TANTALIZING - The World of Spanish Tapas

by HABEEB SALLOUM, senior global corresponent

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We had just finished a week's tour of Spain's Levant coast where we had been treated to the bottomless pit of Spanish hospitality. Now, for the last night in Spain, the owner of Resaurante El Callejon in the heart of Madrid was hosting us. Ernest Hemingway's description of it in his novel, The Dangerous Summer, brought it into the limelight when he wrote:

"We got into Madrid in time for a late lunch at the Callejon, a narrow crowded restaurant on the Calle Ternera where we always ate alone because we both thought that, day in and day out, it had the best food in town".

That evening we found that this well-known eating-place has continued its tradition of excellence. It was the culmination of what we had experienced for seven days in the world of Spanish culinary art. The tapas we relished were the epitome of what the land of El Cid had to offer.

A half dozen pleasant smiling waiters served us dish after dish of succulent appetizers, each more mouth-watering than the next. Mushrooms cooked with hot peppers, tasty finger-like fried mashed potatoes, pickled olives, onions and pimentos made savoury by garlic and herbs, spicy albóndigas (meat balls), toothsome tortillas (omelettes), tripe cooked in a delicious sauce, and other finger foods were passed among us. It was a panorama of Spanish tapas - a world of culinary delights.

In Spanish, tapas means 'little lids' and their introduction into the cuisine of Spain goes back into the mist of history. A number of food historians have written that the first tapas were pieces of bread used to cover wine glasses to keep out the flies. Others have indicated that, at one time, tapas referred to a plate of appetizers that would be served on top of an ordered wine glass.

Another theory, however, may prove to be more probable. Tidbits of food from the simple to the complex served with all types of drinks are also a pillar in Middle Eastern cuisine. In that part of the world these finger foods, always accompanying beverages, are called mazas. The Arabs could very well have brought them from the Middle East after they had conquered the Iberian Peninsula.

There is a good possibility that tapas were introduced by the Moors into the Spanish cuisine during the 900 years they lived as conqueror and conquered in that land. There is an obvious connection in serving finger foods between these two parts of the world. The Spanish tradition of gathering before a meal for a drink and the sampling of endless appetizers is to be found, to a large extent, only in Spain and the Middle East.

An enormous variety of tapas, from plain foods to sophisticated dishes, are served in the homes and public eating places throughout Spain. At times, people forgo the meal after nibbling on these appetizers that may range from a few dishes to, perhaps, as many as a hundred. Visitors who become accustomed to tapas usually always include them when planning their invitation feasts.

In the land of flamenco, nobody enjoying their drinks in a bar or cafe will sip a glass of wine in a lonely fashion with¬out a whole variety of these appetizers. Tapas are always ready prepared but some needing to be warmed before serving. Every eating or drinking outlet offers from a handful to dozens of these mouth-watering tidbits. Even tourists who do not know the language can partake in this culinary tradition. Displayed openly in glass cases or on top of counters, customers need only point out the ones they desire.

Tascas, something like a pub in England where one enjoys a drink while carrying on a conversation and sampling tapas, are the true home for these delights. In the Tascas relaxing atmosphere no one ever guzzles a drink by itself. Even in the humblest of bars, dishes of simple cold meats, nuts and olives always accompany the beverages served to customers. Of course, more complex sapid dishes are to found in a good number of these and other food and drink establishments.

This tradition of serving appetizers with drinks is firmly implanted in the Spanish home. It doesn’t matter if it is in the abodes of the peasants or the villas of the wealthy, they are always offered as a prelude to a meal. From a few dishes in the homes of the workers to an endless variety of spicy seafood and all types of cooked meats in the mansions of the affluent, no repast is complete without these pillars of Spanish cuisine.

Without fail, they are served in the early afternoon or evening as a tantalizing start to the meals. Exciting and enhancing the appetite, they, at times, make the unwary over¬indulge and ruin their desire for the main course. Unquestionably, picking away at these tasty appetizers often reduces the pleasures of the principal part of the meal.

On the other hand, tapas can be served, at any hour, as a re¬past by themselves. The first time I saw a person consuming them as a meal was in the Parador Luis Vives, edging lake La Albufera near Valencia. In the restaurant of this charming tourist abode, I watched a gentleman at the next table order a bottle of beer and, perhaps, 20 different tapas. Munching on fried and pickled fish, shrimps in garlic, meat balls, olives, cooked meats, and a half a dozen different vegetable dishes, he appeared to be relishing every morsel. The pleasure he exhibited as he ate convinced me that dining on tapas was a gourmet delight.

Simple to prepare, these famous Spanish appetizers that have become an institution in that sunny land are within reach of every cook. For the lovers of fine food, these dishes touch only on the fringes of that delicious world of tapas.

All pictures taken by and property of Habeeb Salloum