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| La Boqueria : You've arrived |
La Boqueria
is Barcelona's most famous,
fantastic and
frenetic market.
It is
one of
the city’s highlights
and the
very best
reason for
going to
The Ramblas.
Those of
you who
read my
Ramblas post
(and those
of you
who haven't
will I'm
sure be
doing so
straight after
completing this
or I'll
want to
know the
reason why)
might have
come away
with the
sensation that
I was
a little
jaded by
The Ramblas
– this shows
you are
sensitive and
intelligent readers
who are
aware of
nuance and
I praise
you for
it. La Boqueria is different
however. I
am not
jaded by
The Boqueria.
Jostled, yes.
Jiggled, yes
Jaded, never.
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| La Boqueria 1 Chilli Fronds |
You can
get a
taxi to
The Boqueria
or you
can get
the Metro
to Liceu
(Green line) but the
best way
to reach
it is
to walk
down Las
Ramblas from
Plaza Catalunya
taking in
the human
statues as
you go
until you
get to
the Metro station at
which point
you look
to your
right and
there it
is set
back a
little from
the main
street but
still basically
unmissable. If
you do
miss La
Boqueria then
you can
be sure
you've missed
lots of
other things
in your
life like
buses, trains
and the
subtle irony
of Jane
Austen.
It is
said that
the best
time to
go to
La Boqueria
is very
early in
the morning
when it
is all
just setting
up and
the tourist
crowds haven't
arrived. This
is the
kind of
virtuous, puritan
travel experience
this blog
will have
no truck
with. Instead,
I would
advise getting
there around
half
past twelve.
Your eyes
will be
less red
and you
will be
in a
much better
temper. There
are other
reasons but
I will
come to
them later
(this is
a writing
technique called
introducing unresolved
tension into
the narrative
in case
you were
wondering).
Do not
be put
off by
the crush
around the
front. The
entrance to
La Boqueria
is a
bottleneck and
like all
bottlenecks in
Southern Europe it seems
to be
mainly filled
with confused
Scandinavians presumably blinded
by
unfamiliar quantities
of light.
It has
to be
admitted that
Scandinavians do tend
to grow
quite tall
and a
group of
them can
look initially
daunting but
they are
essentially amenable
and won't
mind if
you just
firmly push
through them.
I wouldn't
trouble yourself
too much
with the
first few
stalls. Though
outwardly they
appear to
be greengrocers
(and I'm
not saying
they wouldn't
sell you
a red
pepper if
you asked)
there main
business appears
to be
providing overpriced
iced fruit
drinks to
tourists. The
real greengrocers
lie at
the back
of La
Boqueria and
can be
identified by
clear prices
and queues
of hawk-eyed
abuelas (old
ladies). While
it is
often true
that queues
of old
ladies indicate
a stall
worth patronising,
one cannot
blindly rely
on it
as a
guide. The
BigBarcelonaBlog's grandmother,
for example,
swears by
Aldi baked
beans.
Anyway, back
to the
front. Once
past the
first few
stalls just
wander at
will. Don't
go straight
through. You
will miss loads! You
can see
and buy
pretty much
any food
you can
imagine here
and quite
a few
you won't
want too.
The butcher's
stalls, for
example, show
you all
the stuff
normal butcher's
keep hidden
in the
back. Want
to know
what tripe
looks like
or skinless
rabbits with
their eyes
still in.
You've come
to the
right place.
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| La Boqueria 2 : Jellies |
The paths,
often filled
by traders
pushing trolleys piled high with
fresh produce,
are narrow
and curvy
and give
the whole
place the
heady feel
of a
maze. I
defy you
to know
in exactly
what direction
you are
pointing in
after you've
randomly wandered
down a
few of
the alleys.
It all
adds to
the excitement.
You don't
know exactly
where you
are and
you don't
know exactly
what you're
going to
see next.
But however,
random your
journey eventually
you will
find yourself
at the
fish market.
The fish
market is
basically a
market within
a market
and sits
right in
the centre
of La
Boqueria. Each
stall is
layered with
trays of
shining ice and arranged on top
all manner
of varieties
of fish.
They are
all labelled
in Catalan
so I
can't tell
you what most
of them are.
Until I saw
La Boqueria
for the
first time
I had
absolutely no
idea how
many types
of seafood you
could eat.
Eels, Lobsters,
Crabs, Squid,
Octopi and
strange new
fish after
strange new
fish after
strange new
fish.
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| La Boqueria 3 Complain here at your own risk |
And
this is
before I
even get
to the
bi-valves. Surrounding
the fish
are stalls
that are
a heaving
mass of
mussels, whelks,
clams and
other things
in shells.
