a cat on a bike
London has theirs. Also New York, Berlin or Paris. Although it's been a while since Seville decided to reinvent itself and get out of those stereotypes that many insist on attaching to it, there are those who still today are unaware of that other facet of the city. If we put names to the face like Santa Cruz neighborhood, Triana or Sierpes street , we could baptize the cross as ** Soho Benita .**
I take a last sip of my tea and place it on the table while I watch, through the window, the continuous bustle of people on the sidewalks of the Benito Perez Galdos street . Some in a hurry, others enjoying the ride... there are even those who decide to scrutinize the surrounding shop windows.
a cat on a bike
Photographs by various authors hang on the walls of the cafeteria where I find myself. Behind me, several shelves full of all kinds of titles. I find myself in a cat on a bike , art bookstore, cafeteria and pottery workshop, and member of the cultural and artistic hive who for a few years has inhabited this area of the Seville capital.
Art bookstore, cafeteria, pottery workshop... does anyone give more?
Possibly when back in 2011 the city was torn between hatred and desire for the famous Seville mushrooms -officially known as Metropol Parasol -, few were aware of what was beginning to take shape in the closest streets. Because that not only revolutionized the architectural scene of the city, no way. It was also a fuse, a perfect excuse to reinvent itself.
And that's when the businesses and shops began to change. To transgress in style and concept, although there were already those who had advanced the way long before. Today 10 streets and 20 projects distributed between the neighborhoods of La Encarnación-San Pedro and Alfalfa give life to Sevillian soho. To Soho Benita.
Contemporary art in Soho Bonita
DeLimbo He was one of the first to appear. I approach this urban and contemporary art gallery located in a unique place: a modernist space from 1919 by the architect José Espiau, just a few meters from Un gato en bicicle.
Laura Calvarro and Seleka Munoz are the hosts and ideologies of this project. Restless by nature and with a lot of energy used to do things differently, they opened the doors of this artistic space no less than 12 years ago. It is the first gallery in southern Europe dedicated to urban art and artists such as Boris Hoppek, Roice 183, Hervé di Rosa or Mina Hamada.
Laura Calvarro and Seleka Munoz
That this nursery of ideas and projects in which design, literature, fashion, gastronomy and even meditation coexist -the **Kinema therapy center**- be baptized as Soho Benita It has, of course, its explanation. On the one hand, it could be understood as a tribute to the novelist and playwright who is the protagonist of one of the main streets where the entire movement is concentrated. The same one where I am: Benito Perez Galdos. feminize the name It has been part of that originality that sets the standard when it comes to Sevillian soho.
Another interpretation would be somewhat more literal: Benita as that "little vein" of underground business , of artists and artisans, who dodge the great commercial arteries of the city fleeing from the well-known brands that invade everything.
Precisely looking for one of the references in fashion, I go into ** Isadora **, another of the pioneering businesses in Soho. Garments from less conventional designers coexist here , but whose originality and elegance are above any other description, with illustrations, accessories and even music.
The close and empathic treatment of Manuel and Lorraine , the leaders of this business, turns the visit into a more than enriching experience and it will be rare to walk out the door without a bag hanging from your arm.
The collection of the designer Rafa García Forcada and other alternative proposals
And the same thing happens when crossing the street. In The Importer , Rafa García Forcada, artist and designer , he exhibits his own collection along with other alternative fashion proposals.
But the party continues. Ecofashion finds its place in Moscow Green or in Shoe , and the craft is housed in the fabrics and designs of Nuria in Zález , in the precious hats of Patricia Buffuna -where equally important are the materials that the love dedicated to each one of the pieces- and in the accessories from Voila , the shop-workshop of Penelope in which a 19th-century fresco from the painter Rico Cejudo and some more than likely historical tiles are responsible for welcoming.
Each and every member of this creative conglomerate Y “multi-artistic” coincide at the same point: Union make force . The affinity in the idea of making a business something different led them to merge into an associative experience from which they are obtaining very good results. .
Soho Benita is already a proper noun with capital letters. A true benchmark of that other Seville that is already present in guides and itineraries and which has been echoed even by the very New York Times .
It turns out that in the meantime buying and browsing I've gotten the hunger bug: it's time to enter the gastronomic facet of Soho . While I decide whether to opt for the homemade dishes of the Havana , for the Italian essence of My Tana or for some modern tapas with Andalusian roots in fat salt , I run into Flop! .
Homemade dishes with a perfect patio to rest
This place, located on Calle Don Alonso el Sabio – called Calle del Burro until well into the 19th century , something that you can already imagine, was a lot of jokes in its day-, it already captures my attention from the outside.
half study, half showroom , brings together architecture, interior design and graphic design under one roof. Once again, creativity, originality, the contemporary and the search for commitment and quality are the ingredients that its four members are committed to: Peter, Vidal, Isidro and Jacobo.
Half studio, half showroom
The same thing happens not far from here, in the Christ of Burgos Square . But this time they are Manuel and Sergio those in charge of converting Artifact , your space, in a place full of singularity in which to come into contact with new brands and trends in terms of interior design. Once again, betting on a living and transforming Seville.
We want everything from this design and decoration store
I rush the tuna neck with seaweed marinade that I have been recommended as off the menu in Sal Gorda and the body asks me for sweets . Nothing left to fear: Soho Benita also has several businesses more than prepared to satisfy the sweet tooth of the planet. One of those that maintain the essence of those of a lifetime, but with a twist.
On **Huelva street I ran into Ofelia Bakery **, a charming cafe where Elena offers the carrot cake cupcakes most exquisite I have tasted in my life. The craftsmanship and the love that she puts into each of her pastry pieces is felt with every bite.
The same passion that is savored in the artisan almond, coconut and pistachio tiles that Lola offers me when passing through the door of Sweet Tiles from Seville , a business with a pink and white facade in the Plaza del Pan where they can easily tell you about the old recipe on which it is based, but they will never reveal its secret ingredient.
And so, with the best taste in my mouth, I come to the end of my journey. Barely 500 meters traveled between the Encarnación and the Plaza del Pan , but a whole world discovered. Breaking molds. Dismantling stereotypes. Betting, after all, on that "other Seville".
Lola, owner of Tejas Dulces de Sevilla