CADIZ, Spain — The supposedly oldest continuously inhabited city in Western Europe has some seemingly modern culinary tricks up its sleeve.

While many U.S. sailors and Marines stationed and deployed to southern Spain tend to opt for Seville on weekend passes, I would argue that they should give Cadiz a try. It’s much closer to Naval Air Station Rota — just over 30 minutes by car, or less by taking the ferry directly from Rota. And the food is exceptionally good.

If you like seafood, and the Spanish tradition of sampling several small plates, or tapas, I highly recommend trying La Taperia de Columela. This taperia dishes out outstanding food at prices that make you think you’re robbing them blind.

You’ll find them in an redone hole-in-the-wall in Cadiz’s old town, down one of the winding alleys near Market Hall.

As befits a city on an island, the eatery specializes in fresh seafood tapas, but it serves plenty of meat dishes as well. Vegetarians, on the other hand, will find only a handful of options. This place really isn’t for them.

But for the rest of us, it’s great.

The cod and octopus salad with caramelized apples and avocado is high on the list of musts to try. It won an award in a local tapas contest, and I can see why. A big chunk of fish and slices of octopus are stacked precariously atop the fruit. When you take a bite, your taste buds are attacked by an onslaught of fresh flavor. It’s really too good to be called a salad.

Another “salad” is the potatoes and prawns with tuna and olives, also stacked on top of each other. It would be the absolute highlight of most other restaurants. But here, quality comes cheap.

Each of these salads costs about four euros ($4.56).

There is a selection of cured meats, like the famed Spanish chorizo. But the bolder eater will no doubt opt for the “larded meats,” dipped in their extra fat.

There is a huge selection of main-course tapas as well.

I could go on for a while about all their great dishes, but I’ll limit this to my top three (don’t ask how many I had). The red tuna lasagna was delicious and very different than anything I’ve ever had before. The grilled salmon over leek sauce was everything you want a good piece of salmon to be. And the cuttlefish, stewed in its own ink, is phenomenal.

Eating a cuttlefish cooked in its own ink is basically the most alpha way to eat any animal. That’s like cooking a chicken in its own egg yolk (why doesn’t anybody do this and why do I have to think of everything?). But seriously, that ink is downright scrumptious and will leave you walking away smiling, with a set of black teeth. Swish some water around before smiling at anyone you want to impress.

Each of the main-course tapas costs about three euros. I recommend getting two, and a salad tapa, which would be more than enough for even a hungry sailor coming down from standing duty in Rota all Friday night.

egnash.martin@stripes.com Twitter: @Marty_Stripes

Address: Calle Columela, 4, 11001, Cadiz, SpainDirections: You need to use GPS to find this place. Cadiz is 30 minutes south of N.A.S. Rota, but the winding narrow alleys of old-town Cadiz are too complicated to guide anyone through via written instructions.Hours: 1-4 p.m. and 8-11 p.m. daily, closed on SundaysDrinks: A huge list of Spanish wine, also beer and some non-alcoholic drinksFood: Spanish tapas and seafoodPrices: Around 3-4 euros per tapas plate, or 12 euros for a meal of threeDress: Casual

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