# How far would 250 a week get you living in Spain



## stmary (Dec 30, 2012)

Hi ,How far would 250 euros a week go , with no rent or mortgage , wont be using a car , hoping to settle in or around la zenia , Could 2 pensioners manage on this amount 
Any advice would be very grateful , thank you


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

stmary said:


> Hi ,How far would 250 euros a week go , with no rent or mortgage , wont be using a car , hoping to settle in or around la zenia , Could 2 pensioners manage on this amount
> Any advice would be very grateful , thank you


you should be able to live quite comfortably on that - not the high life, for sure, but reasonably well

you don't say if you'd need private healthcare - that could be the difference between comfortable & a bit tight .....


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## RichTUK (Oct 15, 2012)

stmary said:


> Hi ,How far would 250 euros a week go , with no rent or mortgage , wont be using a car , hoping to settle in or around la zenia , Could 2 pensioners manage on this amount
> Any advice would be very grateful , thank you


What about bills? Will you want or be paying extra for TV, Internet, Phone, Mobile... Gas, Water and Electric or will the 250 just be for food and leisure? If it's just food and leisure then 250 a week should be manageable.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

RichTUK said:


> What about bills? Will you want or be paying extra for TV, Internet, Phone, Mobile... Gas, Water and Electric or will the 250 just be for food and leisure? If it's just food and leisure then 250 a week should be manageable.


cue Baldilocks................


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## Calas felices (Nov 29, 2007)

'La Zenia' - no nice Spanish peasants there to offload their surplus produce on you.


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## crookesey (May 22, 2008)

I recall Thomson doing off peak 90 days self catering deals for not a lot of money, perhaps one of those (if still available) would be a good way of testing the water. You would at least know the cost of food, drink and travel, and I'm certain that you would find out about utility costs from folk that you would meet.


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## bad leg (Aug 16, 2013)

Food is cheaper than the UK. Bottle of wine from 2 euros. Cars and petrol expensive (buy a scooter?). 100 euros goes a long way if you are living the simple life. If you hold a EU passport then healthcare should be free. Go for it! We did and it has worked.


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

bad leg said:


> Food is cheaper than the UK. Bottle of wine from 2 euros. Cars and petrol expensive (buy a scooter?). 100 euros goes a long way if you are living the simple life. If you hold a EU passport then healthcare should be free. Go for it! We did and it has worked.


Where did you get that from - it's not necessarily true!

Just because you hold an EU passport does NOT entitle you to free health care. There are many other factors that have to be met first!


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## bad leg (Aug 16, 2013)

I said "should" but agreed I'm not an expert. My British born wife found the process very simple. I'm still in Qatar and keeping my fingers crossed when retirement beckons.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

bad leg said:


> I said "should" but agreed I'm not an expert. My British born wife found the process very simple. I'm still in Qatar and keeping my fingers crossed when retirement beckons.


when did your wife move here?

& does she receive a UK pension?


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## bad leg (Aug 16, 2013)

2012 and she receives a UK pension.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

bad leg said:


> 2012 and *she receives a UK pension*.


that would be why she gets healthcare free in Spain

anyone not doing so would need private healthcare - or be working here (unless they qualify for a temp S1), in order to access state healthcare


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## stmary (Dec 30, 2012)

RichTUK said:


> What about bills? Will you want or be paying extra for TV, Internet, Phone, Mobile... Gas, Water and Electric or will the 250 just be for food and leisure? If it's just food and leisure then 250 a week should be manageable.


Hi thank you , what would the bills be around every month .Yes 250 would be for the week on food and general stuff you need for the 2 of us . We also will have savings .
thank you


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## bad leg (Aug 16, 2013)

Electricity is the big one for us. Billed every two months. We pay up to 350 euros per billing in the winter for a 4 bedroom apartment. LPG for cooking is 17 euros a pop but might last 3-4 weeks. TV and mobile is cheap - maybe 30 and 10 respectively. Community charges vary depending on property and if you buy freehold (villa) there is no cost there. Property taxes? I don't know. It's all reasonable. Buy a place to fit your budget or rent a place for 400 euros a month and take time to look around.


