Friends warned me that it might be a little difficult to find vegetarian food in Spain. I heard them but I figured really, how hard COULD it be?
Kinda hard, I discovered.
I’m in Spain because I was invited to speak at TBEX (the travel bloggers conference). The conference was in Girona in Northeast Catalonia (about 60 miles from Barcelona). I knew because of its proximity to the Mediterranean meals would be heavy on the seafood, but I wasn’t prepared for all the chicken, beef and pork.
Despite a minor mishap or two (such as discovering that the vegetarian risotto contained chicken – because, apparently, chicken is not meat), the truly vegetarian meals I have found have been pretty delish.
Pictured above is a spinach and cheese galette (crepe) with honey dripped over the top. Though the galette was not what I was expecting (I thought it would be more breadlike – similar to a pizza), this did not disappoint. Actually it was better than what I had envisioned. Score!
The event was held at a typical conference center but the food wasn’t your typical conference fare – it was far better. In the dining area, all the place settings already had our starters (yes, the plate up above contains just the starters) set for us when we arrived. This day, we had vegetable pie, lentils and salad. I was pretty excited about the salad until I discovered the cod placed on top. Ah well. Still, a mostly veggie meal. And in the center of each table were plates of cheese, ham and bread.
Really, I have nothing to complain about. It’s not like I’m being underfed. The first night we arrived, there was an opening
night party at a castle. Yes, a castle. Each room of the castle featured a specialty: ham, paella and my favorite, cheese.
This is where a large variety of cheeses were served up on small slices of bread (left). And many other vegetarian options were circulated by the waitstaff.
I likely ate enough that night for the whole weekend.
But, when all else fails? Eat gelato. Raspberry and mango to be exact. Definitely vegetarian.
Travel Well,
When a friend of mine was in Spain and attempted to eat veg, she found a lot of tuna thrown in as an “extra”. This was explained as “You must only be vegetarian if you’re poor. Thus, we’ll throw the tuna – a cheap meat – in for free, because we want you to not feel so poor.”
Definitely not feeling poor but appreciate them looking out for me 🙂
I didn’t think there were enough vegetarian options at TBEX to be honest, at least I was struggling with food.
Agreed. The vegetarian risotto had chicken in it 🙁
BUT, I did find some excellent pizza spots in Barcelona so all was not lost!
Reminds me of my travels in France. When I told restaurant staff that I didn’t eat meat, I was offered foie gras many times. I finally figured out that I had to order crudités (raw vegetables). They looked at me like I was crazy, but it worked!
Reminds me of my travels in France. When I told restaurant staff that I didn’t eat meat, I was offered foie gras many times. I finally figured out that I had to order crudités (raw vegetables). They looked at me like I was crazy, but it worked!