Food
Spanish cuisine consists of a small variety of dishes which stem from
differences in geography, culture and climate. It is heavily influenced by
seafood available from the waters that surround the country, and reflects the
country's deep Mediterranean roots. Spain's extensive history with many cultural
influences has led to a unique cuisine with literally thousands of recipes and
flavors.
A significant portion of Spanish cuisine derives from the Roman, Jewish, and
Moorish traditions. The Moors were a strong influence in Spain for many years
and some of their food is still eaten in Spain today. However, pork is popular
and for centuries eating pork was also a statement of Christian ethnicity or
cleanliness of blood, because it was not eaten by Jews or Muslims. Several
native foods of the Americas were introduced to Europe through Spain, and a
modern Spanish cook could not do without potatoes, tomatoes, peppers and beans.
These are some of the primary influences that have differentiated Spanish
cuisine from Mediterranean cuisine, of which Spanish cuisine shares many
techniques and food items.
The essential ingredient for real Spanish cooking is olive oil, as Spain
produces 44% of the world's olives. However, butter or lard are also important,
especially in the north.
Daily meals eaten by the Spanish in many areas of the country are still very
often made traditionally by hand, from fresh ingredients bought daily from the
local market. This practice is more common in the rural areas and less common in
the large urban areas like Madrid, where supermarkets are beginning to displace
the open air markets. However, even in Madrid food can be bought from the local
shops, bread from the panadería, meat from the carnicería, etc.
One popular custom when going out is to be served tapas with a drink (sherry,
wine, beer, etc.). In some places, like Almería, Granada or Jaén in Andalusia
tapas are given for free with a drink and have become very famous for that
reason. It should be noted that almost every bar serves something edible when a
drink is ordered, without charge. However many bars exist primarily to serve a
purchased "tapa".
Another traditional favorite is the churro with a mug of thick hot chocolate
to dip churros in. Churrerías, or stores that serve churros, are quite common.
The Chocolatería de San Ginés in Madrid is especially famous as a place to stop
and have some chocolate with churros, often late into the night (even dawn)
after being out on the town. Often traditional Spanish singers will entertain
the guests.
As is true in many countries, the cuisines of Spain differ widely from one
region to another, even though they all share certain common characteristics,
which include:
The use of olive oil as a cooking fat in items such as fritters. It is also
used raw.
The use of sofrito to start the preparation of many dishes.
The use of garlic and onions as major seasonings.
The custom of drinking wine during meals.
Serving bread with the vast majority of meals.
Consumption of salads, especially in the summer.
The consumption of a piece of fruit or a dairy product as dessert. Desserts
such as tarts and cakes are typically reserved for special occasions.
Among the multitude of recipes that make up the varied cuisines of Spain, a
few can be considered common to all or almost all of Spain's regions, even
though some of them have an origin known and associated with specific places.
Examples include the potato omelette ("tortilla de patata", "tortilla española"
or just "tortilla"), gazpacho, paella, stews, migas, sausages (such as
embutidos, chorizo, and morcilla), jamón serrano, and cheeses. There are also
many dishes based on beans (chickpeas, lentils, green beans); soups, with many
regional variations; and bread, that has numerous forms, with distinct varieties
in each region. The regional variations are less pronounced in Spanish desserts
and cakes: flan, custard, rice pudding (arroz con leche), torrijas, churros, and
madeleines are some of the most representative examples.
Others foods include:
Arroz a la Cubana
Arroz Con Leche
Calamares (Fried Squid)
Cocido (a chickpea and meat stew of sorts)
Cocido Montañés typical from Cantabria
Chorizo (spicy sausage)
Chuletillas (grilled chops of milk-fed lamb)
Gazpacho (cold bread and tomato soup)
Gooseneck barnacles typical from Galicia
Fabada Asturiana (bean stew)
Jamón serrano (cured ham)
Lechazo asado (roasted milk-fed lamb)
Shellfish
Marmitako typical from Basque Country
Paella (saffron rice)
Pescaito Frito, marinated battered fried fish, typical from Málaga and
Western Andalusia
Tortilla de patatas or tortilla española (egg omelette with potatoes)
Turrón, a dessert with almonds and honey, typical of Christmas
Tortas de Aceite from Seville, a sweet Olive Oil pastry
The Spanish are very passionate about their food and wine and Spanish
cuisine. Spanish food can be described as quite light with a lot of vegetables
and a huge variety of meat and fish. The Spanish cuisine does not use many
spices; it relies only on the use of high quality ingredients to give a good
taste.