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

There is someone on here who lives very well on around €650 a month. How much will electricity be? That will depend on whether or not you have an electric hob, how old the air con is and how often you use it. My parents who live in a 2 bed town house, spend around €80 a month on electricity and about €14 a month on bottled gas. They eat out several times a week, run a car and live very comfortably on their state and private pensions and save some every month. They don't have a fortune coming in every month either....and they pay rent on top of their food and bills.


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## djfwells (Sep 28, 2009)

Assuming no accommodation or vehicle costs required, I would say so.
As long as neither of you are chain smoking alcoholics with a penchant for fine gastronomy and amateur dramatics.


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## bob_bob (Jan 5, 2011)

Prices are much the same in Spain as the UK so if you can live on £250 a week after rent in the UK you can in Spain. A lot of Spanish and people in the UK manage on that. Cheap wine in Spain is just that, cheap (reflected in the taste), smokes and spirits are cheaper, some fresh food is cheaper, meats about the same price.

I'm back in Gran Canaria next week and will try and do a 'comparative' shop or two.


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## Panda69 (Aug 17, 2013)

*Health care in Spain*



snikpoh said:


> Where did you get that from - it's not necessarily true!
> 
> Just because you hold an EU passport does NOT entitle you to free health care. There are many other factors that have to be met first!


After living 49 years outside the UK (mostly Africa) I want to relocate to Spain. Denia, Alicante Province. Am coming over in 4 weeks time to look around before deciding. I have always assumed that because I have British passport that I would be entitled to Spanish NHS. Could you please assist me as your remark quite unnerved me ! Thanks.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Panda69 said:


> After living 49 years outside the UK (mostly Africa) I want to relocate to Spain. Denia, Alicante Province. Am coming over in 4 weeks time to look around before deciding. I have always assumed that because I have British passport that I would be entitled to Spanish NHS. Could you please assist me as your remark quite unnerved me ! Thanks.


it's very straightforward

the system in Spain isn't residence-based as it is in the UK (though both systems are currently undergoing changes)

if you are in receipt of a UK pension, then under current rules you will indeed be entitled to Spanish state healthcare, paid for by the UK

if you're not, then you won't be - you would have to be working & paying 'NI' in order to qualify


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## stmary (Dec 30, 2012)

bob_bob said:


> Prices are much the same in Spain as the UK so if you can live on £250 a week after rent in the UK you can in Spain. A lot of Spanish and people in the UK manage on that. Cheap wine in Spain is just that, cheap (reflected in the taste), smokes and spirits are cheaper, some fresh food is cheaper, meats about the same price.
> 
> I'm back in Gran Canaria next week and will try and do a 'comparative' shop or two.


Thank you very much , We don't smoke, we don't mind the odd glass of wine per week then some times not at all even though it's cheap in Spain .
We also could manage in UK with that amount too . We are not big on eating out at night but don't mind the coffee shops during the week , may be once twice a week .Love walking and we eat good old fashion food . no take away .
Love meeting people and making friends so one day hope to settle in Spain , But will rent first .
Thank you very much for taking your time to check prices , we are very grateful to you


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## Panda69 (Aug 17, 2013)

*Thanks for assistance.*



xabiachica said:


> it's very straightforward
> 
> the system in Spain isn't residence-based as it is in the UK (though both systems are currently undergoing changes)
> 
> ...


Thanks for your reply. Although I am a pensioner I receive 3 pensions, two from South Africa where I've lived/worked for 27 years and 1 from Holland where I've lived/worked for 23 years ! I do not receive a pension from the UK but do have a British passport. I also have a UK National Insurance No. given to me 50 years ago. I have tried to get info form British Citizen's Advice Bureau but they say that this is all quite complicated and cannot advise me.


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## bad leg (Aug 16, 2013)

Go to the UK pensions website. It's all there:

HM Revenue & Customs: Voluntary National Insurance contributions if you live abroad


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Panda69 said:


> Thanks for your reply. Although I am a pensioner I receive 3 pensions, two from South Africa where I've lived/worked for 27 years and 1 from Holland where I've lived/worked for 23 years ! I do not receive a pension from the UK but do have a British passport. I also have a UK National Insurance No. given to me 50 years ago. I have tried to get info form British Citizen's Advice Bureau but they say that this is all quite complicated and cannot advise me.


yes that does sound complicated!!

