I saw the dentist this afternoon.  He checked out my “rash”, for lack of a better term, and said it was better, but not completely gone.  I have to go back in September to see him.  Then he explained why, in Germany, it’s important to differentiate between a physician and a doctor.  We started talking about my education, his education, my sister’s education, and Armenia.  What I was expecting to be a five minute appointment turned into a half hour.  Oh well.  He’s bar none the best dentist I’ve ever had anywhere.  Besides, whenever I go see him, I get to have dinner in Stuttgart.

After we were finished with the dental business, we went to the Galeria, where I had read I might find some Georgian wine.  Unfortunately, we weren’t lucky today and found no Georgian wines.

So we decided to look for a late lunch/early dinner.  Originally, I was thinking maybe we’d have Italian food, but then realized the place I’d been eyeing was right next to a large construction site.  So we kept walking and soon found ourselves standing by Cortijo, a Spanish restaurant I’d been wanting to try for some time.  I’d heard good things about it in the Stuttgart American community and liked their Facebook page, which constantly advertises Flamenco dancing and guitar players.  They also don’t take a pause during the afternoon.

Bill prays before he makes his decision…  (kidding)

We took a seat and ordered beers and Paella Valenciana.  Paella can only be ordered for two or more people and takes at least 30 minutes to prepare, so we had a wait in the sunshine.  I heard the party behind us speaking Spanish, which is a good sign.  I noticed the menu also featured a number of other interesting dishes and tapas, some that seemed more German than Spanish.

This restaurant is right next to a strip joint.  It’s also next to a pizzeria with a wood oven.  It looked promising.  Maybe next time we’re in Stuttgart.

 

Bill was pretty hungry because he didn’t eat anything after breakfast this morning.  However, he was not displeased with our paella, pictured below.

Paella Valenciana– for two people or more at 15,90 per person.  It’s the cheapest of the three types offered at Cortijo.

 

I was delighted by the paella, which is a great change of pace here in Swabia.  It’s made with rice seasoned with saffron, shrimp, mussels, calamari, peas, chicken, and red peppers.  Squeeze a little lemon juice on it and you’re ready for a good meal!  The only disappointing thing about this paella was that the shrimp were a little hard to peel.  Oh… and I made a really gross joke about what mussels look like that turned Bill off.  In all seriousness, though, this was a really lovely meal, both in taste and presentation.  All they need there is a fly zapper to get rid of the flies who want to share the meal.  But I wouldn’t be surprised if zappers are illegal here.  I’ll have to research it.

A few offerings at Cortijo.

When we were finished eating, I went into the ladies room and found it immaculate and smelling slightly of bleach.  That’s also a good sign.

A tri-lingual sign to assist you in your flushing duties.

The stage where there are singers and dancers later in the evening.

Cortijo has a large dining area and two dining rooms.

I liked the bar, too.  You can sit around it and see the stage.  And check out the decorations made of sombreros from local tequila!  Pleasant Spanish guitar music filled the dining room.

 

Total damage for tonight’s dinner was just under 40 euros.  Cheap!

Front entrance.

And outdoor seating.  This is also near a construction zone, but they weren’t building when we were sitting there.  If you look at the obligatory shot of Bill at the beginning of this post, you can see the construction site.  A lot of building is going on downtown.

 

We walked back to the car a different way and realized Cortijo is very close to Primo, a wine bar and Italian restaurant where Bill and I ate last month.  This part of Stuttgart is rich with good places to eat.  Unfortunately, it’s also rich with traffic, which we got caught in on our way out of the big city.

Now that we’ve tried the paella at Cortijo, we want to come back for dinner and check out the live entertainment.  Definitely recommended, especially if you want a change of pace from German, Italian, or Greek food.