Hotel Gran Melia Colon, Seville, is located in the area from where bullfighters leave for the Maestranza bullring, which has become part of the city’s history and heritage.

Visiting the 189-room hotel is like a walk in a museum. In the lobby, majestic architectural features from the Bell Époque evocative of the Spanish Andalusian charm are cleverly matched with contemporary designer furniture pieces from Philippe Starck, Marcel Wanders and Edra. Each floor showcases a prominent Spanish artist from different era, complete with the artist’s details, and each door to the guestroom features a reproduction of his/her painting.

The hotel has various function rooms with flexible partitions to accommodate meetings for 20 to over 100 guests in classroom-style seatings. The largest ballroom Salon La Galeria can take up to 140 classroom-style or 240 theatre style. However, the ceiling height of the ballroom is only 3.3m and therefore is not suitable for large stage backdrops. Apart from the function rooms and pre-function areas, there are also various other space in the hotel that can be converted into private breakfast or cocktail reception. The rooftop pool area offers a spectacular view of the historic city centre.

One of the hotel’s restaurants – El Burladero – is a popular meeting point in Seville, especially during bull-fighting season. For this review, the restaurant served a sampling of its signature dishes including Ham and Squid Duo Croquettes, Shrimp Salad, Grilled Calamari with Alioli Sauce and Red Pepper Jam; Roasted Octopus with Potato and Garlic puree, Boneless Bull Tail with Traditional Potatoes, and an assortment of Carrot cake, Raspberry Cheesecake, Chocolate cake. It was a marvelous meal despite the head chef Javier Rico being away. Especially unforgettable was the Roasted Octopus, as it has a well-roasted aroma and taste without being overly burnt and bitter, and was very easy to slice and chew on. Slightly disappointed was the Boneless Bull Tail. While it was entertaining to witness the de-boning process, the meat was not tender enough and the gravy was not sufficiently cooked into the meat. Nevertheless, most of the other dishes tasted great with good presentation. Click here to view photo gallery.

For more information, please visit: http://www.melia.com/en/hotels/spain/seville/gran-melia-colon/index.html