I doubt that there is a reciprocal agreement for healthcare between Spain & SA, but there probably is between Spain & Holland

contact the govt. dept in Holland which pays your pension & ask them

let us know how you get on!


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

Panda69 said:


> Thanks for your reply. Although I am a pensioner I receive 3 pensions, two from South Africa where I've lived/worked for 27 years and 1 from Holland where I've lived/worked for 23 years ! I do not receive a pension from the UK but do have a British passport. I also have a UK National Insurance No. given to me 50 years ago. I have tried to get info form British Citizen's Advice Bureau but they say that this is all quite complicated and cannot advise me.


 It depends on your contributions in the UK, not just that you have a NI number. If you havent paid in for 50 years, then it may not be of any use. As Xabiachica says, there maybe a reciprocal agreement between Spain and Holland, so you maybe covered????

Jo xxx


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## Panda69 (Aug 17, 2013)

jojo said:


> It depends on your contributions in the UK, not just that you have a NI number. If you havent paid in for 50 years, then it may not be of any use. As Xabiachica says, there maybe a reciprocal agreement between Spain and Holland, so you maybe covered????
> 
> Jo xxx


Thanks very much for your input. I will be contacting the authorities in Holland.


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## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

xabiachica said:


> yes that does sound complicated!!
> 
> I doubt that there is a reciprocal agreement for healthcare between Spain & SA, but there probably is between Spain & Holland
> 
> ...


& ask them for the ' S1' form, which is what you will need.The forms are the same number/letter EU wide.
As an EU citizen (UK) with an EU pension (Dutch) you'll be entitled to full spanish healthcare.

This document states that you are entitled.

Go here , 
Google

3rd one down(pdf) open & it is item 1.6 & also 4.3


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## stmary (Dec 30, 2012)

Thank you that's good then that they can live on this , thank you very much for your reply


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## crookesey (May 22, 2008)

When The Common Market transformed itself into The European Union I initially and very misguidedly thought that I was part of something very special. How wrong I was, everyone who has deferred state pension rights in a member state should be on a central register, the Spanish authorities should simply be able to press a button and hey presto there it should be.


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## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

crookesey said:


> When The Common Market transformed itself into The European Union I initially and very misguidedly thought that I was part of something very special. How wrong I was, everyone who has deferred state pension rights in a member state should be on a central register, the Spanish authorities should simply be able to press a button and hey presto there it should be.


That's how us normal, intelligent people would arrange it.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

It has been hinted at a couple of times, (have been busy and haven't been on much of the day) but here's my two penn'rth. 

We, Family of three plus two dogs and a canary, manage very comfortably on €650 (slight increase with gas and electricity going up) per month. On our way back from shopping yesterday, we did a tot-up since the electricity bill arrived on Thursday. We bought our house cash so have no recurring monthly cash demand for accommodation to meet. Our IBI (council tax) is €139 per year (we were paying £120 per month in UK for a measly 1 BR flat) and we get a quarterly bill for about €43 to cover water, sewage and rubbish collection. Our electricity (which has gone up) is now about €60 p.m. and we use about €250 p.a. on bombonas for cooking and hot water. Logs for the log burner cost us about €300 p.a. cut, delivered and stacked in our log store. We run an economical (about 53 m.p.g) Peugeot Partner which takes five people plus their luggage and we do about 15k p.a. All of these costs are included in the €650

Our house has 4/5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms is on five levels (243 sq.m. including patio, workshop and log store) and we have a 32 sq. m. lounge/diner and a 43 sq. m. attic which could be converted to give another couple of bedrooms and a another bathroom.


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## Justina (Jan 25, 2013)

Lucky you, baldilocks. You seem to have found your own heaven. I haven't quite found it yet, but am on my way, regardless of bread.


