Eating at the Supermarket

Many people think that the cuisines of Spain and Mexico are the same, when in fact that are very different.  Spain's contributions to the culinary world include paella, a rice dish; gazpacho, a cold tomato soup; and tapas, appetizers traditionally served at bars in Spain.  

We have not had luck finding good Spanish food in the neighborhood of the apartment.  There was a take-out place nearby that sold paella and tapas.  I ordered vegetarian paella (I don't care for shellfish) and an order of ham croquettes once to take back to the apartment for our supper.  The price was rather expensive, the portions were small, and the quality of the food was underwhelming.  That place has since gone out of business.  A few weeks ago I found a tapas bar not far from the apartment.  We went there one evening, and ordered a selection of tapas.  We will not be making a return visit.

If we are in the mood for Spanish food, we have found that our best bet is to go to "City Market", an upscale supermarket that is about a half hour walk away from the apartment.  Last weekend we went there a second time to eat.  I thought that I had already written about eating there, but I couldn't find any blog post about it.  So, here is our dining experience at "City Market", and I hope I am not repeating myself.

In the middle of the supermarket there is a counter where you can sit down and order Spanish food.

 "Pintxo" is the Basque word for tapas.  The menu, however, includes a lot more than just the little, appetizer-size snacks that we know as tapas. 

To drink, we ordered "tinto de verano", a traditional summer beverage in Spain.

"Tinto de verano" is very similar to sangría.  It is made with red wine, lemon soda, and chunks of fruit.  Outside of the southern province of Andalucía, Spaniards look upon sangría as something for tourists.  Since I really don't care for the taste of alcohol, I usually prefer sweet drinks.  However, in my experience in Spain, sangría is sometimes TOO sweet, whereas "tinto de verano" has always been very refreshing.  The "tinto de verano" at "City Market" is very good.

Next we ordered gazpacho, the delicious cold soup that comes from Andalucía.

So many places outside of Spain serve a sorry excuse for gazpacho that is bright red and simply tastes like cold tomato soup.  Real "gazpacho andaluz" must have bread ground in to give it a thick consistency.  This tasted just like what I would have in Spain.  The only thing missing were little bowls of chopped onions, bell pepper, cucumber and tomato to spoon in as a garnish.  They served it with slices of cucumber.

As a main course we both ordered a casserole made with eggs and "serrano" ham.  It was served in little cast iron skillets.  It was very good.  Although the serving looked small, by the time we were finished, we were very full.

It was an excellent meal that brought back memories of Spain.