La Carretilla

Last Saturday we went for a hike up to Pinos Genil and discovered La Carretilla. It is located in the centre of the village, along the river. We had a table on the terrace.
This afternoon there were ten tables, but during the summer the amount of tables easily doubles.
Inside is a dining area with seven tables and an African corner, with a fireplace. The african corner is part of the bar, as it reflects the roots of the owner.
Moussa is from Algeria, but has mixed roots. Like his food he is fusion of Algeria, France and Spain. The food and the music are a perfect harmony of these three countries, mixing Europe with Africa.

As always I started with a tinto de verano. I have to admit that I have had better ones. My friend started with a glass of Ribera wine, but that one was not good. They changed it for a Rioja, which also was not very much to our liking.
The first tapa of La Carretilla was ensaladilla, which was good and did not have the strong mayonnaise taste that you find a lot here in Spain.
For our second drink we decided to go with a vino dulce, a sweet wine, as they had run out of vermouth. We liked the sweet wine.
With this drink they gave as an extra tapa blood sausage, with homemade chips, as the couscous needed another 10 minutes.
According to my friend it was the best blood sausage she has ever tried in a bar. I am not a fan of it, but I liked it as well.

The couscous was the best of the day. It was super delicious. They adapted it to the Spanish taste, so it had a small layer of brown sugar and almonds on top. I would have loved to taste the authentic couscous with the flavours of Africa.

The tapas of are not every day the same, it depends on the offer in the market. If for example there is fish, like sardines or anchovy, he will serve that as well.
The food is homemade and fresh. It is prepared in the moment, so sometimes it takes a while before it is being served.

The name, La Carretilla, comes from a carretilla, wheelbarrow, he already had a long time and was in sight when he searched for a name for the bar. Moussa opened the bar about two years ago, he is in his third year.
He has interesting plans for the coming summer, like changing the terrace at night into a cocktail zone with live music. During the week he already organizes poetry or book circles.

During the winter period they are only open in the weekends, but from March till October they open every day of the week. In the weekend most people visit the bar. During summer also a lot of foreigners, but in general the majority are families from Granada that come to enjoy the fresh air of the village.