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## stevec2x (Mar 24, 2012)

stmary said:


> Hi ,How far would 250 euros a week go , with no rent or mortgage , wont be using a car , hoping to settle in or around la zenia , Could 2 pensioners manage on this amount
> Any advice would be very grateful , thank you


I won't disagree with anything other people have said - just to say that we live about 2km from La Zenia, and if you're not going to have a car I would suggest you find somewhere closer to Torrevieja - we're in Punta Prima and have no problems surviving without a car - La Zenia would definitely be more of a problem (depending on how much you want to get out and about - it's a pain getting into Torrevieja using public transport from La Zenia)

We pay around 40 euros per month for electric, maybe 20 euros for water. (we're in a 2-bed flat)


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## stmary (Dec 30, 2012)

baldilocks said:


> It has been hinted at a couple of times, (have been busy and haven't been on much of the day) but here's my two penn'rth.
> 
> We, Family of three plus two dogs and a canary, manage very comfortably on €650 (slight increase with gas and electricity going up) per month. On our way back from shopping yesterday, we did a tot-up since the electricity bill arrived on Thursday. We bought our house cash so have no recurring monthly cash demand for accommodation to meet. Our IBI (council tax) is €139 per year (we were paying £120 per month in UK for a measly 1 BR flat) and we get a quarterly bill for about €43 to cover water, sewage and rubbish collection. Our electricity (which has gone up) is now about €60 p.m. and we use about €250 p.a. on bombonas for cooking and hot water. Logs for the log burner cost us about €300 p.a. cut, delivered and stacked in our log store. We run an economical (about 53 m.p.g) Peugeot Partner which takes five people plus their luggage and we do about 15k p.a. All of these costs are included in the €650
> 
> Our house has 4/5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms is on five levels (243 sq.m. including patio, workshop and log store) and we have a 32 sq. m. lounge/diner and a 43 sq. m. attic which could be converted to give another couple of bedrooms and a another bathroom.


Hi there , thank you for putting this on here as it's very helpful ,We are so happy to see that you could manage to live there , that put's our minds at rest .So we could do the same too , We would be looking to live in a 2 bed once we get settled there , rent for a while then look . 
Can i ask you where you live please ? 
Once again this is great news for us so we now know we will be ok .
Cheers and have a good day


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

stmary said:


> Hi there , thank you for putting this on here as it's very helpful ,We are so happy to see that you could manage to live there , that put's our minds at rest .So we could do the same too , We would be looking to live in a 2 bed once we get settled there , rent for a while then look .
> Can i ask you where you live please ?
> Once again this is great news for us so we now know we will be ok .
> Cheers and have a good day


If you look up a little, you will see where I live in the header to this message (photos in my forum albums). I should say that none of us smokes (now), only very occasionally have a drop of wine/sherry. We even more rarely eat out and then only to have 'menu del día' at €7-9 if we happen to be out during our normal lunch-time. 

Most Sundays we splash out on 'pollo y patatas' (chicken and chips) from the village rotisserie, but that, in the summer, is as much to save heating up the kitchen. Saturdays we frequently have lunch cooked in a slow-cooker since that also saves heating up the kitchen and enables us to use less-expensive cuts of meat, it also is economical using barely one unit of electricity for a meal for three plus enough left over for another one or two servings for a left-over meal during the week. We don't shy away from the traditional British way of having meals that use left-overs (e.g. shepherds pie, stuffed tomatoes, etc.) On the whole we eat quite well and still have those little luxuries that make life worth living without stinting.


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## Aron (Apr 30, 2013)

stmary said:


> Hi ,How far would 250 euros a week go , with no rent or mortgage , wont be using a car , hoping to settle in or around la zenia , Could 2 pensioners manage on this amount
> Any advice would be very grateful , thank you


We drove 5 hours up the coast a couple of years ago to La Zenia.we stayed with friends who took us out to dinner. The bill was €170. They said, boy that was good and so cheap. However we live in a Spanish village and the cost would have been about a quarter of that. It is my only experience of La Zenia and I just found it expensive. I guess if you stick to tapas you'll be fine


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## crookesey (May 22, 2008)

Aron said:


> We drove 5 hours up the coast a couple of years ago to La Zenia.we stayed with friends who took us out to dinner. The bill was €170. They said, boy that was good and so cheap. However we live in a Spanish village and the cost would have been about a quarter of that. It is my only experience of La Zenia and I just found it expensive. I guess if you stick to tapas you'll be fine


Since plunging into our respective dotages, the wife and I really can't do justice to huge amounts of food, so for us it's either tapas or shared main courses, eg; a plate of whitebate, a Spanish salad and some of those suckling pig pork chops, with a portion of fries between us, yumee.


