings, which of course, needs the right protection.

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR A QUOTATION, PLEASE CALL ONE OF MY OFFICES, EMAIL INFO@ JENNIFERCUNNINGHAM.NET OR VISIT THE WEBSITE WWW.JENNIFERCUNNINGHAM.NET

By Alex Trelinski

in San Sebastian was 31st. Spanish restaurants had a strong showing further down the list, including the first appearance of Valencia’s Restaurante Ri - card Camarina at 96 and the return of chef Albert Adria’s Engima in Barcelona at number 82.

Perfection

Total perfection was achieved by chef Antoni Luis Arduiz who received the Icon Award for his lifetime of work at San Sebastian’s Mugaritz and Madrid’s Diverxo. Diverxo’s in-house sommelier Miguel Angel Millan also took home the prize for Best Sommelier in the World.

Through ticket

Consumption grew especially in the hospitality industry, 32% more, due to the boost of tourism. But pre-pandemic hospitality sector levels have not yet been reached, though tourist numbers so far this year suggest that could well happen.

Trend

Some 70% of beer was consumed outside the home in 2019, but last year this figure remains below 60%.

Another trend was the rise by 11% last year in non-alcoholic beer sales, accounting for 13% of all beer consumption.

AIR Europa and Iryo have announced the launch of combined plane and train tickets in Spain from September.

The agreement will include flights connecting Spain with 33 destinations in Europe, Latin America and the USA. Flights arriving and departing from Madrid will have a high-speed train connection to 11 Spanish cities. These include Barcelona, Tarragona, Zaragoza, Cuenca, Valencia, Albacete, Alicante, Malaga, Sevilla, Cordoba and Antequera.

THE journey from Zahara de los Atunes to Barbate is one of the most scenic in Andalucia… and a tardis between two worlds.

Zahara is the quintessential home of affluence; a golden magnet for upmarket restaurants and a flotilla of Cayennes and Q7s come weekends and peak holiday season.

In contrast, Barbate is a new town created by dictator Franco, pockmarked with ugly 1960s tower blocks and afflicted by an unemployment rate as high as anywhere else in Europe. What they share though, is privilege.

For what surrounds them is a canvas of colours and