How to Eat Tapas Like a Local

You’ve heard how amazing Spanish food is, so you might want to know how to eat tapas like a local – and get the most authentic experience. There no secret language, no wiking involved – just habbits people developed over time, which you can easily learn.

How to get the most out of the Tapas experience

The heart of a Tapas Bar is, as the name suggests, at the bar. So get close and ask for your drink of choice first:

• white wine (Albariño, Ribeiro, Godello, Jerez, Txakoli),
• rosé (from Navarra, Rioja, or Prieto Picudo),
• red (Rioja, Ribera del Duero, Bierzo, Toro)
• sparkling (Cava).
• If wine is not for you, then you can get a beer, a vermut, or a non-alcoholic drink.

Once the bartender brings your drink, you can order your tapas. Some places have a printed menu on top of the bar; others only use the chalkboard. You can also ask the bartender if they have a menu by saying “Hay Carta?” or if they have specialties outside the menu by saying: ¿Qué hay fuera de carta?”

Once you’ve decided on what you want, order Tapas one by one and share. Don’t order the whole menu at once, because you may want to go on a Tapas Crawl (“Tapear”). If you order several tapas at one bar, expect to pay at the end. Just ask the waiter “La cuenta, por favor!”

Can I order Tapas from the chalkboard?

Yes, you can order from the list of tapas on the chalkboard posted outside the restaurant or above the bar. These can be the same as on the menu or perhaps additional limited-time offered tapas.

In Basque Country bars, the equivalent is the pintxos displayed on the bar counter: you point to what you want rather than ordering from a menu or chalkboard.

Can I get Tapas at a table?

Yes: at a table or at a barrel. Once you’ve decided on drinks, you should look at the menu for a section called “tapas” or “aperitivos.”

The rule we’ve followed when ordering is to order as many tapas as people there are at the table, plus one more. That means:

• for 2 people: order 3 tapas
• for 4 people: order 5 tapas

We never got the same tapa, like 2 portions of bravas at once. The point is to try as many different dishes at a time. If we were still hungry after finishing everything we ordered, we would ask for one or more tapas – this time maybe getting the same tapa, if we liked it a lot.

Besides the tapas, you’ll receive empty small plates, one for each person at the table. Those are for you to take a little from a tapa and put it in your plate. Once you finish, you a little for another tapa. This is not buffet: you don’t pile on and mix a bit of every tapa all at once in your plate, mixing the flavours. You are not in a hurry or in a competition. The point of getting tapas is to enjoy as many dishes in small bites as possible while sharing them with friends and having a conversation.

Once the bill comes, you could split it equally. Seems fair considering you shared the food. Or one person can pay the whole bill, and then another person covers the next bill, and so on. It really depends on your relationship with the people you go out with and how you prefer to handle the bill.

How do you get free tapas?

Almost all bars and restaurants in Granada will give you a tapa for every drink you order. That means you only pay for the drink. It also means you get a second tapa once you order a second drink. And this continues as long as you order another drink.

Some restaurants give you the option of choosing your free tapa. You get a small menu listing all the free tapas they provide. Some places even have promotions like getting 8 free tapas for a bottle of wine.

Sounds like heaven, right? Well, this comes with an expectation of respect for the Spanish custom.

The rules of free tapas in Spain

Keep in mind that this a gift from the restaurant.

1. Don’t get upset if somebody next to you gets a better or bigger tapa than you.
2. Don’t ask for a specific tapa unless you are asked.
3. Don’t demand a tapa if it’s not offered to you. Maybe they just finished their tapas and are waiting for the kitchen.

What Tapas should I order?

All of them! Kidding aside, you should try as many different tapas as you can while you are in Spain. Fried food can be fun but sticking to just those will keep you from great flavors from ingredients like tuna, fresh vegetables or pickled chilies.

The most popular tapas are “gildas” (anchovy, chili, and olive on a stick), “torreznos” (pork rind), “tortilla de patata” (Spanish omelette), “calamares” (squid), croquettes, and “ensaladilla” (Russian salad). We’ve also created a Tapas Starter Pack – 9 Tapas Every First-Timer Should Try, to guide you during your trip.

For more ideas about what Tapas to order, download Tapas Spinner on iPhone or Android. This is an app we created to help you decide what tapas to get. There are +50 tapas available in most cities in Spain, presented in a fun way: tap once and you get 3 ideas in seconds. If you don’t like your options, just tap again, and you’ll get 3 other tapas. And if you like a specific tapa, you can make it at home, because the app includes recipes as well.