Fried Jelly Fish

Drinking shots with the locals and munching fried jellyfish on Thanksgiving Day reminds us of  Anthony Bourdain and Andrew Zimmern from the Travel Channel. Yes, we stumble upon a café/restaurant close to the sea in Tarifa, Spain. Our first bite of fried jellyfish makes us appreciate the light breading, as the “fishy” taste dominates.

While Mare runs to the room to retrieve her camera, I make the friendly mistake of buying shots of Jack Daniels whiskey for two guys at the bar, as well as myself. It seems the cap of Jack has not been opened for quite some time.

Burugotos

Here comes Mare, just in time for a plate of “Burugotos,” courtesy of the waiter/bartender, who shows us how to extricate the small, ahem…, worm-like creatures that we dig out of their tiny shell with a pin. About the size and appearance of a maggot, the only recognizable taste is salt, for which we are grateful.

Boys will be boys

Here come two shots of a caramel-colored brandy, along with a plate octopus ceviche, which is simply delicious. The place is filling up, and the guys at the bar continue to reciprocate my previous round by sending us another round of shots, this time local lemon liquor, Spanish hard stuff. They wave and laugh, and we return the gesture. As we emulate Bourdain’s bibulous behaviors, our courage builds for Zimmern’s zest for the bizarre.

Dinner

Ahh…the main course arrives. The huge squid stares back at us. We enjoy his tender slices, and toast to a Happy Thanksgiving to our family and friends back home.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!