Monica,
I am from the states and have been living in Madrid for 19 months now. I have 2 kids (8 and 11) who eat very well here. You will find Grocery stores that cater to every nationality(Carrefor, Lidel, Caprabo). You can find restaurants that serve American style food such as VIPS, RIBS, Tony Romas, Fosters of Hollywood). There are even stores that cater to Americans with American Brands(Taste of America) but you will pay a lot for the products. Don't worry, any food you want can be found here if you know where to look for it.

Thank you MedicalMan..and everyone else. After reading all of the responses, I think any worries we had about our picky eaters are unfounded...they'll be just fine!

Here in southern Spain kids like “ puchero ” very much. That is a soup you can add noodles, rice, egg, hamm,... My wife cooks caldo for several days and put on the freezer. If you can´t cook it, you can buy at supermarkets one litre brick of that soup ( caldo ), and add what you want. They also love “tortilla” , “queso manchego” and “arroz con gambas (prawns) y almejas (clams)” (you can buy the prepared sea food at the supermarket and then make the rice at home).

Fried fish: my kids have eaten a lot of fried “acedías” when they were younger!! In Andalucía kids like " pescaíto frito " very much (fried fish). Don’t forget gambas( prawns ) and jamón serrano (cured ham).

Fruit: we make a macedonia at home in order the kids eat all kind of fruit. And “mandarinas” are well accepted for kids.

I hate to say it, but with your husband being a picky eater, you are swimming uphill with your kids. Our youngest was picky and my husband and I had no tolerance for it. When we travelled in Greece and Spain, we refused to hunt for special food for him. He ate many meals of bread and olive oil. I kept some yogurt and fruit on hand, too. Not good for the long run, but for a few weeks, he survived. He is now seven and loves chipirones! (fried baby squid). To travel and not enjoy the local food is really a shame. I'd go the bread and olive oil route before McDonalds. Just my two cents worth.

Jana:
I agree, we can't 'feed into' our kids' quirks all the time...9 times out of 10 with mine it's simply a quirky food issue not so much that they don't like it, but that they don't WANT it. If the kids don't like somethings, that's fine but I won't go out of my way to ensure they get something they are used to without them giving the effort of at least 'trying' the food. They won't die...I've packed mulitvitamins! LOL I think they will be fine.

I know when I went to Spain with a group there were a lot of kids in the group that wouldn't eat the food. I mean we were there for five weeks and really only ate salad and bread with oil. But what they did eat was the Spanish omlet (potatos and egg omlet) which i make at home, bocidillos, simple paella *without the whole shrimp). I was so upset when we went out to eat plain old Pizza that we could get in the states. There's a lot more food options out there but you can't let your kids not try the food just because it looks funny, or isn't what they're used to. Spanish food is delicious, they should really give it a try.

When I first came back to Spain I was so upset, and nothing tasted like it should. It was so disgusting, and over processed. I've gained back all of the weight I lost over there simply but eating American food. (and I'm not talking about fast food places, i refuse to go to those) I was actually sick coming back because of the differences in food. So I would be mindful of that when you and your children return home. Ease into American food because 9 times out of 10 you will be sick.

Hope it all goes well!

I say this as a parent so, please noone take offense - there's a saying "monkey see - monkey do" and I found that holds true for kids in their eating habits as well as many other areas.

If you eat and seem to be enjoying something, the child will try it - you might not want to go into graphic detail about the content - just eat and appear to be enjoying it. That worked for me when my daughter was little - and it still works not only with her but with my peers as well.

Monicasometimes,

Looks like you have already received a lot of good replies to your question on "food recommendation" on Spanish food for children. I have had some experience with American children in Spain and vice versa ...Spanish children in America. It is a fact that children have many more taste buds than us adults and it is not always an easy task to find foods that they like. However, I do think that you will find success. I found that most children like tortilla, ternera, jamon york, chuletas, bocadillos, ensaladas, soups, fruits, breads, desserts, and rice in Paella....good or bad, patatas fritas are also on many menus. My last trip with my Niece has left her craving the fresh fruits and vegetables of Spain! She had no idea that things could taste so good Have a great time and let us know of your adventures!

Hi Monicasometimes!,

Here are my two cents.

I'm afraid I'm not sooo optimistic as previous posters, and think that you and your children are not likely to love everything; since I don't think of myself as overly picky and as I kid I would not try/like 'oreja' (pig's ear), and to this day I don't like 'ensaladilla rusa', for example.

But that's no biggie, they'll be other things you'll adore :-) (My vote goes for 'tortilla de patata', 'calamares', 'croquetas',....

Anyway, I'm from Madrid, but have been living abroad for a while now....

Very recently, over X-mas, my significant other and myself expent 2 days in Zaragoza, 3 days in Cercedilla, a village in the Madrid mountains, and 3 in Segovia...
Boy!, I had almost forgotten that outside Madrid (city), the tapas culture is alive and VERY well!!!

I mean, during my last years living in downtown Madrid, yes I knew of a few places where you'd get the odd little dish of olives, crisps (chips), paella, mussels, or sausages, etc....but I find this custom is getting lost in the big, busy, multicultural metropoli that Madrid is becoming....

Still, in "provincias", you get a free sample of food with your wine, beer o cola-cola EVERYTIME!
So much so that in Zaragoza we were with family, in Cercedilla we decided to have hearty "menús del día" (the daily menus), due to the intense cold and because we miss them so much over here, and they're such good value; but in Segovia....both the first night and the last afternoon there, even though our intention was to just have a few drinks BEFORE the meals ('aperitivos'), we were served so many free tapas....that we were stuffed and skept them altogether!

I say this because (depending on their age, of course), you might explain to them, that hey!, you've just asked the for their 'mosto' a non-alcoholic grape drink that I strongly recommend your children to try, for every child I know loves it; and guess what? they've been given 'gambas con gabardina' (literally, prawns in overcoats; really, battered prawns), or 'canapés de cangrejo' (clam canapes)!

So, in short, my advice, take them out "tapasing" a lot!!! :-) They might think it's cooool that you get all these freebies and maybe they'll be more keen on being adventurous....

My son (aged 13) loved the fact that you got free food in Madrid with every drink, and tried everything put in front of him just because it was free. He didn't like the boquerones (which i loove) but adored everything else. also, he absolutely lived for chocolate and churros for breakfast every day.