This is 'Xeetox', the winning skewer of the III Castilla y León Tapas Contest

Two years.

This is 'Xeetox', the winning skewer of the III Castilla y León Tapas Contest

Two years. That is how long it takes for the idea that gives shape to the winner of the III Castilla y León Tapas and Skewers Championship to germinate and become a reality. A time in which Ramiro Gutiérrez, chef at the Xirex bar in Salamanca, was ruminating on how to offer an innovative presentation of the star dish of his 'garito': tripe stew.

“In the end, what counts in these things is how you present it, the visual. You are not going to find a new flavor, everything that is going to come to you are things you know, “explains Gutiérrez in statements to ABC. For this reason, his work is a trompe l'oeil both in form and in name, since his nickname is a play on words between the brand he imitates and the name of the bar.

"I decided to imitate the 'Cheetos Matutano', but of course, I couldn't put the name of the brand. I needed something that would reference it without infringing the 'copyright' and I came up with 'Xeetox', which phonetically is very similar", says Guitérrez.

In the packaging everything is taken care of in detail. The tripe, a stew reduced to crunchy balls, are piled up in a bag that imitates the original appetizer, both in shape and impression, as can be seen in the image that illustrates this article. On a green and red background appears a caricature of the chef himself who, in his chef's clothing, is shooting one of the meat balls.

"In general, we only make offal on Saturdays and Sundays, and every weekend we sell about 8 kilos," reveals Gutiérrez. "It's a very cheap dish because they go a long way, although the tapa is going to be a little more expensive from now on," she acknowledges. The reason is the price of plastic, the staging. Now, Gutiérrez is trying to locate a company that will make them throw bags at "an affordable price."

As for the impact of the award on the economy of the bar, Guitiérrez assures that it is “very positive”. «The first two months the interest in the cover sprouts, people want to see what it is like and they come closer. Then, if they like the bar, some of them will become regular customers », he predicts with the security that comes from having been in the business for a long time.

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