Triana House Boutique Hotel

Worth getting out of bed for

Triana has carved out its own space in Seville – even when locals cross the Isabel II Bridge from the city centre to reach it they say they’re going to the neighbourhood as if travelling out of town. Indeed, it has its own unique features, especially the mostly blue-and-white (but in all hues under the Sevillan sun) azulejo tiles, which it’s famous for (Triana House Boutique Hotel itself was once a pottery school), a rainbow of buildings on Betis Street along the bank of the Guadalquivir River, doorways wafting out mournful song and live flamenco shows. Use the Church of Santa Ana’s gloriously tiled bell tower as ballast while navigating, and stop in to admire its Midas-touched altarpiece; and if you’ve brought a baby, allegedly having it baptised here will give it a fabulous singing voice for flamenco. If not, see the blessed professionals perform at the Triana Flamenco Theatre, where talents taught at the renowned Cristina Heeren Foundation do their flouncing and fanning thing five nights a week. And the Triana Ceramics Centre shows off its other proud tradition, delving into the history of the handicraft. There are plenty of china shops for you to rampage around afterwards, but if you like those at the hotel, you’ll need to travel a little further out to Salteras for La Cartuja Sevilla’s wares (or buy them online). The barrio has a long history too, which can be seen along San Jacinto Street, where there’s a decorous Dominican Order church from the 17th century; the Plaza del Altozano, home to the 1912 Murillo Pharmacy, important statuary and the eye-catchingly domed Carmen Chapel; and Pureza Street where the Virgen de la Esperanza resides in the Marineros Chapel – each Maundy Thursday she’s paraded through the streets to Seville Cathedral. Stroll along the riverside’s Our Lady of the O walk and you’ll come across the Castillo de San Jorge, which looks harmless enough now, but was the seat of the Spanish inquisition from the 15th to 18th centuries – we bet you didn’t expect that. The castle is now ruined but there’s a museum in its place and you can still see the dungeons. Revel in the sensory overload at the Mercado de Triana, which also has a cookery school and even a theatre; and cross over San Telmo bridge to wander Seville’s Old Town and the Barrio de Santa Cruz, and marvel at the Alcázar Palace and its La Giralda bell tower.

Local restaurants

Whether you’re joining the Callejeros (street people) who spill out from pincho hotspots, or you’re on a sharing-at-your-own-discretion date night, Seville will feed you very well. It’s surrounded by fertile agricultural regions and its historic position as a trade route means excellent ingredients used in diverse ways. Canalside Mariatrifulca has terrace tables with romantic city views; alongside more traditional small plates like crystal bread topped with anchovies, piquillo peppers and salmorejo (a thick tomato and garlic soup); chopped seafood with fresh-tomato salad; and chargrilled octopus in sherry, there’s nigiri with quail egg and truffle, and caramelised brioche French toast with tiramisu cream. On picturesque Betis Street is Abades Triana, which has palate-piquers such as gazpacho with apricot ice-cream; croaker with cod-cheek pil-pil and Iberian bacon; and Retinta sirloin cooked in hazelnut liqueur. And, for comforting chicken-liver ​​pâté with pumpkin and lemon jam, mushroom and egg rice with boletus foam, and rice and cod ‘cupcakes’ rolled in brown bread, roll up to De la O. 

Local cafés

There are thousands of pinchos eateries to try in the city, but luckily most morsels consist of just a bite or two, so you can fit in a fair few. Prepare to have little table space at pincho joint Blanca Paloma (on Calle San Jacinto), so full will it be with tasty morsels: prawns in aubergine, Pedro Ximénez-marinated sirloin with foie gras, goat’s-cheese-and-piquillo-stuffed sea-bass… Over the canal on Calle Gamazo, Casa Moreno is a deli as stuffed as one of its anchovy tins with canned fish, sausages near neon with paprika, wine bottles, jamón legs, sauce jars and more – it may look like there’s little room for anything else, but you can take tapas and cheese and charcuterie to the table to the back. La Brunilda has more wiggle room and moreish salt-cod fritters with pear aioli, duck confit with spiced-carrot cream and daily-changing croquettes.

Local bars

When you’re seeking a slug of Manzanilla or Oloroso, head to industrial-style hotspot Martirio Bar, close to Triana House, which also does a fine line in classic cocktails, alongside a long list of top Spanish wines. And, for an eyeful of La Giralda in all its Moorish majesty, head to rooftop bar La Terraza (at Hotel Doña María).