De Tapas Restaurant

The word tapa when used in a gastronomical sense means: a small portion of something appetizing, served with a beverage and eaten before lunch or dinner.

It is said that during the 13th Century, King Alfonso X of Castille and Leon, a cultured monarch and author of various judicial and scientific works, prohibited the serving of wine at the inns in his kingdom unless accompanied by food. A fair ruling in order to avoid fights.

In reality, the word tapa started in taverns and small restaurants of the Andalucian region where a slice of lunch meat was cleverly used to cover (tapar) the wine glass in order to keep the flies and other insects from getting in.

Over the long years, the whole Peninsula has adopted its meaning. Vamonos De Tapas (Let's go eat some tapas) has become a very traditional saying in Spain. An unknown custom in other parts of the world until now.

ENJOY!