Hola! Since I will be living in Madrid all next year I would love a heads up on what to expect with the food, and customs surrounding it. I have heard it is very rude in Spain to eat food with your fingers like we do in the states (french fries for example). I also know you tip less, but are there other things I should know as well? How is food approached differently in Spain than in America? Do they have a "super size it!" complex? Are the customary dishes mainly fatting? Do they just eat better food and less of it? Also, as scary as it is for me, I will be cooking my own food (not my mom, or the cooks in the sorority). I have no clue what easy Spanish dishes I'll be able to make, with what ingredients are on hand. What are some inexpensive things that I could buy and eat? Please feel free to answer more than what I asked! Muchas Gracias!
Lulu

Hi Lulu...

First off, is that Bloomington, IL you are from??? It would be too much of a coincidence for me to have been born in Normal!!!

Wow... lots of things to answer here!!! But here goes:

It is not rude to eat with your fingers here any more so than in the States. It all depends on where you are and what the situation is. However, people do tend to be a little more skilled in the use of knife and fork than back home.

There is no "super size it" complex here. The portions tend to be generous but not as exaggerated as in the US. I don't think we suffer from the "if your plate isn't heaped and completely covered, you are being cheated" complex here.

I think that in general, the raw materials and food in general are a little less manipulated hence a more healthy diet. You don't see many obese people running around and my personal feeling that this is the reason. Spaniards tend to eat a lot but I think more "food" is going into their systems.

If you are cooking at home, you should have no problem just going to the local market and freaking out when you see the quality of what you can buy.

And as far as cooking goes, you can probably recreate your own diet with no problem. But if you want to get into the Spanish thing, there is a good book on the market by an American writer by the name of Janet Mendel that contain very good simple and tried recipes for Spanish food. One of here books is called "Cooking in Spain".

Hope that covers some of your questions. If you have anymore, just fire away. That's what this forum is for.

Hey lulu, as Richard said above, that is quite a wide open question you have asked but I think he has done a fine job in covering the major poins

Just take a peak into McDonald's here in Madrid (there are like 30 of them ) and you will see that it is totally normal for Spanish people to eat with their fingers but as Richard says, it depends on the context. Also, smoething very normal here in bars and cafeter�as is for the tapas and some other plates to be eaten using toothpicks instead of silverware. This is VERY popular when eating PATATAS BRAVAS. Most places will also give you silverware but if ya wanna fit in with the natives, use the toothpicks

With the Men� del D�a here, you get a good amount of food at a great price (normally) but, again as Richard said, the portions are not excessive to the point of gluttony as in many U.S. restaurants.

True, the only "Super Size" options here are at the fast food places like "McDonald's, Burger KIng, KFC, etc...

Saludos,
jer...

Hey Lulu,

I can think of an old Spanish custom that could be quite shocking for a foreigner. In certain bars (not pubs, or clubs, but the more traditional ones, and in many places for tapas that I'm sure you'll be visiting), people just throw the toothpicks Jer mentioned, dirty napkins, and just all kinds of "food leftovers" right on the floor, just below the bar!!!

Thanks for all the helpful hints, I really liked the picture. FYI Richard I live in Bloomington (I go to school at IU!)Could someone tell me about jamon...I am curious as to how long it is cured for. I was reading James Mitchner's Iberia and he had a picture of a huge acorn fed pig in there that had been hanging in a store window for 2 years, and had 2 more to go till it would be sold! My friends who have lived or studied in Spain have said having a huge jamon in the house is very common. Does it taste good? Are there any other fun and different customs I should know about?
Gracias
Lulu

Man am I slippin', PIM, I totally forgot about the "everything to the floor" custom and I am ashamed since that was one of the major enticing factors that brought me to this amazing country �Jejejeje!

So true, around closing time you have to wade through the toothpicks, napkins, olive pits, etc... to get to the bar

Jam�n, I do not know too much about it but I know how to eat it Hey lulu (and all who have not seen the Museo del Jam�n), check out my video clip of the "legs-o-ham galore" by
CLICKING HERE (1.3 MB download).

It is true lulu, many families have a leg of ham in their kitchen on a "jamonera" ("ham stand") for the cutting and eating little by little.

When I was here in Madrid for the first time studying years ago, I learned the custom of how to cut slices off of a leg of ham, but I learned the hard way!

