Hi everyone,

I'm travelling to Spain in September for a few weeks, heading from Barcelona to Madrid, then to Granada, and finally down to Malaga.

I'm fairly easy-going when I travel - I'm all up for trying new things, and seeing what the local customs are like. I'd rather try to eat where the locals eat, than eat at the places geared to the tourist crowd.

That said, I don't eat red meat. Or pork. Or lamb. Actually, meat-wise, I really only eat chicken, turkey, and all seafood. (Totally down with the chicken and seafood.) It's not a religious thing, but it's something I've stuck with for about 6 years now, and even the taste of, say, beef/ham fat, or beef/ham stock, makes me feel rather ill.

My best friend's worried me a little with the idea that there really won't be much that I can eat whilst I'm in Spain, and that I will be getting my daily nutritional sustenance out of a cereal box three times a day for lack of anything else available. So seeing as my Spanish is limited to "hola" and "gracias" (and "donde estan mis pantalones" - long story, don't ask ), or thereabouts, I figured I'd ask here for (a) a little reassurance, if there's any to be had; and (b) anything I should look out for that may or may not be obviously things I can't eat.

Even restaurant recommendations along those lines in those locations would be definitely welcomed.

Muchas gracias!

-adiav

Hi,

We've had some convos on this board about vegetarian and other food restrictions, so you might try searching for that. Otherwise, you'll have no problem getting seafood in Spain. It's a staple in the Spanish diet. Chicken is common enough too. In Madrid, there are a couple of chains that will have menus that will please you, although they are a bit more American than you may like. They are Vips, Gino's, TGIFriday's, and Hard Rock Cafe. Vips and Gino's are Spanish chains...I think I posted once before with more detail, so that should come up in your search.

Have a great trip.
super lau

PS Buy a travel guide with some simple Spanish phrases and translations of basic food words..that should help you avoid ordering something that you won't want to eat.

Hi Adiav,

Dont know if you are already on your travels, but just wanted to say that if you ever ask for something veggie in spain, many places and people dont consider ham to be meat! or if they do its an insignificant kind! strange at that sounds ! My sister is a vegetarian and although she could tell the waiters this everywhere we went in spain she would always end up with some ham in her food and when she would say i'm a veggie the staff would look puzzled! my spanish friend said its because the ham is chopped so small they dont think it counts!!! lol!!! bocadillo de tortilla/queso is always a good stand by to know (omelette/cheese sandwich)!

Hola Britgirl!

Don't worry, looks like there are options for you.
I just read about a highly recommended vegetarian restaurant in Madrid called Artemisa, which is supposed to be in Puerta del Sol area. Also, I came across this page which lists all vegetarian places
and explains to what extent they are "vegetarian" .

http://www.frommers.com/destinations/madrid/D54941.html

Don´t worry as you can still eat many things as:
salads, gazpacho, tuna, shrimps, octopus, squid,paella or any other rice, eggs, tortilla, potatoes, chicken, pasta, pizza...
In every bar or restaurant you could eat without problems, there will be lot´s of things to choose.