Granada · Spain
Pastelería López-Mezquita
A practical guide to Pastelería López-Mezquita in Granada: piononos on Reyes Católicos since 1905, what else to order, the 14:30 closing and the price difference between counter and table.
It's the benchmark bakery for piononos within Granada. Get there before 14:30, buy at the counter and eat them the same day.
Pastelería López-Mezquita has been selling piononos, pastela moruna and Granada pastries on Calle Reyes Católicos since 1905. The family started earlier, in 1862, and today the fifth generation runs it. The shop is a small museum of early 20th-century Granada: marble counter, gilt mirrors and brass rails.
Our experience
We stopped by on Thursday, May 21, after the San Agustín Market and before the 14:30 closing. It was the last purchase of the morning: piononos, at around €1 each, to eat on the street or as an afternoon snack at the hotel before heading up to the Albaicín. See our Alhambra day.
A bit of history
In 1862 Cristóbal López Robles and Dolores Mezquita Vélez, farmers from Jun, a village in the Vega, sold their land, moved to Granada and opened a bakery under their two surnames. They moved through the Placeta de San Gil, Calle Elvira and the Placeta de Cauchiles before landing at Reyes Católicos 39 in 1905. Dolores was a relative of the Granada painter José María López Mezquita, whose reproductions decorate the walls.
In 1925 the English painter George Owen Wynne Apperley, a regular, sent his maid with a small painting of his favorite pastries and the note “6 de estos pastelicos” (six of these little pastries). The shop kept the painting, and the almond pastries have been called Apperley ever since.
The pionono wasn’t born here. Ceferino Isla created it in 1897 in Santa Fe in honor of Pius IX, the pope who proclaimed the dogma of the Immaculate Conception in 1854; the toasted cap stands for his skullcap. His bakery, Casa Ysla, is still open. Within Granada, López-Mezquita is the benchmark.
The honest take
The shop is narrow, with about three tables in the back, and a line forms before closing time. Quality varies a little from day to day, as at any bakery.
What to see, in order
-
Piononos
A small rolled sponge soaked in syrup, filled with custard cream and topped with a cap of toasted sugar and cinnamon. Two bites. Pick from a tray that looks fresh, with the cap still glossy.
-
Pastela moruna
A sweet-and-savory chicken and almond pie of Moroccan origin, dusted with cinnamon and powdered sugar. Several reviews call it the best thing in the shop.
-
Apperley
Almond pastries named after an English painter who was a regular. The little 1925 painting he used to order them still hangs in the back room.
-
Almendrados
Soft almond cookies that keep for a week. Good for traveling.
-
The shop
Marble counter, gilt mirrors, brass rails and reproductions of paintings by José María López Mezquita.
Tips we wish we’d known
Tips
- The 14:30 closing is on the dot. Arrive at 14:35 and you'll find the shutter down.
- Piononos are at their best for about six hours after baking: eat them the same day, not the next day on the train.
- If you're going to sit, ask "¿Hay diferencia de precio en mesa?". It's not a trick; it's the Spanish counter-versus-table custom.
- If Reyes Católicos is packed, the back door opens onto Calle Zacatín.
Do
- Ask for "cuatro piononos para llevar" and they'll pack them in a little cardboard tray.
- Check that the sign says Pastelería López-Mezquita, at Reyes Católicos 39.
- Look for the mirror in the back room that frames the 1925 painting of the Apperley pastries.
Don’t
- Don't believe the "original piononos" signs at other bakeries in the center: the original pionono comes from Casa Ysla, in Santa Fe, from 1897.
- Don't sit down if all you want is the pionono: it's cheaper at the counter.
- Don't leave it until after a long lunch: on weekdays it closes at 14:30.
Frequently asked questions
What are López-Mezquita's hours?
Monday to Friday it opens at 9:30 and closes at 14:30; it reopens in the afternoon, though the exact time varies by source. On Sundays it only opens in the morning.
How much does a pionono cost?
Between €0.80 and €1.10 depending on size.
What is a pionono?
Granada's signature sweet: a rolled sponge soaked in syrup, filled with cream and topped with toasted sugar. It's named after Pope Pius IX and was created by Ceferino Isla in Santa Fe in 1897.
Where is the original pionono?
At Casa Ysla, on Calle Real in Santa Fe, 11 km from Granada. Within the city, López-Mezquita is the benchmark.