Vegetarians do Spain - Ideas, Suggestions, Directions please !
 

hi,

The wife and i are visiting Spain this April (Madrid, Granada, Seville, Cordoba & maybe Malaga) for about 10-12 days.

We are both vegetarians and really dont want to carry any snacks with us as we want to eat locally and just take in whats local. We visited Italy & Greece a little while ago (2007) and we had no trouble with food at all except at Lake Garda but we managed there too.

so i am hoping there are enough local chains, restaurants and quick service places in the locations above to get us by comfortably and enjoyably.Somehow i am sure Madrid shouldnt be a problem but i am not sure about the smaller locations !

cheers,

Be sure to check out that "sandwich vegetal" does not have the common boiled ham and egg on it.
And that salads do not have any tuna or ham on top.

These are common additions where non-vegetarian restaurants think they are still giving you a veg dish!

There are quite a few vegetarian restaurants around now. You should have no problems.

You can always get a platter of grilled vegetables (verduras a la plancha).

lincs, thanks. with my passable Spanish i think i can def make sure the food is veggie and the beer cold. cheers.

I'm also vegetarian and going to all the places you're going to (except Malaga) in June. Before I travel, I check out the local "Let's Go" book because it always includes restaurant options for vegetarians.

For Madrid, Let's Go specifically lists these restaurants as being vegetarian oriented although from glancing through from looking at other listed restaurants it looks like there are plenty of other options (sorry, I don't know how to add the accent marks): Achuri, Al Natural, El Estragon Vegetariano, El Granero de Lavapies, Restaurante Integral Artemisa, Vegaviana.

Seville: San Marco, Cafe-Bar Campanario, Habanita Bar Restaurante.

Granada: Hicuri

Cordoba: Mundano

Shanti,

thanks, ill surely drop you a list once im done. there is also these falafal places in Madrid called Maoz.

i was hoping there were chains a la Subway that were across Spain where i could sort of go in without having to think and pick up some chow !

Hi skinnylizard,
We are also vegetarians, and had an excellent trip to Spain two years ago. Link to our trip report is given below. We visited all the places you are going to, so you will find a good listing of veg restaurants that we visited. In case the link below does not work, click on my screen name, and scroll through my topics and you will find the trip report.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...n-portugal.cfm

Have fun !

The tapas offer many veggie options. Their are delicious eggplant and potato tapas. Gazpacho is veggie. They offer a whole fried eggplant meal in many places that is great. Veggie paella is most likely possible. Olives will be plentiful. Do you eat seafood? There is plenty of that especially along the coast.

There is a lot of ham! You will be given some with your beer. I would just learn the phrases for "no meat please" and "we are vegetarians" and you should be fine. Waiters in Spain take their jobs very seriously and will try to do their best to please you.

Here is my trip report. We loved it so much.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-holy-week.cfm

Thanks, skinnylizard, I'd love to see your list.

And, indiancouple, I enjoyed your trip report. Usually, I skip restaurant reviews in trip reports since they don't include vegetarian friendly meals, but your trip report listed so many possibilities for good meals!

I suppose the chains," Pans y Company", and "100 Montaditos" will have plenty of vegetarian options that are quite inexpensive and can be found everywhere for fast bocadillos.

There is always the buffet chain called "Fresco" that will please you as their salad bar is very nice, plus unlimited fruit, coffee and other pastas and pizzas in the back of the restaurant. Usually about 9 euros at lunch and a couple euros more for dinner. Includes one beverage, wine, beer or water or refreshment.

The inexpensive Rodilla sandwich chain sells lots of vegetarian friendly sandwiches and salads.

Hi,

Brilliant Stuff.

Lincasanova & Maribel - thanks for your input with the chains.

thanks for your link Kellibelle.

Indiancouple - all i can say is Wow. pretty much all i needed to know :) fantastic !!!

Indiancouple, i notice you only stayed in Granada for one night, any particular reason why? i have mates who asked me to stay put for 2N and 3 days...?

Skinnylizard, although we spent only one night at Granada, it is a decision that we regretted. I definitely think it is worth 2 nights, though maybe not 3. We were trying to fit many things within 17 days, so I really do not know where we could have subtracted one day from. Most people choose to skip Malaga, but we found Malaga to be excellent, and loved our day-trips from there to Nerja and Ronda (and even Torremolinos to watch the bullfight !).

So although Granada is definitely "doable" in one day, I agree that it merits 2 days if you have the time.

Vegetarianism is comon here in Malaga, so I don't think you'll have any problems.

i know its not the right thread for this but we are hoping to do
2N in Madrid
3N in Seville
2N in Granada
2N in Malaga

Overall your itinerary sounds OK, although a bit rushed. Are you planning on doing any daytrips out of Madrid ? To Toledo ? IMO you should not miss Toledo, in which case 2 nights in Madrid is probably not enough. Also, 3 nights in Seville means it would be difficult to accomodate a trip to Cordoba (although you could still do it if you have plenty of stamina).

A lot depends on what all you want to see, and how you are traveling inside Spain. Too little time for too beautiful a country !

Incidentally, I just noticed that josele has responded to your thread. He is the best expert for Malaga, as he lives there, and was of considerable help to us in planning our Malaga leg. OP is advised to pump josele for details about Malaga plans, once he firms up his itinerary.

Hi josele !

You might enjoy taking a look at Mario Batali's new cook book on Spain. "Spain On the Road Again" He takes a road trip with 3 others, 1 of whom is Gwyneth Paltrow who is a vegetarian. They discuss her food picks in the book and places that they ate at. It's more reading than recipes.


http://www.spainontheroadagain.com/

I don't think Gwyneth is a very strict vegetarian though--like me, she eats seafood. I also use all kinds of sources to learn about cuisine though--I just read a book about eating all the parts of the pig in Spain, but I digress. The suggestion to peruse some cookbooks is an excellent one.
Spanish cuisine is one of the best, even for vegetarians. Especially if you speak a little Spanish, you will have no trouble. Some things I particularly enjoyed: spinach with garbanzos, artichokes, cheese(!). It's nice at the tapas bars when you can just point. If you order something homey like potatoes and eggs, make sure you specify "no jamon."

hi,

thanks guys, i am not as worried about food as i was until a few days ago. Anyway, i have a little portable water heater thing and will carry some ready to eat meals as back up just in case.

cheers all !!!

Indiancouple,

I forgot to mention that i had planned a separate day for Cordoba but not staying the night in the town. Segovia is something i am still considering. Thanks a bunch !