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## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

With 250€/week I'd be living like a king.


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## rangitoto (Apr 25, 2011)

it gets me on here when people say that that prices are much the same as the uk well not from where i look if you want to go to iceland and buy branded products yes you will pay more go the local markets and buy fruit and veg better quality and a lot fresher than the uk meat go to the local butcher pork and chicken cheaper than a uk butcher not the supermarekt rubbish and i know we have been back in the uk for hols backin in spain in 3 weeks cant wait


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## rewdan (Feb 23, 2010)

Yesterday I bought 4 pork chops from our local Butcher in Ibiza, never have bought chops before in over a decade of owning a house on the Island. Stuck them on the BBQ and whilst I freely admit that I am not the best cook in the world, they were the best pork chops I have ever cooked myself!
Spanish pork chops are truly great!


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## ptrclvd (May 26, 2012)

Aron said:


> We drove 5 hours up the coast a couple of years ago to La Zenia.we stayed with friends who took us out to dinner. The bill was €170. They said, boy that was good and so cheap. However we live in a Spanish village and the cost would have been about a quarter of that. It is my only experience of La Zenia and I just found it expensive. I guess if you stick to tapas you'll be fine


In our village 2 people can eat like kings with a bottle of wine and coffee for 20 euros. It certainly costs more though down on the coast 25 kms away. Having said that even there is is considerably cheaper than in the South East of the UK.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

ptrclvd said:


> In our village you can eat like kings with a bottle of wine and coffee for 20 euros. It certainly costs more though down on the coast 25 kms away. Having said that even there is is considerably cheaper than in the South East of the UK.


we have a restaurant on the seafront which does the most incredible food - 3 courses, a drink & a coffee for 12.50€ a head

I was expecting tiny portions, but struggled to eat everything

for each course there are about 7 or 8 choices - & unusually for me, there's nothing on the menu I wouldn't eat

not everything on the coast is expensive!


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## ptrclvd (May 26, 2012)

xabiachica said:


> we have a restaurant on the seafront which does the most incredible food - 3 courses, a drink & a coffee for 12.50€ a head
> 
> I was expecting tiny portions, but struggled to eat everything
> 
> ...


No I do agree. It is just a bit more than further inland during the full tourist season. Our 10 euros per head gets 4 fantastic courses. Starters recently have included a dozen giant red prawns which in most UK establishments would cost the price of an entire meal in Spain. Prices do vary according to location but are in the main fantastic value. Tapas is generally in the 1-2 euro catagory when you are not getting them free with a drink.


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## stmary (Dec 30, 2012)

Thank you , i must be going blind , didn't think to look up above , ha ha . You 2 sound very much as we live and do things .never been where you live , but hey one day ...... travel around and we might see it .
We are so grateful to all on here that took time to answer our question , we feel more positive now . thank you


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

ptrclvd said:


> No I do agree. It is just a bit more than further inland during the full tourist season. Our 10 euros per head gets 4 fantastic courses. Starters recently have included a dozen giant red prawns which in most UK establishments would cost the price of an entire meal in Spain. Prices do vary according to location but are in the main fantastic value. Tapas is generally in the 1-2 euro catagory when you are not getting them free with a drink.


that is very good value I have to say - there's no way I could manage 4 courses though!

this was just a few weeks ago - in the winter we can get menús for less - & tbh we were all amazed at the quality & quantity of the food - none of us had been there before

& even more amazed when our entire bill for 4 came to under 53€ - someone had had a second drink 

even the bread & allioli was included - & that's something you often find charged as a shockingly expensive extra!


