Migas and San Miguel

Last week I was in Malaga for Semana Santa (Holy Week) which is the most mind-blowing experience, marked by daily - and nightly - parades through the town. In between - and when the streets weren’t rammed solid with spectators - we managed to snatch the odd meal, the best of which was at a tapas bar called Meson Iberico.

Practically everyone at the bar - the best place to sit by far though you need to be in on the dot of 1pm to get a seat - was drinking San Miguel on draft rather than wine which not only made sense at lunchtime but with the food.

Two of the dishes in particular went brilliantly with it - the tortillitas de camarones - crisp fritters filled with tiny prawns (also VERY good with manzanilla sherry) and the best migas I’ve ever eaten. In Spain the term refers to a dish of breadcrumbs cooked with ham fat or chorizo (or both) and garlic which doesn’t sound very appetising but is unbelievably tasty. There’s a good explanation of the different regional variations on the Catavino website which also suggests a young tempranillo as a pairing.

If you want some other Malaga recommendations check out my friend food writer Thane Prince’s website - she was the one who led me - and indeed, accompanied me - to Meson Iberico.

Flying fish cutters and Banks beer

A week without wine might sound like hell for wine lovers but to be honest in Barbados why would you drink anything else? Wine is expensive and there’s not much choice whereas beer is cheap and ubiquitous.

Even though we tried some craft beers we kept coming back to the island’s national beer Banks, a full-flavoured lager of 4.7% which invariably hit the spot. (You can read more about on the Beers of Europe website and buy it from them too if you’ve been to Barbados and are getting withdrawal symptoms)

It goes brilliantly with the flying fish ‘cutters’ - a fried fish sandwich or bun that you find on practically every menu and with the equally popular Bajan fishcakes which are actually more like fish balls and should always be freshly fried.

Of course you *could* also quaff a rum punch but I find most a tad too sweet though my mate Fiona Sims* (pictured above) makes an excellent one deviating slightly from the classic formula (one of sour, 1 1/2 (rather than two) of sweet (sugar syrup in her case), 3 of strong (we used Mount Gay rum) and 4 of weak (water rather than fruit juice). Mix, pour over ice-filled tumblers, then top with a good drizzle of Angostura bitters and a sprinkle of freshly grated nutmeg. Hits the spot every time!

*Author of The Boat Drinks Book if you want other cocktail inspiration!

Tantamen ramen and Asahi Super Creamy Head

I’m beginning to get Christmassed-out already so this week’s pairing is not the very old madeira and Comté I had last night, amazing though that was, but a steaming, spicy bowl of ramen and an Asahi Super Creamy Head beer I enjoyed at Bone Daddies Ramen earlier in the week.

As Ross Shonhan, the owner and head chef put it "ramen and beer is a no-brainer".

I can’t say the Asahi was as exciting as it sounded despite the fact that Bone Daddies is apparently the only place you can get it in the UK. It's basically a lager with a slightly frothier than usual head but its clean flavour provided exactly the right refreshing contrast to the spicy noodles which were served with chicken bone broth, sesame, chilli, pork mince and bok choy.

I was warned off having the full-strength version by our waiter and thought he had me down as a bit of a wimp but the half-strength one was way spicy enough. You certainly couldn’t have drunk anything more subtle with it.

I also tried one of their shochu cocktails, a Chuhai 1, a mixture of pear and apple juice, shochu, and soda water which was great with their (fatally) delicious fried chicken. They also have an interesting sake list.

Ramen has become huge in London in the last few months and you can see why. I can see Bone Daddies becoming one of my favourite places in 2013.

Lager and jerk chicken

It's been one of those very rare occurances in England today - a sunny Bank Holiday - and we've spend the day with friends at the Bristol West Indian Cricket Club where they turned out not to be playing much in the way of cricket but a great deal of music, dancing and bouncy castles.

There were various food vans and stands including a jerk drum and a bar where you could buy a basic range of lagers like Budweiser. Nothing to write home about in beer terms but, you know, they made a great match for the spicy chicken and salad.

Afterwards we went to a pub owned by our friend's aunt and had yet more jerk - this time with an even punchier sauce - and with that I had a Heineken which worked equally well.

Sometimes you don't want things too complicated. It was absolutely the right drink for the food and the moment. And there's a great deal to be said for that.