The Best Way To Snack - Tapas in Palma

The popularity of dining "tapas style" has been soaring at an astonishing rate and what used to be once traditionally considered as a quick bite between meals, has established itself as an entirely independent meal.

Considered rather common practice in early days, tapas such as chicken croquettes or a small plate of Serrano ham were naturally served complementary with your beverage. The importance of food, when consuming alcohol has always been prevalent in Spanish society, however this custom has become very rare these days.

Recipes vary from region to region and there are numerous choices often displayed in glass vitrines ranging from battered vegetables, pickled sardines, croquettes, albóndigas (meat balls typically served with tomato sauce), fried mushrooms, grilled sepia, ensaladilla rusa (potato-vegetable salad with mayonnaise) to grilled prawns & pimientos de padrón (small green & occasionally extremely hot peppers).

The most common anecdote regarding the origins of this enjoyable and practical method of eating says that King Alfonso the 8th invented tapas on a journey through the province of Cadiz. Due to the annoyance he experienced with dust and dirt entering the glass and contaminating the precious liquid for which it held, the king would place a piece of ham over the top of the glass protecting the contents and acting as a lid or "tapa", hence the name.

Eduardo Suarez, from the Asso- ciation of Mallorquin Restaurants, con- firms the fact tapas are in high demand these days which has enticed Spanish food chains such as Lizzeran or Tapelia to establish them- selves in Mallorca. Considering the sheer volume of visitors frequenting the island annually, combined with the exploding popu- larity of the tapas experience, the potential for the restaurants that rise to the challenge of keeping tapas on the menu is obvious. Even the likes of Koldo Royo, the gourmet chef from the Basque region is already captivating the tapas connoisseurs. Tapas can now be considered a veritable Spanish institution.