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

rangitoto said:


> it gets me on here when people say that that prices are much the same as the uk well not from where i look if you want to go to iceland and buy branded products yes you will pay more go the local markets and buy fruit and veg better quality and a lot fresher than the uk meat go to the local butcher pork and chicken cheaper than a uk butcher not the supermarekt rubbish and i know we have been back in the uk for hols backin in spain in 3 weeks cant wait


 I know Belgium is not quite the same as the UK but since moving we have slashed our grocery bill by 30-50% depending on the weekly shop and that's shopping at a Carrefour in Belgium and a Carrefour in Spain. Each time we go shopping we can't get over the price difference.
That's going to be a good amount of savings over the year.

We just found a local farm that has a shop and could get a load of veggies for under 5 euros, this beats the stupid system they have in place at Carrefour for getting your veg, is cheaper and better quality. The tomato's are astonishing

All we need now is a good local butcher and a fishmonger and we're set.


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## stmary (Dec 30, 2012)

baldilocks said:


> If you look up a little, you will see where I live in the header to this message (photos in my forum albums). I should say that none of us smokes (now), only very occasionally have a drop of wine/sherry. We even more rarely eat out and then only to have 'menu del día' at €7-9 if we happen to be out during our normal lunch-time.
> 
> Most Sundays we splash out on 'pollo y patatas' (chicken and chips) from the village rotisserie, but that, in the summer, is as much to save heating up the kitchen. Saturdays we frequently have lunch cooked in a slow-cooker since that also saves heating up the kitchen and enables us to use less-expensive cuts of meat, it also is economical using barely one unit of electricity for a meal for three plus enough left over for another one or two servings for a left-over meal during the week. We don't shy away from the traditional British way of having meals that use left-overs (e.g. shepherds pie, stuffed tomatoes, etc.) On the whole we eat quite well and still have those little luxuries that make life worth living without stinting.


So sorry , didn't think to look there where it shows your area . Sounds good to us what you do and how you cook , We would and do live the same as you , but we are here in UK and hope one day to be in Spain , We did spend time in la zenia and punta prima cabo roig , murcia and Alicanti , torri areas . and really enjoyed it there .
We are in the punta prima area in Sept for 2 weeks so hope to get around by hiring a 
car . We are stopping self catering , so look forward to this visit .
Cheers , all the best


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## crookesey (May 22, 2008)

In the UK most of the pub food is 2 for £xxxx, it's tough if you're on your own and don't fancy doubling up with a complete stranger.  

It always amazes me how reasonable steak is in Spanish restaurants, considering it's price in supermarkets, and doesn't most of come from Argentina where they innovatively feed cattle on Pampas grass?


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

xabiachica said:


> we have a restaurant on the seafront which does the most incredible food - 3 courses, a drink & a coffee for 12.50€ a head
> 
> I was expecting tiny portions, but struggled to eat everything
> 
> ...


In the Arenal there's a pizzería (I think it's called "pepe's" - it has an octopus on its sign) that does a menu del día for that amount. It has alays been the same menu but considering it's front line and the food is normally good and plentiful, I have always been amazed at the price. Those places on the sea front must cost a premium to rent so I can never understand how they manage it. BTW I read somewhere that there was some law dating back to Franco's time that obliged all restaurants to provide a mid-day meal for workers at a reasonable price, and that's how the menu del día took off.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Talking about menu del día...
We were in Asturias at the beginning of the month and OH (Spanish) was determined that we'd be having menu del día at lunch time and a bocata/ fried eggs (staple evening meal for many Spaniards) in the evenings back at the campsite. Well, the Menu's were cheap enough - around 10 euros, but I wouldn't say they were the best food, which is what I've always thought. One meal I remember in Luarca, looking at the fishing boats in the harbour, and eating a fish finger type frozen piece of fish. Not my idea of eating.
So I changed to plato combinado (one dish meal) and tapas/ raciones which was perfect for me.
Another thing that surprised me was that most restaurants offered Pote Asturiano which is a heavy bean stew with things like garlic sausage and balck pudding in it and we were at temperatures of 26 - 30º. I didn't mind 'cos I'm used to high temps from Madrid and pote was one of the best options that we were offered on the menu's. There was usually something like beef stew as well.
I suppose I'm just too fussy. I don't mind eating a menu from time to time, but I think that most of the time they are cheap for a reason.
One day though, after walking all morning in very high temps around Las Hoces del Rio Esva (more info here El Blog de Ese de Calleras: Hoces del Esva) we had a menu in the square in Paredes of huge salad with local tomatoes, etc eggs, tuna ... and beef stew. One other table of people, a couple of kids playing football in the square, sun and surrounded by green hills. Lovely


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## Aron (Apr 30, 2013)

crookesey said:


> Since plunging into our respective dotages, the wife and I really can't do justice to huge amounts of food, so for us it's either tapas or shared main courses, eg; a plate of whitebate, a Spanish salad and some of those suckling pig pork chops, with a portion of fries between us, yumee.


