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VILLALUENGA DEL ROSARIO GASTRONOMIC GUIDE OF THE PROVINCE OF CADIZ
VILLALUENGA DEL ROSARIO
sheep, if they have the cheese “emborrao en Manteca” (cured with lard), then even better.
The cheese from Charo Oliva
MAGICAL MILK Villaluenga has magical milk, which comes from its goats of the Payoya breed. The town is “encased” among the mountains and transmits peace and quiet. You must visit to buy these cheeses blessed by the magic of Villaluenga and while there, buy the tortas (flatbread pastries) from the bakery: Panadería Nuestra Señora del Rosario and try the croquettes by Ana Mari.
Flatbreads with pork crackling
The idea of “combining” sweet and salty flavours is not an invention of modern cuisine. This has been done in the Sierra of Cadiz before the concept of gastrobar was invented. In the Bakery: Panadería Nuestra Señora del Rosario you can find some interesting olive oil flatbreads, a type of dough which reminds us ofpizza but with a sweet flavour,
Payoyo Cheese
and it also decorated with slices of meat. In the establishment, you can also find other delicacies, among which is the bread.You may enjoy it for breakfast in the Mesón Los Caños, located at the side of the road which crosses the town.
In Villaluenga, there are now half a dozen cheese dairies. Let’s stop at this one called Oliva, one of smallest and they work in a more crafts style. The cheese products are signed by Charo Oliva the crafts woman who creates these cheeses with the raw sheep milk. It is difficult to find these cheeses outside of Villaluenga hence it is convenient to stop in the Calle Jaime Balmes, where the small factory is located where they make and age it.
The Payoyo Cheese
Andrés Piña and Carlos Ríos are the persons responsible for the fame of this cheese from Sierra de Cadiz. They created the Payoyo cheese of Villaluenga, a product with various international awards ( (payoyo.com). Its fame extends all over the world but it is worth buying it in the small shop next to the road which crosses the town. Two personal weaknesses, the semi-cured Payoyo goat cheese (the more tender the better) and the mixed cured Payoya goat cheese and Grazalmeña
Pensión de Ana Mari
The croquettes by Ana Mari The inn has a dining room which transports us to the 50’s decade in the 20th century, but the food which they serve in the Inn: Pensión de Ana Mari, Calle Los Mártires, has the same decor. The croquettes, fine and crunchy, are one of the restaurant’s fixed dishes but before or after, you can try the meat with tomato sauce, the meatballs or the rabbit stew.