The concentration of cider bars (sidrerías) in the streets of Cimadevilla is one of the best reasons to spend an evening in Gijón. The typical sidrería is a narrow, stone-floored room with barrels along one wall, a kitchen at the back, and tables packed close enough that conversations with strangers are unavoidable. The menu is fixed and simple: the cider comes in bottles of 75cl, poured from height by the waiter in a thin stream that aerates the liquid; the food is chorizo, morcilla (blood sausage), cabrales cheese, and grilled fish or chuleta (thick pork chop), served without ceremony.
The social form matters more than any individual bar. You arrive, you order a bottle, you eat from the menu, you order more. The evening proceeds at the pace of the cider and the kitchen. Most of the sidrerías in Cimadevilla are on Calle de la Capilla, Calle Jesús del Monte, and the streets immediately around the fishing harbour; the density means you can move between them as the night progresses. The scene is busiest on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings. Some sidrerías close in winter; in summer they overflow onto the street.