Catalan cuisine
bread with tomato
Pa amb tomà quet: bread with tomato. Many people in Spain are surprised when discover the Catalan way to prepare "pa amb tomà quet", because instead of being sliced tomato with bread, the tomato sometimes with garlic is squashed and spread in the bread slice, dressed with extra virgin olive oil and small cuts of a very Catalan specialty: cured pork meat, that is, the famous Iberic ham Spanish for "jamón" and "pernil" in catalan", "fuet", "xorÃs" or "butifarra" spicy cured sausages, sobrassada, or other stuff like cheese or larger pieces of cooked meat. "Pa amb tomà quet" is a very deeply rooted meal in Catalan houses.
Usually announced as Cuina Casolana, based on the purposes of the Mediterranian diet: Soups, salads, meats, fish and seafood, snails especially in Lleida during "L'Aplec del Cargol" by early May, desserts "Crema catalana" or catalan cream, "Braç de gitano" which is a long roll made of whipped cream and sponge cake pastries...
Paella
Typical rice dish from the catalan lands. catalan paella is with seafood, while valencian paella is without seafood. there's also a variant of paella which is made up with little noodles called "fideuã ". in addition, paella and fideuã can be prepared with black squid ink, then it's called "fideuã negra" or "arrã²s negre" black fideuã and black rice respectively.
There are lots of good places to eat.At lunch time 13-15:00 approx., a lot of Restaurants and Bars offer Menú del dia Menu of the day - Prix Fixe, usually consisting of a choice of four starters, four main courses, wine and bread for at a reasonable price. Some bars also offer "Plats Combinats" which are a few items served together at reasonable prices - eg Hamburger, egg and chips.At dinner time 20-23:00 approx, a Menú is not so frequent.
In all the medium sized cities, you can expect to find a large range of possibilities.
other cuisines
Cuisines from other regions can be readily found in cities of Catalonya:
Tapas - Typical Spanish
Basque food
Italian food - Pasta, pizzas, ...
Chinese food
Japanese food
Fast food