At a majority of the restaurants and bars, for every drink you order you get a free tapas to go with it. How great is that, right? On a gluten free diet, however, this can be tricky.
Below are some of my lessons learned when it comes to tapas and ordering meals out in general after two months in Granada:
- The free tapas are very often not gluten free
When something is free, I will normally hesitate in asking about the allergens. Which, of course, I absolutely should not. What seems to be pretty normal in Granada, is that the free tapas are made from gluten ingredients. It is often very obvious, such as breaded items, while it in other instances is not so clear. You should always ask upon serving what the tapas is and if it contains gluten. - Fear not, there are places where you can choose your tapas (and thus get them very gluten free)
If you would like to be more in control, you will be happy to hear that several restaurants let you choose your free tapas from a menu. Fantastic! One example of such a place is D|Platos. This way you can much more easily spot those that are safe to eat, either by asking the staff or checking the allergen marks. Which brings me to the next point. - Almost all places have menus with allergens marked…
It is a EU regulation to label menus with allergens, and in Granada they seem to take this very seriously. I have been taken by surprise by the large numbers of restaurants and bars that provide either special allergy menus or have marked every dish on the main menu with allergens. - . … but you cannot blindly trust these
While I have been pleasantly surprised, I have also realized that the quality and accuracy is not consistent. Several restaurants have done a little bit of guessing or simply been very sloppy. I have come across many restaurants where they have not marked gluten correctly, like dishes containing bread crumbs or soy sauce. Or even places where they know their menu is wrong yet have not bothered to update it. These errors and inconsistencies make it hard to trust the rest of a menu in a place and to enjoy a meal. In other words, you should always underline that you cannot eat gluten when you order. - The meals are great and plentiful
Eating out is fun and easy in Granada, and in some places you can survive simply on the free tapas. You should absolutely try out full dishes, though, or special tapas, as the quality of the food is very high. Once you overcome the hurdle of figuring out what is gluten free, you are in for many great gastronomical experiences!
Disclaimer: All information, advice, tips and feedback is based on personal experience and opinion. All places have been visited on own initiative and are not sponsored in any way.
