Showroom
For many years, Mariano Rodriguez has invited customers to the wholesale shop to tell them about the origin, quality, tastes and custom of hundreds of Spanish wines and delicacies. He has shared his stories and reflections on craft, practices and traditions.
Products that through their taste and essence distinguish one tavern or store from another. Knowledge that adds value and contributes to transforming a decent meal into a complete experience. In our showroom we can finally combine the very best of our two worlds in one great environment in which increase our experience of Spanish cuisine. And what name could be better to summarize all this than the name Mariano? The symbol and source of all the good stuff.
At Mariano, we will offer themed evenings, tastings, training courses and exciting performances. We won’t only do this for the benefit of our restaurateurs and their shop staff, but for everyone who is interested in food and drink at a professional level. The atmosphere will be familiar and intimate as everyone knows us. So please feel free to contact us with your inquiries, however modest or advanced they may be.
In our showroom
we can at last
combine the best of
our two worlds.
Mariano Rodriguez
Autumn 1966, Mariano Rodriguez from Spanish Salamanca arrives at Stockholm Central Station. At that time Stockholm is not a place known for eating out. Restaurants mainly provide typical Swedish cuisine with the exception of a few gourmet restaurants that present a more continental style of cooking. Having grown up with his family in the Spanish countryside, where his mother Maria provided celebrations and weddings in the villages with indigenous delicacies, Mariano enjoys spending his spare time in the kitchens of the hotels and restaurants destined to set him on track for his first Swedish job. He dreams of introducing Swedes to the tastes of his home region. Tastes that he himself misses. The Fruity olive oil, savoury olives, or the nutty Pata Negra. So in 1984, when he is offered the opportunity to run a restaurant he realises that he can now finally establish himself in the field of food and cooking, his true passion.
After having started no less than seven restaurants Mariano is ready to take the next step. In 1995 he establishes Viña Española and in 1997 Salmantinos Delikatesser. Both trading in high-quality imports from small-scale producers. Our wines and delicacies are born from passion, combined with genuine craftsmanship and based only on natural raw ingredients. If you can’t find the proprietor Mariano either here or across the street with his beloved goods, then he will most probably be roaming Spain searching for new flavours.
In 2012 Mariano Rodriguez and Salmantinos Delikatesser were honoured by the M. Sandahl Foundation for meritorious development in gastronomy.
In 2014 Mariano Rodriguez received the Spanish State Award for his contributions to Spanish food culture abroad. And Stockholm, thanks to Mariano, became a city where we nowadays can enjoy all the tasty products and ingredients that Spain has to offer.
We are a family business
and that is how we work
with customers and
suppliers, like one big family. The Spanish way!
Viña Española
When the Swedish import monopoly was phased out in 1995 the foundation for our operations was laid. At that time, in Sweden, Rioja was the most common wine. Mariano took the opportunity to introduce the Swedes to a wider variety of grapes. Today Viña Española collaborates with over 50 selected wineries in Spain. We can therefore offer the full Spanish range with over 300 different wines.
90% of the vineyards we work with, are like ourselves, family businesses, where knowledge, culture and development is naturally passed on from generation to generation. Vineyards that combine an ambition and passion to provide the genuine article. Small-scale producers with complete control over the whole process, from vine to bottle. Producers who need to be innovative in order to become known and successful. However, we have opted out of modern innovations such as bag-in-box. We prefer the feel of the traditional bottle and believe that wine is best kept in the natural product of pure glass.
Salmantinos delikatesser
1997 saw the introduction of Salmantinos Delikatesser AB, our exclusive importation of high-quality Spanish delicacies. "Salmantinos" is the traditional name for people who originate from the city of Salamanca in north western Spain, such as our own Mariano Rodriguez. This region is the origin of the olives, olive oils and cured meats that Mariano missed so dearly.
Our entire product range is based on organic and origin-labelled quality delicacies from all over Spain. Something that is appreciated by our customers who range from quality-conscious bistro businesses to private connoisseurs. We have become particularly known for our products sprung from the black, Spanish Iberico pig which originates from the Mariano homelands. It is from this breed of pig that the exclusive ham Jamon Iberico de Bellota Gran Reserva is derived, also known as Pata Negra.
But Spain also has a rich cheese culture, many varieties of honey, sausages and fantastic preserves. By taking advantage of the raw materials when they are at their best one can "preserve the taste," and enjoy them all the year round. Mariano can therefore claim to give everyone the opportunity to take part in what we call 'La crema de la crema de la crema ".
Our entire product
range is based on
organic and
origin-labelled quality
delicacies from
all over Spain.