Lunch and dinner times
Spaniards have a different eating timetable than most people are used to.
The key thing to remember for a traveler is:
lunchtime starts at 1:30pm/2pm, and finishes before 4pm
dinner starts at 8:30pm or 9pm, with most clientèle coming after 9pm.
between that, most restaurants and cafes are closed, and it takes extra
effort to find a place to eat if you missed lunch time.
Normally, restaurants in big cities don't close until midnight during the
week and 2-3am during the weekend.
Breakfast
Breakfast is eaten by most Spaniards. In cafes, you can expect varieties of
tortilla de patatas (see the Spanish dishes section), sometimes tapas (either
breakfast variety or same kind as served in the evenings with alcohol).
Tapas
The entry level to Spanish food is found in bars as tapas, which are a bit
like "starters" or "appetizers", but are instead considered side orders to
accompany your drink. Some bars will offer a wide variety of different tapas;
others specialize on a specific kind (like seafood-based). A Spanish custom is
to have one tapa and one small drink at a bar, then go to the next bar and do
the same. A group of two or more individuals may order two or more tapas or
order raciones instead, which are a bit larger in order to share. Tourists are
easily spotted when they load their plates full of tapas.
Fast food
Fast food has not yet established a strong grip on the Spaniards and you will
find McDonalds and Burger King only in bigger towns in the usual places. The
menu can be a surprise since it has been customized to appeal to the locals and
beer, salads, yogurt primarily Danone, and wine are prominent. Pizza is
increasingly popular and you will find some outlets in bigger towns but it can
be their own homegrown franchise, TelePizza, as well as Pizza Hut.
Restaurants
Seafood: on a seacoast, fresh seafood is widely available and quite
affordable. In the inner regions, frozen (and poor quality) seafood can be
frequently encountered outside few highly reputated (and expensive) restaurants.
In coastal areas seafood deserves some attention, especially on the north
Atlantic coast.
Meat products are usually of very good quality, because Spain has maintained
quite a high percentage of free range animals.
Soups: choice of soups beyond gazpacho is very limited in Spanish
restaurants.
Water is frequently served without a specific request, and is normally
charged for--unless it's included in your menu del dia.
Tipping and VAT
No service charges are included in the bill. A little extra tip is common and
you are free to increase that if you are very pleased. Obviously you don’t have
to tip a lousy waiter. You would typically leave the small change after paying
with a note.
VAT is-not-included is a common trick for mid-range and splurge restaurants:
always check in menu whether VAT (7%, IVA in Spanish) is included in menu
prices.
Menú del día
Many restaurants offer a complete lunch meal for a fixed price – "menú del
día" – and this often works out as a bargain. Water or wine are commonly
included in the price.
Touristy places
Typical Spanish food can be found all over the country, however top tourist
destinations such as Costa Brava and Costa del Sol have turned all existing
traditions upside down. Meaning that drinks are generally more expensive (about
double) and it is difficult to find proper Spanish food in the tourist centers.
However you will get Schnitzel, original English breakfast, Pizza, Donair, and
frozen fish. However, if you are prepared to look a little harder, then even in
the busiest tourist towns, you can find some exceptional traditional Spanish
restaurants. If you are on the coast then think fish and seafood and you wont be
disappointed.
Non-Spanish cuisine
Italian gelaterias are the most frequent kind of non-Spanish cafes; English
and Irish pubs follow.
Japanese restaurants and sushi bars are rare, at least in touristy parts of
cities.
Specialties to buy
Cheese: Spain offers a wide variety of regional cheeses.
Queso Manchego is the most famous one.
Idealis... is another frequently cited, ~€20 per ball.
Chorizo: Spain's most popular sausage is made from pork, ham, salt, garlic
and pepper and is produced in multitude of varieties, in different sizes,
shapes, short and long, spicy, in all different shades of red, soft, air dried
and hard or smoked. Frequently contains emulgators and conservatives, so check
ingredients if you feel sensitive.
Jamón (air dried ham): Jamón Serrano (Serrano ham): A tinned food obtained
from the salt meat of the back legs of the pig and air dried. This same product
is given the name of trowel or paletilla when it is obtained from the front
legs. Also it receives the names of jamón Iberico (Iberian) and jamón of bellota
(acorn). They are specially famous jamones that takes place in Huelva (Spain),
in Guijuelo (province Salamanca), in the Pedroches (province Cordova) and in
Trevélez (province of Granada). Jamón Iberico is made from free range pigs.
Judging by Boqueria in Barcelona, Jamon Iberico starts at €80/kg, and Jamon
Serrano is about €25/kg.