My ex-girlfriend lived with an American "Se�ora" who rented her a room and use of the house during our course here in Madrid. One day we decided to cut some ham off of the "pata" ("leg") in the kitchen. The woman was quite the "poser" since she never even ate the ham, we think it was there so that she could look more Spanish and in touch with Spain, she was very false and shallow. Anyway, we began to cut the ham and being ignorant "guiris" ("foreigners") just off the plane from the states, we dug a hole in it instead of slicing it evenly which is the correct way. The "Se�ora" was not home at the time but the next day we went to my girlfriends place and saw a note (about 4 pages long) telling us that we had butchered the ham leg The note was complete with diagrams and all on how to cut it properly. Needless to say I have not cut a leg of ham since, scarred for life I guess

The whole experience was hilarious and if Albertina (my ex) is reading this, she can confirm the "desastre del jam�n" ("ham disaster").

Well, that's my input, maybe Richard can shed some light on the curing process and how long it takes?

Saludos,
jer...

p.d. I wish I had saved the note, it would be great to be able to scan it and post it here. It was a classic!

Oh yeah, I just thought of another thing that you will not see here, buttered bread at lunch or dinner.

Coming form the U.S. one would be used to having buttered bread with every meal (buttered toast for breakfast, at lunch a buttered roll and buttered bread at din din as well) but here in Spain the only meal that includes butter for the bread is breakfast (tostadas, croissants, etc...).

Butter is available and you can ask for it for your bread at any place you eat no matter what meal it is but just thought I would let you know it is not the "norm".

Saludos,
jer...

Thanks for the info, but I am thinking the lack of bread with butter could only help more than it could hurt! Jeje. I was wondering, is there a special place to buy seafood in Madrid? Is it as expensive as it is in the states (in the midwest)?
Thanks
Lulu

Hi Lulu, I've just thought of another subject we could comment on. It's Madrid's water. It's not really a custom or anything like that, although, now that I think about it, well, I do think that generally speaking Americans do drink a lot more pop or soda and less water than Spaniards.
But my point is that Madrid's water is, at least in my opinion, top quality! I try to only drink bottled water when I'm staying somewhere else, because the "taste" (or rather lack of taste) of our water can't be beat.

Hi Pim!.

I agree with you. I've been living in the north of Spain a lot of years and I always thought that the water from Navarra or Guipuzcoa were better than Madrid's water, but it was false. The water in Madrid is as good as the water in the north of Spain (or even better ).

The water in Madrid is second to none in Europe (with the possible exception of Granada and its natural springs all over the place, YUMMY! ).

I went to the movies last night and remebered another cultural food difference between the U.S. and Spain, the popcorn ("palomitas"). Here they are sold along with all the usual goodies at the movies but without the liquid butter that is always an option in the states. Again, this is a much heathier way of going about it but I am not sure why the butter is not available, it just does not exist here at movie theatres.

Thought you would all like to know.

Saludos,
jer...

Lulu,

If you like seafood you are going to the right place. I went to Madrid about a year ago with a girl form Brazil and being from South America she assumed that they had better seafood. She was surprised.
Madrid has the second largest seafood market in the world after Tokyo. So, you can imagine the variety, freshness and plethora of seafood available. You will probably see types of shrimp, crab, lobster, crustaceans never available in the states. The only place that can come close is Seattle.

Another thing, shrimp is served with the head on in Europe. Its the best part of the shrimp. Shrimp in the states tastes like shoe leather for the most part...ummm gambas a la parilla..i'm in heaven just thinking about it!!!

Hi gang.. have been silent for a while because I have just got back from the the US of A.

About the popcorn stream: There is a great habit I have developed here that I am slowly deviating my friends with: substitute that melted butter like in the States (it's mostly imitation anyway) with a top quality virgin olive oil and you will never look back. I have got my whole family doing it in Central Illinois and the place is going crazy...... Try it and let me know.. Should I patent it??? Or at least approach the refreshment stands with this new improvement????

Richard,

You're absolutely right on the substitution of olive oil over the buttery garbage we've used here in the States. It tastes better, doesn't have that "mildew, or stale" taste, and is a healthy difference. We've been doing it ever since our first trip to Spain, when we were skeptically introduced to it, and found it to be the real deal. It also changed our opinion about "kettle corn," which we'd always avoided like plague, because the butter and sugar mix, with salt, seemed out of place for the corn for some reason.

Where you're converting Central Illinois, just up I-39 from you, we're doing the same thing with family and friends - Not one has switched back to the old ways yet.

Hope you enjoyed your visit with the family, and didn't mind the lousy weather you encountered. We only had two real nice days this spring, until this past weekend (Memorial Day), which was fantastic!!!

JP

Three cheers for Olive Oil, hoorah, hoorah, hoorah!

I am going to have to try that, will sneak a little bottle into the movie theater since that is really the only place I eat popcorn

Saludos,
jer...