Galicia is the green, rainy corner of north-west Spain, above Portugal, with a long Atlantic coastline cut by deep estuaries called rías. Its food follows from that: a lot of seafood, pork from the inland farms, potatoes, turnip greens, dense bread and strong local cheese. It is also one of the regional kitchens you are most likely to find abroad, because so many Galicians emigrated.
This guide walks through the dishes you will meet on a Galician menu, and then lists a few Galician restaurants in our directory whose own records mention them.
Why there are Galician taverns all over the world
From the late 1800s into the 1900s, huge numbers of Galicians left for the Americas, especially Argentina, Cuba, Uruguay and Mexico, and later for other parts of Europe. In Argentina the word "gallego" came to be used for any Spaniard, whatever region they were from. Emigrant communities built social clubs and cultural centres, and those centres usually had a kitchen.
Galician also gave Spanish a word for the feeling behind all this: morriña, the homesickness of someone far from Galicia. One Polish tavern in our directory is named after it, and we wrote about it in our Morriña spotlight.
The dishes to know
Pulpo á feira
Octopus boiled in a big pot, cut into rounds with scissors, then dressed with olive oil, coarse salt and pimentón, and served on a wooden plate, often with boiled potatoes. It is the same dish Spanish menus call pulpo a la gallega. See our pulpo a la gallega page, and our festivals piece for the octopus fair in O Carballiño.
Pimientos de Padrón
Small green peppers fried whole in olive oil and finished with coarse salt. They are named after Padrón, a town in A Coruña province, and the Galician saying about them is "uns pican e outros non": some are hot and some are not. Most are mild. Every so often you get one that bites. More on our pimientos de Padrón page.
Empanada gallega
A large, flat pie baked in a tray and cut into squares. Common fillings include tuna or bonito with onion and peppers, small scallops called zamburiñas, cod, or pork. See empanada gallega.
Caldo gallego
A plain, filling broth of potatoes, white beans and greens (usually grelos, the leaves and shoots of the turnip plant), cooked with pork. It is everyday home food in Galicia. See caldo gallego.
Tetilla cheese
A soft, mild cow's-milk cheese shaped like a rounded cone. It has protected designation status. See tetilla.
Tarta de Santiago
An almond cake from Santiago de Compostela, the end point of the Camino de Santiago pilgrim route. It is usually dusted with icing sugar over a stencil of the cross of Saint James, which leaves the cross outlined on top. See tarta de Santiago.
Queimada
A drink more than a dish: orujo (a grape-pomace spirit) set alight in a clay bowl with sugar, lemon peel and coffee beans, while someone recites a spell to ward off bad spirits. See queimada.
How Galicians tend to eat these
Tavern food in Galicia is usually shared: a plate of octopus, a plate of peppers and a few squares of empanada in the middle of the table, with bread, and often a Galician white wine such as Albariño. Ordering the same way in a Galician place abroad lets you try several dishes at once. For the words you will see on the menu, our guide to Catalan, Basque and Galician menu words helps.
Where to try Galician food
These restaurants in our directory describe themselves as Galician in their own records:
- Tomiño Taberna Gallega, 192 Grand St, New York. Its record lists pulpo a feira, almejas a la marinera, tortilla de Betanzos and pimientos de Padrón, with Galician chef Lucía Freitas as chief counselor.
- Casa Galicia, 3709 31st Ave, Astoria. A Galician cultural centre founded in 1940, with a restaurant serving Galician and Spanish food, including tapas and seafood.
- Restaurante Lar Gallego, Av. Insurgentes Sur 628, Mexico City. Traditional Spanish cooking with a focus on Galician dishes; it received Mercurio Awards in 1999, 2000 and 2001.
- Morriña - Taberna Galega, Św. Marcin 61, Poznań. A Galician tavern run by Iago, from Ferrol, with the names of Galician cities on the walls and Camino de Santiago scallop shells.
In Mexico City, El Sella is not listed as a Galician restaurant, but its record lists Galician octopus next to chorizo in cider, so it is worth a look if you are already in Polanco.
