Established in 2003, Casa Vieja is located in the heart of old Nicosia within the 16th Century walls. The restaurant offers thirty-seven different traditional Spanish Tapas, and four different types of Paella, a rice dish with seafood, chicken or vegetables served in a large traditional pan.
The restaurant is divided into three comfortable and cosy rooms, where one can enjoy freshly prepared, hearty home-cooked food in a relaxing and friendly atmosphere. Casa Vieja also features a bar with an extensive cocktail menu, delicious Sangria and wonderful Spanish wines. An additional outside patio is perfect for parties, business dinners and quiet romantic evenings.
Casa Vieja offers a take away service and caters for vegetarians and children.
Casa Vieja in Spanish, means “Old House”, and that is exactly what we have tried to capture.
The Tapas tradition can be traced back to the nineteenth century, in Andalucia, southern Spain. King Alfonso the 10th, ‘El Sabio’ (‘The Wise’), due to an illness, had to drink wine between meals accompanied by small bites of food. Once recovered from the disease, the wise king ordered that throughout the land, wine was not to be served in without something to eat.
Therefore, in ‘botillerias’ (bottle-shops) and ‘tabernas’ (taverns) throughout Spain, wine was served with a free ‘bite’ of food. A slice of either smoked ham, chorizo sausage or Manchego cheese covered the mouth of each bottle or glass. The small ‘bite’ served two purposes, to soak the strength of the alcohol, like King Alfonso had advised, as well as to keep insects and other impurities out of the glass. The verb tapar means ‘to cover’, thus the origin of the word “tapa”.
