1. Spanish people almost never tip on a Menu del Dia
This is explained patiently to me time and again. There is no need to tip if you have the set, 3 course menu del dia lunch. We know that tipping in Spain is by no means obligatory (5% is about right for good service at dinner), but few people will tip for one of these marvelously good value lunches.
2. Bananas must come from the Canary Islands
And if they come from anywhere else, many a Spaniard will rather go banana-less until the next shipment comes in.
3. Indian Restaurants Sugar their Spiciness
Most Spaniards do not like hot, as in chilli-hot, food. So many Indian (and other ethnic) restaurants actually add sugar to their curries to bring down the scorch factor.
Any random Spain facts of your own to add in the comments?
TÃo Rubo
22 Jan 08 at 12:39 pm
Fact 1: I don’t usually leave tips unless the treatment is better than average.
Fact 2: We had a lot of advertising from our government over the last decade about “plátano de canarias” so now we can even tell the difference between canary bananas and other bananas.
Fact 3: I never went to an indian restaurant but I do love spicy food…
Signed: A random spaniard
Maria S.
22 Jan 08 at 1:00 pm
At first I misread #2 as such:
“And if they come from anywhere else, many a Spaniard will rather go bananas until the next shipment comes in.”
I made me smile as I thought of the former East-Germans who went bananas over bananas after the wall came down and for a second I believed the same goes for the Spaniards.
A.E. to go bananas = to go crazy
Have a good one!!
Graeme
22 Jan 08 at 5:21 pm
I certainly believe the one about the bananas, I always go for the Canary Islands ones.
On number 3, the first time I went to an Indian restaurant in Madrid the waiter was all “don’t worry its not hot” reassurance until we told him that we wanted it to be spicy! “You can have it as spicy as you like” was the answer.
Tipping in my experience is not really that common even if its not the menu of the day. It’s based on the out of date concept that waiters in Spain are reasonably paid professionals. In some cases its still true, but every day a bit less. It causes problems when the Spanish travel because there are countries where it’s more or less obligatory to tip.
Mark
22 Jan 08 at 6:11 pm
I had a similar problem in Thailand with some food described as "hot spicyâ€. A Thai guide told me to ask for "Thai Spicy†as most foreigners found the "fully authentic†Thai curries overpowering. I’d go back there just for the food!
Gary
22 Jan 08 at 7:39 pm
It is strange when you have a curry in spain in a restaurant frequented by Spaniards – they always ask how hot you want the dish.
I expect with the Spanish penchant for complaining if food is not to their taste the versitile asian chefs find it easioe to ask than to have the dish sent back.
Look – where I come from (West Yorkshire, very high bangladeshi population) Vindaloo cant be served mild, the dishes are named and one instinctively knows that they are mild, medium, hot or oh-my-god. This seems to be the case more or less anywhere in Britain – Eat Vindaloo and expect lavatorial repercussions.
Vindaloo and the even hotter Tindaloo or Fahl curries that are offered are eaten only by the youth as a test of manhood or a rite of passage.
Current favourite is chiclen achaar – medium hot like a jalfrezi but has lime pickle in it…
SergiMan
22 Jan 08 at 7:52 pm
Congratulations for #2, it’s absolutely true for most people!! I’m a Spaniard and don’t care where are they from, but Canarian bananas are smaller and sweeter. More random facts, please!!
Parubin
22 Jan 08 at 10:44 pm
Spanish Fact on our National Sport (=football) : All Spanish people believe we have the best League in the world, the most skilled players and no foreign teams are better than ours.
The same translates to our National Team, we think we are winners of the World Cup before it even starts. Of course, we never even make it to the semi finals!!! what a great dissapoinment we have!! Until the following Euro-Cup in which we happen to be favourite team to win again…
luke
23 Jan 08 at 9:23 am
@Parubin. The Spanish football team rarely live up to expectations but I’m still supporting Spain for the Euro-Cup (since their are no Brits in it) ‘!Venga Espan~a!’
Two random Spanish facts based on empirical research:
1. Chinese restaurants don’t automatically give you chop sticks unless you ask the very surprised waiter for them. (Also expect to see people eating Spanish salads)
2. When you bring a bottle of red wine (even an expensive one) to a Spanish household don’t be surprised if your host puts it in the fridge before opening it. This even happens in the winter. If your host also mixes it with Gaseosa (poor quality lemonade) then try not to be shocked.
luke
23 Jan 08 at 9:44 am
Random Spanish football fact:
The first official football match in Spain was in 1890 between the Huelva Recreation Club versus the Seville Water Works. Seville won 2-0. With the exception of two Spanish players on the Huelva team, all the players on both teams were British.
luke
23 Jan 08 at 10:51 am
Never get the menu del dia wine, it is always undrinkable (unless you mix it with Gaseosa!)