Morcilla: Sausages made from pig blood flavoured with anise, it comes as a
fresh, smoked or air dried variety.
Spanish dishes
Typical dishes are:
Mariscos: Shellfish. Best shellfish in the world you can eat in the province
of Pontevedra.
Calamares en su tinta: Squid in its ink.
Chipirones a la plancha: Grilled little squids.
Caracoles: Snails in a hot sauce.
Pescaíto frito: Delicious fried fish that can be found mainly in southern
Spain
Fabada asturiana: Bean stew from Asturias.
Gambas al ajillo: Prawns with garlic and chili. Fantastic hot stuff.
Gazpacho Andaluz: Cold vegetable soup. Best during the hot weather. It's like
drinking a salad.
Merluza a la Vizcaina: The Spanish are not very fond of sauces. One of the
few exception is merluza a la Vasca. The dish contains hake (fish of the cod
family) prepared with white asparagus and green peas.
Aceitunas, Olivas: Olives, often served for nibbling.
Lentejas: A dish made from lentils with chorizo sausage and/or Serrano ham.
Potajes or pucheros: Garbanzo beans stew at its best
Paella: Famous rice dish originally from Mediterranean area. There are
different variations: seafood, chicken and rabbit, etc. While dishes called
paella can be found in virtually every restaurant in Spain (and it will claim to
use true authentic recipe and ingredients), its true variety is quite rare: it
should contain Safran (which is expensive) and, originally, some seafood (which
can't be trusted outside coast towns). Locals suggest to find true paella in
large parties like a wedding in a village, but few restaurants still can compete
with it.
Pimientos rellenos: Peppers stuffed with minced meat or seafood. The peppers
in Spain taste different than all other peppers in Europe.
Potaje de espinacas y garbanzos: Chick pea stew with spinach. Typical of
Seville.
Tortilla de patatas: Spanish egg omelet with fried potato. Probably the most
popular dish in Spain. You can easily assess how good a restaurant is by having
a small piece of its potato tortillas. Frequently it is made also with onion,
depending on the zone or the pleasure. The potatoes must be fried in oil
(preferably of olive), and they are left soaking with the scrambled egg for more
than 10 minutes, although better if it is average hour so that they are soaked
and they acquire the suitable consistency.
Patatas bravas: They are potatoes cut in form of dices or prism, of one
to two centimeters of size approximately and that they are fried in oil and
accompanied by a sharp sauce that spills on potatoes using hot spices. The name
of this plate comes from its sharp flavor, indicating that it has fire or
temperament, recalling the first operation of I goad in which a goad nails to
him so that he is brave in the bullfight.
Churros: A fried horn-shaped snack, sometimes referred as a Spanish doughnut.
Typical for a Spanish breakfast or for tea time. Served with hot chocolate
drink.
Drink
Tea and Coffee
Spanish people are very passionate about the quality, intensity and taste of
their coffee and good freshly brewed coffee is available almost everywhere.
The usual choices are solo, the milk-less espresso version; cortado, solo
with a dash of milk; con leche, solo with milk added; and manchado, coffee with
lots of milk (sort of like the French cafe au lait). Asking for caffee latte
will likely result in less milk then you are used to--it's always OK to ask for
adding extra milk.
Starbucks is the only national chain operating in Spain. Locals argue that it
can't compete with small local cafes in quality of coffee and only visited by
tourists. Can be found only in larger cities: Barcelona (18 outlets), Madrid (20
outlets), Sevilla (7 outlets) and Valencia (2 outlets)--as of Oct 2007. It is
not present in smaller cities.
If you eat for €20 per dinner, you will never be served a good tea; expect
Pompadour or Lipton. It takes some effort to find a good tea if you spend most
time of the day in touristy places.
Alcohol
The drinking age in Spain is 18. People under this age are forbidden to drink
and buy alcoholic drinks, although enforcement in tourist and clubbing areas is
lax.
Bars
Probably one of the best places to meet people in Spain is in bars. Everyone
visits them and they are always busy and sometimes bursting with people. There
is no age restriction imposed to enter these premises although children and
teenagers often will not be served alcoholic drinks. Age restrictions for the
consumption of alcohol are clearly posted at bars but are enforced only
intermittently. It is not uncommon to see an entire family at a bar.
Bars are mainly to have drink and a small tapa while socializing and
decompressing from work or studies. Usually Spaniards can control their alcohol
consumption better than their northern Europeans and drunk people are rarely
seen at bars or on the streets. A drink, if ordered without an accompanying
tapa, is normally served with a "minor" or inexpensive tapa as a courtesy.
