Learn Spanish with Parallel Texts: Eating out in Barcelona

This is the fifth and final of the Spanish English Parallel Texts with Spanish audio about Spanish city Barcelona in Cataluña and here we look at the typical food of Barcelona. Barcelona is an amazing Spanish city in so many ways and one of the most popular tourist destinations in Spain. Barcelona has everything really that you could wish for in a tourist destination: close proximity to the coast with beautiful beaches, great restaurants and bars, good weather, a hustling and bustling modern city, culture, art, history, etc, etc. Parallel Texts are a fantastic way to practice your Spanish. You can listen to my Spanish audio and see how much you understand and then after one of two listens you can check first the Spanish text and afterwards the English text. Try to push yourself not to go straight for the easy option of listening and reading and especially try not to concentrate too heavily on the English translation. Remember that you cannot always translate everything literally and you have to go with the flow of the Spanish version primarily. We have already looked at lots more other Spanish cities in this Parallel Texts Spanish English Course so far and all of the lessons are available completely FREE on the website.

Parallel Texts Barcelona Parte 5 Gastronomía

In Spanish:

Cataluña tiene una gran reputación por su exquisita cocina moderna y tradicional. La cocina de Barcelona se caracteriza por un estilo y una creatividad de los que otras regiones españolas carecen. Un pionero de la cocina moderna y de la Nueva Cocina Española es el cocinero catalán Ferrán Adrià. Adrià es uno de los cocineros más famosos, más imitados y respetados del mundo. Es fácil recomendar una visita a uno de sus magníficos restaurantes, pero por supuesto usted debe estar preparado para una factura considerable. A Adrià se le asocia a menudo con la “gastronomía molecular”. Sin embargo, él prefiere llamar a su estilo “deconstructivista” y dice que su objetivo es “proporcionar inesperados contrastes de sabor, temperatura y textura”.

Sin embargo, la comida de Barcelona tiene tres ingredientes básicos: el tomate, el ajo y el aceite de oliva. Debido a su proximidad al Mediterráneo, los platos de marisco son fáciles de encontrar, y también hay claros indicios de la influencia de las vecinas Francia y Valencia. La influencia valenciana se puede ver en la variedad de platos de arroz que se pueden encontrar en Cataluña.

Algunos de los platos locales más populares son el pan con tomate (pan tostado rústico grueso con ajo, sal y tomate frotado con aceite de oliva rociado en la parte superior), la Zarzuela (una cazuela de mariscos en la que se puede incluir cualquier combinación de diferentes tipos de pescado blanco, langostinos, camarones, calamares, mejillones, almejas, cangrejos y langosta con aceite de oliva, tomate, limón, pimentón, vino blanco, jerez y otras especias), la “Fideuá” (similar a la paella, pero en lugar de arroz, la base es fideos) y, finalmente, la Crema Catalana (un postre de natillas frío con una capa crujiente de azúcar caramelizado).

In English:

Catalonia has a reputation for fine modern and traditional cuisine. Barcelona cuisine is characterized by a flair and creativity that other Spanish regions lack. A pioneer of modern cuisine and the “Nueva Cocina Española” is Catalan chef Ferrán Adrià. Adrià, one of the most famous, most imitated and well respected chefs in the world. It is easy to recommend a visit to one of his wonderful restaurants, but of course you should be prepared for a hefty bill. Adrià is often associated with “molecular gastronomy”. However, he prefers to call his style “deconstructivist” and says his goal is to “provide unexpected contrasts of flavour, temperature and texture”.

Barcelona food has three staple ingredients however: tomato, garlic and olive oil. Due to its proximity to the Mediterranean, great seafood dishes are easy to find and there are also clear signs of the influences from neighbouring France and Valencia. Valencian influence can be seen in the variety of rice dishes that are available in Catalonia.

Some popular local dishes include “Pa amb tomàquet” (thick toasted rustic bread with garlic, salt and tomato rubbed in and olive oil drizzled on top), “Zarzuela” (a seafood casserole that can include any combination of different types of white fish, prawns, shrimp, squid, mussels, clams, crayfish or lobster with olive oil, tomato, lemon, paprika, white wine, sherry and other spices), “Fideua” (similar to paella,but instead of rice, the base is “Fideos” – short, skinny noodles) and finally “Crema Catalana” (a cold custard dessert with a crispy, caramelized sugar coating).