Museo del Jamón

Spain is a country devoted to the art of Jamón (ham).

Over Xmas, newspapers carried full page, colour adverts for massive legs of cured pork and associated goods, like ham racks (for hanging them) and knives (for carving). On almost every street you will find a shop devoted to porcine goods. One of the most famous of these is the Museo del Jamón chain (shop in Goya pictured) which act as both a shop and a restaurant / tapas bar, although there are many other small chains and independents as well. They serve other, non-ham, products as well, but it seems a bit silly to go to the house of ham and then order squid. No, no, no, if you go, and you should, stick to the meat and order a selection plate or a bocadillo de jamón with a nice fresh beer. The selection is huge. Madrid-Uno did get a full run-down on all the different types from Sonia when we grabbed a lunch there, but there were so many varieties, different grades and cuts that he forgot most of what he was told. If you want to really go upscale though the best stuff is the Pata Negra and Lomo Reserva, although quite frankly it all tastes good. Spain, the home of delicious pork-based products.