Category: Spain

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Spain: Restaurants and Small Talk

Small Talk: How small tasks are accomplished

My wife and I went to a restaurant one night at about 8:00. It was, of course, empty.

A man lead us to a table, gave us menus and began to talk about the weather.

We nodded and smiled.

He continued to talk about the weather.

We began to agree with him. Yes, it is very hot.

He continued to talk about the weather.

It was not until we began making our own observations about the weather that we were able to move away from said topic.

We had a fantastic three course meal of fried octopus, squid, fish, rice, vegetables, and a volcano of chocolate. The meal lasted about two and a half hours. During this time the only people who entered the restaurant sat at the bar, ordered wine and talked to our waiter.

To us it was time to go. I picked up the check and approached the bar. The waiter, who clearly was not now nor ever should have been referred to as ‘my’ or ‘our’ waiter, was chatting with two men. I realized that in order for me to pay the check I would have to enter the conversation.

We spoke about how we were all doing, what each of us did or was going to do, where we were from, what were our favorite beers and why, where were the beers from, what made a good beer, how and why I knew Spanish, how old we were, who was the beautiful woman sitting at that table over there waiting twenty five minutes for me to pay this bill.

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Spain: Food and Drink

Ah! Spanish food! You must eat out frequently to find your favorite dishes.

Ice Cream

If you are an ice cream lover you will enjoy the not only the variety in flavor, though it is great, and the brightness of color, but also the texture and density of Spanish ice cream.

Food: Gazpacho, Paella, not Pizza

Be ready for sea food, gazpacho and paella. Gazpacho is a refreshing soup, served cold, consisting of tomato juice, shredded cucumbers, a touch of oil and garlic. It is perfect for lunch on extremely hot days.
Paella is an oily, salty rice based dish, served with vegetables, chicken, or sea food. It is especially delicious with shrimp, muscles, clams, and baby octopus. Do not order paella at just any restaurant, only the best.
Do not order pizza in Spain. It may be quite different, but it will not be so different that you couldn’t have exactly the same thing in one of our fancier pizza places in the States.

Drinks: Wine, Coffee, Chocolate, Coke, Water

The wine in Spain is not expensive, yet of great quality. The choice is simply vino rojo/rosa o vino blanco. Start with the blanco, then the rojo.
Coffee in Spain is not just delicious, but strong and thick. A good cup of coffee will be served in a small, white cup and will leave a residue at the bottom. Drink it black the first time.
Chocolate drinks are also quite thick and creamy. If you have a choice between buying a Coke or a bottled chocolate drink, choose the chocolate.
Water is sold in plastic bottles on the street and glass bottles in restaurants. You will have a choice between con gas o sin gas (mineral water or regular). If you are trying to save coins water is usually the same price as another drink, so you might as well try the chocolate.

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Spain: Restaurants and Service


Breakfast

Breakfast should be eaten after taking a morning walk, should be purchased from a panadería (a small bakery shop selling light and flakey pastries filled with jam, ham, cheese or chocolate), and should be enjoyed in a leisurely manner while sitting on a bench, near a fountain, watching the birds.

Tapas

Tapas are appetizer sized snacks that are served after siesta, between 3 and 6. Upon ordering a tapa, you should receive a free glass of wine and a small plate of bread with green olives. The best tapa with a white wine is either the Manchego cheese (slightly crumbly) or thinly sliced ham.

When eating tapas, sit at the bar or out on the patio. Whole families can go out for tapas, with five year olds spinning on bar stools and fathers smoking thick cigars.

Lunch and Dinner

Even after your internal clock changes, you will want to eat lunch around noon. Okay. Dinner, however, even when dining out, may not begin until nine or ten at night. Therefore, eat tapas.

No Free Bread

Your waiter approaches your table, and instead of any of the normal, “Hi, my name is . . .” dialogue, you are expected to order drinks and quite possibly your entire meal, including desert. Do this. Know what you want to drink and order two plates for yourself, primer plato y segundo plato (it’s like two ‘courses’). If they ask if you want any bread, remember:

  • There are only two waiters/waitresses for the entire restaurant. They are busy.
  • You will not know your server’s name and will not see him/her unless he/she is bringing you something.

Your waitress does not want to have a long conversation with you, if any at all. Your waiter is there merely to bring you your food, not to make you feel any sense of atmosphere or attachment to the restaurant. If you want to chat, do so at the bar during tapas.
And, since selling bread in Spain is profitable, you will pay for your bread.