Sabrosa Spain

WHAT IS A TAPA?

 When it comes to eating, the word tapa has become one of the most famous all over the world. Most of the people know that this concept consists of an appetizer that is served in Spanish bars when you order a glass of wine, a beer or other beverages, most of them alcoholic. In some places you have to pay for it, but what people from other countries do not know is that it is commonly served for free in many regions of Spain when you order something to drink.

  Spanish Omelette or 'Tortilla Española'

The origin of this concept is unknown, however there are a few theories that could probably give us some hints about it. Here we have a couple of them:

1- Alfonso X, King of Castilla during the 13th century, had to drink a couple of glasses of wine a day to recover from an illness. He was told to eat small appetizers during the day so the alcohol did not affect him. Since he had a successful recovery, he ordered all bars and restaurants to give an appetizer when somebody ordered some wine.

2- The word tapa comes from the word tapar, which means "to cover". It is said that people used to cover the top of their glasses with some food to prevent the flies from falling into the wine.

3- It is also said that bartenders used to cover the top of the glass with some food so their clients had to eat it before drinking. This way they did not get drunk easily and avoided fights and arguments.

 Garlic Shrimps or 'Gambas al Ajillo'

Eating tapas is something totally different from having lunch. People in Spain go for some tapas at noon on weekends, before going to lunch. It is a way to socialize and regularly we enjoy them while standing and not seated. Normally we visit a few bars to enjoy different type of tapas. This would be some type of pub crawl, but focused on enjoying little bites of food.

Nowadays, it is possible to enjoy tapas anywhere in Spain, however only in some specific cities it is possible to get tapas for free every time you order a drink. As a recommendation, the best cities to enjoy tapeo (action of tasting tapas) for free are Madrid, where you can explore hundreds of bars in order to find the best tapa, or Granada. Eating tapas in Granada is a unique experience. Tapas in this city are so big and tasty that after two or three of them you will feel satisfied and won't need to have lunch or dinner. Somebody can think that if these bars offer tapas for free when you order a drink is because the drink is more expensive. Believe me, a beer (300ml) costs around 2-3 euros. As an example, for one beer like this, in Madrid you can get some olives or a piece of Spanish Omelette; in Granada you can get a sandwich or a plate of paella.

The tapa is a religion in Spain and it is also becoming quite famous in many other countries. In a few years, it will be amazing to go get some tapas with some friends on a Sunday morning in New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, London, Paris or Berlin.

SABROSA SPAIN

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