I don't eat suckling pig anymore after a bad experience in Segovia. It looked great on the plate, but every time I cut a slice of meat off, the back leg jumped up. It was like eating something that was still alive!


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

Pesky Wesky said:


> Talking about menu del día...
> We were in Asturias at the beginning of the month and OH (Spanish) was determined that we'd be having menu del día at lunch time and a bocata/ fried eggs (staple evening meal for many Spaniards) in the evenings back at the campsite. Well, the Menu's were cheap enough - around 10 euros, but I wouldn't say they were the best food, which is what I've always thought. One meal I remember in Luarca, looking at the fishing boats in the harbour, and eating a fish finger type frozen piece of fish. Not my idea of eating.
> So I changed to plato combinado (one dish meal) and tapas/ raciones which was perfect for me.
> Another thing that surprised me was that most restaurants offered Pote Asturiano which is a heavy bean stew with things like garlic sausage and balck pudding in it and we were at temperatures of 26 - 30º. I didn't mind 'cos I'm used to high temps from Madrid and pote was one of the best options that we were offered on the menu's. There was usually something like beef stew as well.
> ...


Asturias is famous for large portions - I know a few people from Madrid who holiday there mainly for the food. Typically they'll leave a pot of fabadas Asturianas next to the table so you can keep helping yourself to as much as you want. Generally the menu del día is food that can be cooked in bulk and dished out on demand (soups, beans, lentils) or food that can be cooked quite quickly (filetes, etc) all washed down with a bottle of cheap plonk (with casera if it's really cheap). The aim is to feed lots of people on their lunch breaks cheaply and within an hour. The downside is that many restaurants don't serve anything else at lunchtime during the week - there is no demand for it. So if you want to pay a bit extra and have something more special the option might not be there. One of the changes I've noticed with la crisis is many restaurants serving the menu del día at weekends as well. These days it seems that more people prefer the cheaper option when they are not working.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Chopera said:


> Asturias is famous for large portions - I know a few people from Madrid who holiday there mainly for the food. Typically they'll leave a pot of fabadas Asturianas next to the table so you can keep helping yourself to as much as you want. Generally the menu del día is food that can be cooked in bulk and dished out on demand (soups, beans, lentils) or food that can be cooked quite quickly (filetes, etc) all washed down with a bottle of cheap plonk (with casera if it's really cheap). The aim is to feed lots of people on their lunch breaks cheaply and within an hour. The downside is that many restaurants don't serve anything else at lunchtime during the week - there is no demand for it. So if you want to pay a bit extra and have something more special the option might not be there. One of the changes I've noticed with la crisis is many restaurants serving the menu del día at weekends as well. These days it seems that more people prefer the cheaper option when they are not working.


Our menú in this area is usually a number of choices ranging from ham, egg and chips (suits my sister who is a coeliac) through various options including fish to steaks or chuletas. The place we usually go to is €7.50 - €8 in the winter and €9.50 - €12 in the summer when tourists are about and includes three courses and choice of drink including house wine (which isn't too bad) and bread(!)


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Chopera said:


> Asturias is famous for large portions - I know a few people from Madrid who holiday there mainly for the food. Typically they'll leave a pot of fabadas Asturianas next to the table so you can keep helping yourself to as much as you want. Generally the menu del día is food that can be cooked in bulk and dished out on demand (soups, beans, lentils) or food that can be cooked quite quickly (filetes, etc) all washed down with a bottle of cheap plonk (with casera if it's really cheap). The aim is to feed lots of people on their lunch breaks cheaply and within an hour. The downside is that many restaurants don't serve anything else at lunchtime during the week - there is no demand for it. So if you want to pay a bit extra and have something more special the option might not be there. One of the changes I've noticed with la crisis is many restaurants serving the menu del día at weekends as well. These days it seems that more people prefer the cheaper option when they are not working.