To someone
who grew
up thinking
markets were
places where
people sold
power tools
and anoraks
it is
utterly overwhelming
and completely magnificent.
There is
nothing to
do except
eat some
of it
(apologies
to vegetarians
– there's an
organic place
at the
back on
the right
which will
sort you
out).
This is
why I
told you
to get
here for
about half past twelve.
Because now
it's about
half past
one and
time for
lunch. And
luckily for
you, you
are in
the perfect
place – notice
what a
caring blog
this is.
Think about
how you
haven't yet
clicked on
an advert.
Put that
right and
then come
back and
read the
rest of
the article.
See how
much better
you feel.
There are
lots of
little bar/
restaurants dotted around La Boqueria. It
would be
pointless to
recommend one
as you
can just
choose by
looking at
people's food
as you
wander by
(don't expect
too much
privacy while
eating.) Wherever
looks and
smells good
is where
you should
eat. There
will be
more than
one option. The
prices are
stuck up
on the
stall so
you can
get a
fair idea
of what
you'll be
paying. Now
all you
need to
do is
get a
seat.
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| A waiter expertly not noticing me. |
Sometimes you
will be
lucky and
there will
seats available.
Most of
the time
you will
be unlucky
and there
won't. There
is no
obvious queue
but there
are a
number of
people milling
round. Are
they waiting
too or
are they
just people
who like
milling?
Who can
tell? The
question is
what to
do next?
You must
try and
catch the
eye of
one of
the people
behind the
bar. I'm
not pretending
this part
is necessarily
going to
be easy.
When it
suits them
waiters are
experts at
not noticing
you. They
expect you
to go
through the
full gamut
of fluttery
half-completed hand
gestures and
nervous semi-waves
that are
the hallmarks
of the
polite traveller
trying to
gain attention.
Fortunately they
are possessed
of some
mystical sixth
sense which
allows them
to anticipte
the moment
just before
you about
to give
up and
go and
try somewhere
else. At
precisely this
exact moment and not a second sooner, they will
look at
you.
This is
no time
for dawdling
or indecision. Seize the day. Shout lustily
the number
of people
in your
party and
back up
the information
with your
fingers. The
waiter will
nod briefly.
He will
then not
look at
you again
until your
places at
the bar
are ready.
In the
next five
or ten
minutes while
you wait
you may
begin to
lose conviction.
You may
feel the
waiter has
forgotten you.
But keep the faith. As
long as
you stay
within sight
of the
bar you
will get
the places.
Believe!
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| La Boqueria 4 Seafoodorama |
Spend the
time wisely.
Wander up
and down
looking at
peoples plates
and choosing
what you
want to
eat because
the dish
itself is
far more
reliable guide
than a
menu. Though
they will
make other
things it
would be
a crime
not to
focus mainly
on seafood
as it
will rarely
be fresher
and all
they do
is grill/fry
it add
a bit
of oil
and serve. This
is not
the place
to eat
things like
paella or
arroz negro
as they
just do
not have
the space
behind the
bar or
the time
to make
it. In
fact it
is a
marvel in
itself how
the tiny
bars manage
to serve
so many
people to
such a
high standard
with such
a tiny
food preparation
facility.
Instead I
would recommend
going for
raciones of
grilled sardines, whitebait or squid and maybe
a razor
clam if
you're feeling
adventurous. If
you must
have something
green go
for the
pimientos del padron
and add
stodge with
the pan
con tomate.
A cerveza
or a
glass of
vinto tinto
and you have
done La
Boqueria as
well as
it can
be done.
Useful
Spanish Words/Phrases:
Perdona
– Excuse Me
¿Cuánto
cuesta esto?
- How
much does
this cost?
Uno/dos/tres/cuatro para comer,
por favor
– One/two/three/four places
to eat
please. (It
is wise
to specify
you want
to eat
at lunchtime)
Las sardinas : sardines
Pescaditas fritas : fried
whitebait
Calamares a la plancha : grilled
squid
Las navajas : razor clams
Una
caña – a
beer (from
the tap)
Una
botella de
Estrella/Moritz – A
bottle of
beer (choose
your brand)
Los pimientos del padrón – Fried tiny green peppers
Pan con tomate : Bread with tomato
La
cuenta, por
favor – The
bill please
If
you fancy chatting:
Perdona, Me disculpo por la molestia
pero ¿qué es el nombre del plato que estás comiendo? – Excuse me,
sorry for
interrupting but
what's the name
of this
dish you're
eating.
¿Dónde está el fabricador de
los candeleros? - Where is the candlestick maker?
Ese artículo es muy largo. Le cuesta mucho al escritor. Voy a los anuncios para hacer un click. - This article is very long. It must have
taken a
lot of
effort by
the writer.
I will
go and
click on
an advert.
