Food Culture

Food culture in Seville is very different from in the United States, especially when it comes to the time people eat. Breakfast tends to be pretty small and usually consists of coffee (of course), toast with either ham or olive oil, and sometimes fruit. Lunch tends to be a bit later, with most people eating around 3pm due to the fact that most people are home between 2 and 4 for siesta. Lunch is typically followed by a “merienda” (snack) around 7pm and finally dinner is eaten around 10pm. Lunch tends to be the biggest meal during the day. Dinner in Seville is a great example of tapas culture, where people go to restaurants, order small plates, and hang out eating them for a few hours spending as much time outside in the cooler air and spending as little money as possible. This highlights the priority that the Spanish place on social life, with most people seeing either extended family or friends every night in the city.

I eat most of my breakfasts and lunches at the residence I am staying in. I have a kitchen in my room and this gives me the awesome opportunity to go to local markets, buy traditional Spanish foods and make them for myself. Of course, I do go out to my fair share of restaurants, especially for dinner, but with tapas ranging from 1 to 5 euros in price it is easy to eat out without spending too much money.

The most interesting (and delicious!) food I’ve eaten so far is “caracoles”. These are basically very small snails, usually served in a sauce that is somewhat spicy. I had never eat snails so I was nervous to try them at first but it was definitely worth it!