Retire Early Lifestyle
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In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this financially independent lifestyle, they invite you to take advantage of their wisdom and experience.

Tastavins Tapas Wine Bar

Oaxaca, Mexico

Billy and Akaisha Kaderli

We love the Colonial City of Oaxaca, and one of our favorite places to have a meal together or with friends is this lovely Tapas Wine Bar.

We have visited many times over the years, and now, with a newly painted front entrance and a lively mural on the inside wall, it's even more fun and upbeat.

It has a cute, rather European-style entrance with little flower boxes on the gated front door.

The newly painted entrance to Tastavins

 The doorway to Tastavins has now been painted a cool blue and white.

Tastavins' bar

Here you see the tiny bar itself, with the kitchen in the back and a selection of wines. On the top shelf you will also notice a couple of bottles of mezcal, the pride of Oaxaca.

Unlike tequila, mezcal can be made from any of the more than 30 types of agave. Tequila is only made in five specific regions of Mexico, with the Mexican State of Jalisco being ground zero, and only from the blue agave plant. Oaxaca is the center of the mezcal world with 80-90% of them made in this state.

This drink often has a smoky flavor and is more powerful on the tongue.

A lively mural on the wall

Tastavins is tiny, maybe 5 tables.

Here you see a young couple enjoying their evening meal with a bottle of wine.

We saw as the evening progressed, that it is very popular. Romantic couples came by, families shared meals, and tables were filled with college-aged patrons as well.

The special board

Two different styles of gourmet ham are listed here, sold in 50 gram and 100 gram lots. The Jamon de Bellota at 50 grams was about $7USD, 100 grams sold for just under $13USD.

The strudel with ice cream was about $2USD.

Tastavins also offers pastas, plates of mixed cheeses and cold meats, as well as full dinner plates of seafood, meats and vegetarian choices.

Two glasses of Spanish wine with complimentary tapas

We got busy and ordered two glasses of Spanish white wine which always comes with tapas. The glasses were 38 Pesos each, about $1.90USD.

These particular tapas are a triangle of baked sliced potato pie with caramelized onions over sliced ham and cream cheese on a slice of toasted sour dough.

Sound delicious?

Montaditos Variados

On the menu this plate is called "assorted sandwiches" and the price is just over $3USD. There is goat cheese, mozzarella, salami, chistorra - which is a Basque-style sausage - delectable spreads and even a sweet tapas with nuts.

Dig in!

Salad Tastavins

This is the house salad made with a mixture of lettuces, goat cheese, nuts, tomatoes and a choice of either sliced apple or mango (we chose mango) and a delicious house dressing.

The temptation here was for the house to simply drizzle balsamic vinegar over the salad, but instead, they had their own house signature sauce. Light, refreshing, flavorful and unique.

This salad was $4USD.

Yours truly

Here is a better shot of the mural behind us. It is a centuries-old style of peasants sharing beer and wine together, and - if you look closely - there is a tiny rabbit in the lower right hand corner.

It was a delightful, flavor-full evening with a variety of offerings, something different from an ordinary dinner outing. The restaurant had excellent jazz and Latin music playing in the background which made the experience upbeat and memorable.

We certainly recommend that you visit!

Bacchus on one side, a list of mezcales on the other

Bacchus is the Roman god of agriculture and theater. I don't know why those two categories go together, but often people associate Bacchus as being the god of wine. In that case, wine and theater seem to be a good match.

Over several evenings we met up with friends here at Tastavins, and we savored a couple of different mezcales. The Convite won, hands down. It was clean tasting and didn't blow you out of your seat, which was nice.

As I mentioned previously, often mezcales have a POW-erful flavor, emphasis on the POW!

Convite is a well-known local brand of mezcal, 100% made by hand using spring water. That may have been why it was so clean tasting.

Puttanesca pasta

This Puttanesca was delicious. Ingredients typically include fresh tomatoes, olives, capers and garlic. Price was 90Pesos or about $4.50USD.

Spicy Shrimp pasta

This rather mild-looking shrimp pasta belies the spicy flavor that was dazzling.

Again, this tasty shrimp pasta was just $4.50USD.

Waitress holding a Mexican Vino Blanco

Mexico is beginning to offer more locally made wines.

Mostly known for tequila and mezcal, wine in Mexico is a newer addition to the bar menu.

Chocolate truffle

For dessert, we shared a chocolate truffle with fresh whipped cream and drizzled chocolate sauce.

For 15 Pesos or $0.75USD, it was delicious!

Our bill

Our bill came to $18USD before tip. As you can see, the prices are very modest. Tastavins offers delicious food at pricing the locals pay.

Plate of the day - Shrimp Croquetts

Since this is a tapas bar, Shrimp Croquettes fit right in.

 Originally made in France, Spain loved this way of deep frying breaded bits of fish, cheese, chorizo, eggs or vegetables.

The plate of the day, these croquettes were 135Pesos or just under $7USD.

Garlic shrimp

In typical Mexican fashion, seafood is often served whole. These shrimp had their tails and heads still attached, and believe it or not, it is common to eat the whole shrimp.

I don't mind the shells so much, which can be tender or a bit crunchy, but... the heads I pull off, thank you very much!

This dish could have used some rice or a vegetable to accompany it.

Price was about $7USD.

Tastavins' Menu

If you are ever visiting Oaxaca, be sure to stop by Tastavins.

Offering craft beers, decent wine, local mezcales and everything from pastas, salads, pizzas, seafood and pastries, we're pretty sure you can find something that will please your palate.

Tastavins

Calle Murguía 309, Centro Oaxaca, Oax., Mexico

Phone: +52 951 514 3776

Open Monday through Saturday 6pm to midnight

Cash payment only, no credit cards

For more stories and photos of Oaxaca, click here

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About the Authors

Billy and Akaisha Kaderli are recognized retirement experts and internationally published authors on topics of finance, medical tourism and world travel. With the wealth of information they share on their award winning website RetireEarlyLifestyle.com, they have been helping people achieve their own retirement dreams since 1991. They wrote the popular books, The Adventurer’s Guide to Early Retirement and Your Retirement Dream IS Possible available on their website bookstore or on Amazon.com.

Retire Early Lifestyle appeals to a different kind of person – the person who prizes their independence, values their time, and who doesn’t want to mindlessly follow the crowd.

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