Size and prize of tapas changes a lot throughout Spain. For instance, it's
almost impossible to get free tapas in big cities like Madrid or Barcelona while
you can eat for free (just paying for the drinks), with huge tapas at cities
like Granada or Badajoz.
The tapa, and the related pincho, trace their existence in Spain to both
acting as a cover ("Tapa") on top of a cup of wine to prevent flies from
accessing it, and as a requirement of law when serving wine at an establishment
during the middle ages.
Beer
The Spanish beer is not too bad at all and well worth a try. Most popular
local brands include San Miguel, Cruzcampo, Mahou, Ambar, Estrella Galicia,
Keller and many others, including local brands at most cities; import beers are
also available. A great beer is 'Mezquita' (Cervezas Alhambra), try to find it!
In Spain, beer is often served from a tap in 25 cl ("caña") or 33 cl ("tubo")
tube glasses. Bigger servings are rare, but you can also ask for a "corto",
"zurito" (round the Basque country) or simply "una cerveza" or "tanque" (south
of the country) to get a half size beer, perfect to drink in one go and get
quickly to the next bar while having tapas.
If you're in Zaragoza (or Aragon, in general), the best beer available is the
Pilsner-type Ambar (5.2% alc.) and the stronger Export (double malt, 7.0% alc.).
Ambar 1900: Its production began in 1996. The system of fermentation to room
temperature is used. Marlen is a beer of traditional manufacture using malted
barley and hops.
Locals in Aragon often add lemon juice to their beer.
Cava
Cava is Spanish sparkling wine and was invented after a long lasting dispute
with the French about the right name for the sparkling wine. The Spanish called
it for a long time champan, but the French argued that champagne can made only
from grapes grown in the Champagne region in France. Nevertheless, Cava is a
quite successful sparkling wine and 99% of the production comes from the area
around Barcelona.
Cider
Can be found in the Basque Country, Galicia and Asturies.
Horchata
A milky non-alcoholic drink made of tigernuts and sugar. Alboraia is regarded
as a best place where horchata is produced.
Sangria
Sangria is drink made of wine and fruits and usually is made from simple
wines. You will find sangria mainly in touristy places prepared for tourists.
Spanish prepare sangria for fiestas and hot summer, and not every day as seen in
toristic regions like Mallorca.
Sangria in restaurants aimed for foreigners are best avoided, but it is a
very good drink to try if a Spaniard prepares it for a fiesta!
Sherry (Fino)
The wines around Jerez are very high in alcohol and they produce the famous
sherry. If you would like to have one in a bar you have to order a fino.
Manzanilla is bit salty, good as an appetizer. Amontillado and Oloroso are
sweet, good after having a meal.
Wine
Spain is a country with great wine-making and drinking traditions: 22% of
Europe's wine growing area is located in Spain, however the production is about
half of what the French produce.
Regions: The most famous wines come from Rioja region, less known but also
important comes from Ribera del Duero. The latter are becoming more and more
popular and are slightly more expensive than Rioja wines. White, rose and red
wines are produced, but the red wines are certainly the most important ones.
Grapes: The primary red grape used is Tempranillo, the primary white grape
used is Albarino, and the privary Jerez grape used is Pedro Ximenez but others
can be found. The grapes used are quite delicate and thus there is a reduction
in yield.
Specific names: Valdepenas is good value for money. Whites: Belondrade Y
Lurton regarded as greatest white wine in Spain. Vina Sol is good as a mass
product, with fruity taste.
Grades: Spanish quality wines are produced using an aging process and they
have been in a oak barrel for at least one year before they can be labeled
Crianza and then spend another two years in a bottle before been sold. Reservas
are aged for five years and Gran Reservas are aged for 10 years.
Prices: Spain has seen a tremendous rise in wine prices over the last decade
and Spanish wines are not as much of a bargain as they were a decade ago.
However you will still find 5, 10 and 20 year old wines at affordable prices
especially when compared with similar quality wines from Australia, Chile,
France, and the US.
In a bar: For red wine in a bar, ask "un tinto por favor", for white wine "un
blanco por favor", for rose: "un rosado por favor".
Wine-based drinks: Young people in Spain have developed their own way to have
wine. When having botellones (big outdoor parties with drink and lots of
people), most of them will be mixing some red wine with Coke and drink such mix
straight from the Coke bottle. The name of this drink is calimocho or kalimotxo
(in the Basque Country and Navarre) and is really very popular... But don't ask
for it while in an upper class bar, or among adults, since they will most
certainly not approve of the idea! | 
