Bars and restaurants
In Andalucía, you’ll encounter a wide variety of eateries, ranging from simple tapas bars to Michelin-starred restaurants. However, there’s often no clear dividing line between a bar and a restaurant, and some visitors are surprised by the manner and order in which food is served. Here’s a short guide to what you can expect.
Bar-restaurants
Bar-restaurants are the most common type of establishment, with a bar at the front and a comedor (dining room) at the back. The comedor has tables with tablecloths and/or place settings for diners who will be having a proper sit-down meal, and it is sometimes only used at lunchtime. Conversely, the bar is a more casual space for people having a drink with some tapas and perhaps the odd ración. Bar-restaurants with an outdoor terrace often reserve their outdoor tables for diners, at least at lunchtime.
Whether you are in the comedor or the bar, a waiter/waitress will come to take your order and serve your food and drinks. Only ask for the bill and pay when you’re ready to leave.
Tapas bars
Some tapas bars don’t have a comedor, but instead have a few low tables reserved for diners – they’re the ones with tablecloths or place settings. If you’re just drinking and snacking, you should sit or stand at the bar or at one of their high tables. In other bars, they don’t have designated tables for diners, and they just bring out a paper tablecloth and cutlery if you order some food off the menu.
Restaurants
Towards the other end of the scale you have places that are primarily restaurants, with a small tapas bar by the entrance. This bar is mainly intended for people waiting for their table or for their friends to arrive before going into the dining room. High-end restaurants don’t generally have a tapas bar at all.
How the food is served
The manner and order in which the food is served varies a bit depending on whether it’s a bar-restaurant or a more formal sit-down restaurant. Here we’ll cover ordering a full meal, but also see our separate article about tapas.
Salads are generally eaten as a starter, as are cheeses and hams. After that, you continue with fish, meat and dessert, as in other European countries. Having said that, sometimes the food just comes out in the order it’s ready. Traditionally, in a bar-restaurant, dishes come in raciones – portions intended for sharing.
It’s not normal to specify side dishes like chips or vegetables with main dishes – they come with whatever guarnición (accompaniment) the chef considers appropriate, which is generally a small amount of potato and a few vegetables. If you want more vegetables, look out on the menu for parillada de verduras (grilled vegetables) or patatas bravas (roast potatoes with a spicy sauce), but they may be served as a starter – and the quantities will be designed for sharing.
Don’t worry if you don’t like the idea of sharing – many main dishes are suitable for eating individually, and particularly at more upscale and tourist-oriented restaurants, the expectation may be that everyone will order their own main course. Apart from soups, starters do tend to be designed for sharing, so you may end up with a lot of food if you order one per person.
An exception to all this the menú del día (set menu) where each person gets their own starter, main dish and dessert, but it’s normally only available at lunch on weekdays. Some bars and restaurants also offer individual dishes called platos combinados.
Meal times
Another thing that takes a bit of getting used to for foreigners is the times at which meals are taken. In Andalucía, some people start the morning with breakfast, but most people have breakfast at 10.30-11.00 am, during their mid-morning break from work.
The next meal is lunch, typically eaten from 2 pm onwards, although many restaurants open a bit earlier than that. It’s the main meal of the day, and particularly at weekends it can last for hours, with people staying on for the sobremesa after the food has been finished – chatting with your friends, often with a mixed drink in your hand.
A bit later in the afternoon or early evening you can have a snack called merienda, and then in the evening it’s time for cena. If you’re going out, this is normally tapas or something relatively light – just as well, as it’s eaten from 8.30 onwards, but often after 10 pm. Having said that, we’ve noticed a bit of a change here – most bars in Granada used to open at 9 or even 9.30 pm in the evening, but now many open at 8 pm, and some stay open all day. That’s partly to cater to tourists, but locals are also changing their habits.
Sometimes bar-restaurants might open for drinks before the kitchen opens, so check that they’re doing food if you’re not sure.
Tipping
No service charge is added to your bill at bars and restaurants, and tipping is entirely optional. If you have just had drinks and tapas, or tea or coffee, it’s not normal to tip, although sometimes people will leave some small change. Even if you have a sit-down meal, you don’t have to tip, but it’s normal to do so and is greatly appreciated. People leave anything from a few euros up to 5–10% at most.
It’s usually easiest to tip in cash, although sometimes you can get a tip added to the amount you pay by card. If so, you’ll need to say how much you want to pay in total, including the tip.
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Questions and answers
Andalucians don’t normally have lunch before 2 pm, and often later, but most restaurants open a bit before that. In tourist areas, you might be able to find a bar or restaurant where the kitchen opens at 12 pm, but 1-1.30 pm is much more common.
Outside the main tourist areas, most restaurants open between 8 and 9 pm. In places with a lot of international visitors, you’ll find restaurants open all day. Sometimes bar-restaurants might open for drinks before the kitchen opens, so check that they’re doing food if you’re not sure.
A ración is a dish of food designed for sharing. In most bar-restaurants you can also get at least some of the dishes as a media ración – half a ración.
Tipping is always optional. If you’ve just had drinks and some tapas at a bar, it’s not normal to tip. If you have a full sit-down meal, a tip is greatly appreciated, and you can leave anything from a few euros up to 5–10%, depending on the kind of establishment and the service you’ve received.