Theresa
23 Jan 08 at 12:26 pm
Luke,
What households have you been visiting? I’ve been here fifteen years and most of the Spaniards I know wouldn’t dream of putting a good bottle of wine in the fridge…that’s sacrilege!
luke
23 Jan 08 at 2:50 pm
Theresa, I was brought up to drink red wine at room temperature but the people I know in Spain are mainly working class, may be that has something to do with it?
Parubin
23 Jan 08 at 4:01 pm
@ Luke : I was surprised to see your post too. I’d say people in Spain are quite wine savvy in general terms. And red wine, should be served a little below room temperature (unless your room temperature is 17ºC) so if your wine isn’t stored in a proper cellar at that constant temperature it is tolerable to cool it down a bit by putting it in the fridge for a little while before opening (no more than a few minutes).
Ryan
23 Jan 08 at 4:44 pm
All red wine should be chilled as Parubin says. If you are at a good restaurant, they will make sure that it is 15degrees or so. I’ve had to ask for an ice bucket many times when drinking red wine at low end restaurants, since the wine was warmer than the surroundings.
Conversely most white wines here are served too COLD and need to be warmed up. Wines organaleptic qualities(any substance’s) are diminished the colder they are.
luke
23 Jan 08 at 6:18 pm
@Parubin. My grandfather was a collector of good wine and he used to take wine from the cellar and put it near the fire to warm it before opening. His house was pretty chilly.
Do you think my experience is because the majority of people I know in Spain come from working class backgrounds (I know taxistas, bomberos, secretarias, carniceros, empleados en fabricas etc)?
However, I have noticed that some of my friends have changed in the last few years and do pay more respect to a good bottle of tinto!
ValenciaSon
24 Jan 08 at 3:38 am
Spaniards refuse to buy “used” homes.
leftbanker
24 Jan 08 at 9:21 am
Fact: If you cook dinner for Spanish friends, they have no problem giving you a detailed critique of the meal when it is finished.
I remember noticing this on the Spanish cooking show, Hoy Cocinas Tú, in which a person learns how to cook a dish and then makes it for family/friends. The dinner guests always offer suggestions as to how the dish could have been improved. I have grown accustomed to this and now I prefer a fair assessment of my food to an insincere compliment.
I usually only prepare foreign dishes for Spanish friends (American or Mexican fare) so that they don’t really know what the dish is supposed to taste like. And yes, I leave out the hot spices. Something that defeats the purpose of many Mexican dishes.
One more thing, you cannot change a single ingredient when making a standard Spanish dish or you will never hear the end of it. I made a tortilla the other night for my girlfriend and her mother. They both looked on in horror as I made it with cheese and onions—something that just isn’t done here. It was as if I were mixing two highly volatile chemicals like bleach and ammonia. The only way I could get them to try it was to convince them that it was a French dish.
BrianA
25 Jan 08 at 4:17 pm
@Sergiman – I’m with you all the way. The Canarian bananas are smaller and taste better. Many of the others seem to have been refrigerated (or something) for too long and go from rock hard to mush in 3 days. Anyway what’s wrong with buying “home-grown” in these days of low carbon footprint produce
Brendan
26 Jan 08 at 3:00 pm
F1: True, I don’t either now.
F2: Not sure, you do get more bang for your buck with it’s bigger brother!
F3: I’d have to agree, there are exceptions, especially among those who have travelled (hope I’m not generalising to much here…!!!
Brendan
26 Jan 08 at 3:00 pm
F1: True, I don’t either now.
F2: Not sure, you do get more bang for your buck with it’s bigger brother!
F3: I’d have to agree, there are exceptions, especially among those who have travelled (hope I’m not generalising too much here…!!!
Brendan
26 Jan 08 at 8:25 pm
F4: Spanish don’t drink fresh milk anymore, or very little. Can anyone shed any light on why this is?
Sorry about the double entry…
Marcos
4 Feb 08 at 10:59 am
Three Random Facts:
#1 Many Spaniards eat a dish called RABO DE TORO (A bull’s tail). Delicious…
#2 Spaniards dont usually like wearing shorts in a city street (unlike in the US)
#3 To many tourists’ surprise, Spaniards in general do not speak English. You can go to many cities where no one will understand you if you dont know any Spanish. But they will be really helpful anyway!
Mark
7 Feb 08 at 9:16 pm
Is “going bananaless” the opposite of “going bananas”?
fushigi-kun
4 Mar 08 at 3:07 am
My fact: Football coaches in Spain are called ‘Mister’ regardless of their nationality.
As for fact 2, I guess that has to do with the campaign to promote ‘plátano de Canarias’. Actually, bananas from Canarias are fresh and ripe since they have less distance to travel to the markets. Many imported bananas arrive totally green and almost frozen.
As for fact 3, most of the Spaniards I know love hot spicy food.