2022 marked exactly 50 years since the Espantoso family became owners of Las Mañas. Three successive generations of Espantosos built the small dingy joint of yesteryear into a vibrant flagship establishment, a restaurant unrivalled in terms of atmosphere and Spanish gastronomy, not in Antwerp, not in Belgium, not even in the whole world.
Many of these stories have now been compiled in a beautiful reading, viewing and cooking book. The history of the Galician Espantoso family, its countless extensions, its infectious joys and sometimes bottomless sorrows, the ups and downs of hundreds of sailors and camioneurs who found in the Las Mañas not only a richly stocked table and comforting drinks, but also a shelter and a warm bed... all this combined with hundreds of photos and 50 recipes, the favourite dishes of 50 well-known and regular customers of the tastiest, cosiest, swinging and sometimes loudest restaurant in town.
"I remember Miguel very well. He was a little older than me. He was an imposing figure who everyone knew, even then...And everyone knew he was from the Las Mañas. He was in scientific A, I was in economics. Curious: I didn't become an economist, but he certainly didn't become a scientist either. "
"There is no second Spanish restaurant like Las Mañas. What always strikes me is that across three, four generations, the love for this place is passed on in so many families. I always love coming here so much, every time I enter, I feel, 'yes, this is where I should be!' I can't express it any better.
The atmosphere, the music, the food, they have found the perfect balance here. In fact, it's always a party."
"I got to know the Las Mañas on the occasion of the Worlds Ports Classic in 2015. That two-day cycling race then arrived here on the Leien, close to the restaurant. Then I experienced pleasant hours here with former cyclists such as Joop Zoetmelk, Roger De Vlaeminck, Jan Janssen and more of the scratchy rascals. They were all here around the bar."
"When I walked in here the very first time, that was unlikely: I suddenly came home, it was like Rayco was my brother I never had and Miguel was my second dad. That's magical, that natural connection. The name of the book is very well chosen: Cinquenta Años de Passion, which is what we are all about, passion. In the sad time when we had to say goodbye to Yapsi, for example, that's when you noticed how loved the Espantosos are. "v