The helping yourself to fabada is like the never ending pot of alubias (con o sin sacramentos) which you'll get served in the Basque Country and which both my husband and myself prefer to Fabada.
The Asturian menus we experienced were not too copious. 
Asturias sure does have a good name for food, but our (limited) experience was that it was not in the menus, and neither did we expect to be served manjares in the cheapie section of the carta. You can't expect top quality seafood and fish in a menu for 12 euros, and even less below that price. If you want good quality food, I believe you have to pay a decent price for it.We did have a pretty good menu del día in Oviedo. I think it's better to stick to meat rather than fish though.
No doubt there are restaurants that serve really good menus. We went to a pretty good lorry drivers type road side caff on the way back from the east coast this year which was pretty good, and most are OK, but I don't know many that I'd actually recommend to people.
Can you recommend any in Madrid?


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## Chopera (Apr 22, 2013)

Pesky Wesky said:


> The helping yourself to fabada is like the never ending pot of alubias (con o sin sacramentos) which you'll get served in the Basque Country and which both my husband and myself prefer to Fabada.
> The Asturian menus we experienced were not too copious.
> Asturias sure does have a good name for food, but our (limited) experience was that it was not in the menus, and neither did we expect to be served manjares in the cheapie section of the carta. You can't expect top quality seafood and fish in a menu for 12 euros, and even less below that price. If you want good quality food, I believe you have to pay a decent price for it.We did have a pretty good menu del día in Oviedo. I think it's better to stick to meat rather than fish though.
> No doubt there are restaurants that serve really good menus. We went to a pretty good lorry drivers type road side caff on the way back from the east coast this year which was pretty good, and most are OK, but I don't know many that I'd actually recommend to people.
> Can you recommend any in Madrid?


For non-Spanish food, near my work (Maria de Molina) there's a restaurant called "Lah" that does surprisingly good SE Asian food, and a menu del día for about €12. Recently I've been hanging out in the "Gourmet Experience" on the top floor of El Corte Ingles in Callao (next to FNAC) and there you'll find an array of restaurants that'll do a menu del día for around €11 (I especially like "Street XO", although I'm not sure if they do a menu del día).

For Spanish food, there are a few restaurants near where I live (Legazpi) that do reasonable menus del día. If you know a good restaurant then these days there's a good chance they'll do a decent menu del día that is a cut down version of their specialities. For example near me there was the Asador Legazpi (now changed into a Basque restaurant) that did great buey. And on the menu del día you got a small filete de buey instead of the huge chuletones they serve in the evenings.

If you find yourself stuck in a shopping centre then Gino's do quite good menus del día (I'm not such a fan of VIPs though - been poisoned twice!)


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Chopera said:


> For non-Spanish food, near my work (Maria de Molina) there's a restaurant called "Lah" that does surprisingly good SE Asian food, and a menu del día for about €12. Recently I've been hanging out in the "Gourmet Experience" on the top floor of El Corte Ingles in Callao (next to FNAC) and there you'll find an array of restaurants that'll do a menu del día for around €11 (I especially like "Street XO", although I'm not sure if they do a menu del día).
> 
> For Spanish food, there are a few restaurants near where I live (Legazpi) that do reasonable menus del día. If you know a good restaurant then these days there's a good chance they'll do a decent menu del día that is a cut down version of their specialities. For example near me there was the Asador Legazpi (now changed into a Basque restaurant) that did great buey. And on the menu del día you got a small filete de buey instead of the huge chuletones they serve in the evenings.
> 
> If you find yourself stuck in a shopping centre then Gino's do quite good menus del día (I'm not such a fan of VIPs though - been poisoned twice!)


I don't really count Asian type food in the menu del día club as they're usually on the cheap side anyway. Nor Vips/ Gino's.
I hadn't heard about the "Gourmet Experience" though. Sounds interesting!


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