# What Food Will i Miss When I move to Spain?



## sadie (Mar 3, 2009)

Hi, just wondering what british foods, sauces etc, i will miss when i move to spain. can you get hold of british goods? thanks


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## Suenneil (Feb 17, 2009)

Hi Sadie ... I doubt you will miss any really - but obviously its a personal thing!

And it depends a little on where you are moving to - if you are on the Costa´s then you can pretty much get anything you want thats "English" .... but in all honesty although I sort of missed things at first (mainly down to habitually buying the same things time and time again in Tesco over many years) now we dont miss anything at all .... thats because we just got used to buying Spanish produce in the local supermarkets - fresh stuff is great and I think tastes much more "real" - and the equivalent Spanish brands of tinned sauces etc are just as good in my book - I actually prefer to buy Spanish stuff now anyway as Im supporting my "home market"!

Any special things you really miss can be bought in Brit Shops (usually a rip off) or on a trip to Morrisons in Gibraltar which a lot of expats are fond of.

Be daring and try the Spanish food!! its good stuff!


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

sadie said:


> Hi, just wondering what british foods, sauces etc, i will miss when i move to spain. can you get hold of british goods? thanks


The only thing I missed was a decent indian takeaway. there were a couple of indians in my town, but they werent as good as the UK version and they've both closed.

There is an Iceland and Waitrose in Fuengirola if you feel the need for any "british" stuff (if you're not too far away), but in general most food is available in Mercadona, such as heinz baked beans, fishfingers, nuggets, oven chips, bolagnaise sauce, curry sauce....., or Carrefour do a lot of british brand foods. But I havent found it a problem. Most food today is pretty much the same all over europe.

Oddle enough the one English product I DO miss is Lenor fabric conditioner. So I get that in Fuengirola!

Jo


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## jeyos (Feb 22, 2009)

sadie said:


> Hi, just wondering what british foods, sauces etc, i will miss when i move to spain. can you get hold of british goods? thanks


i doubt you will miss anything sadie you can pick up most things in various supermarkets though not all in the same one you need to shop around. i miss silly things like proper chippy chips


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

If you're near the coast you'll find its full of english shops, restaurants and people

Jo x


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## XTreme (May 17, 2008)

British food....and what are you going to miss? Your bowels spontaneously exploding probably!


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## DH1875 (Feb 21, 2009)

Barrs irn-bru, just like everything else you can get it on the costas but it is so expensive compared to other soft drinks.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

you know when you think about it, food has gradually become international nearly everywhere these days. Pizzas, Spagetti, pasta, bolegnaise sauces, lasagna, curry, baked beans, hamburgers, chips, seafood, omlettes, sandwiches, paninis.... the list is endless and none of them are true to their country of origin anymore. If you go to a supermarket or a restaurant in most countries the menus and shelves usually have all sorts of foods from "other countries"

Jo


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## chris(madrid) (Mar 23, 2008)

I find I suffer more longings when I'm in the UK now. I miss more from Germany! - Bread more than anything else.


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

chris(madrid) said:


> I find I suffer more longings when I'm in the UK now. I miss more from Germany! - Bread more than anything else.


Sour Kraut?


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## chris(madrid) (Mar 23, 2008)

Sauer Kraut - No not really. Plus I have an annual "Wurst&kraut" attack - This years is next week in fact. I do miss the "side salad" served with any main course occasionally. But the Saturday bread rolls (with Cheese or ham or onion or.............) - Ah - I really do miss those.


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## Pasanada (Feb 5, 2008)

I turned "native" when I moved to Spain and found I lost weight due to a healthier diet. When living in the Middle East, I went native there too. I'm about to move to Afghanistan and having tried Afghan dishes in the Middle East, I know I'll be fine.

"British" dishes just leave me feeling bloated and in Spain, they will leave your wallet/purse empty as the prices are so high!!! But then, these goods have to be imported so prices are pushed up. Stick to Spanish, you really won't regret it.


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

You off to Afghanistan, GG? Have a safe trip - never been myself but I am sure you will make the best out of the experience. I hear the locals show great respect for those of a certain age LOLOLOLOLOLOL.


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## Pasanada (Feb 5, 2008)

SteveHall said:


> You off to Afghanistan, GG? Have a safe trip - never been myself but I am sure you will make the best out of the experience. I hear the locals show great respect for those of a certain age LOLOLOLOLOLOL.


You will be made to feel most welcome then, Steve.... 

I'll keep in touch as much as poss.


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## chris(madrid) (Mar 23, 2008)

Pasanada said:


> I turned "native" when I moved to Spain and found I lost weight due to a healthier diet.


I went native too (my wife being a native) - I put on girth rather than weight.  4 inches in 3 months if memory serves.


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## Pasanada (Feb 5, 2008)

chris(madrid) said:


> I went native too (my wife being a native) - I put on girth rather than weight.  4 inches in 3 months if memory serves.


Wow, Chris!!! I went DOWN 2 dress sizes!!! 

PS I hope you're being clean...... tee hee


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## chris(madrid) (Mar 23, 2008)

To be fair P - when I arrived back in the early '90's I was blessed of a lot of contractually enforced spare time and cash. My wife then worked LONG (aka Spanish) days and so we tended to eat supper "out" almost daily. So I was probably eating richer foods than is normal, and than I'd been used to in Germany (working).

We lived in a "marginal" suburb of Madrid and as I then spoke little Spanish was pretty much limited as to where I could go without my missus initially. So I did very little exercise. 

Later I found work but was "introduced" to the Spanish "Menu del dia" back in the days when wine/chaser with lunch was "normal" - and the "extra" proved tough to get rid of.

Afghan food - I still miss a Afghan restaurant in Heidelberg occasionally - Great rice & bread.


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## Pasanada (Feb 5, 2008)

I'm quite fortunate in that alcohol causes me to lose weight....I've hardly drunk anything in a year and found I've put on a stone! When I moved to Spain, I was tempted by the local drinks plus I ate more salads, fruit and veg than I did in the UK.

I'm hoping to lose the stone once in Kabul, I know an ex BBC Reporter there who owns the Gandamak Lodge and Hare & Hounds drinking hole - diet sorted!


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## Buenosdiaspet (Feb 13, 2009)

If you're vegetarian, you will miss being able to buy tofu, tempeh and quorn in every supermarket/town centre easily and cheaply!


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## Stuartw (Mar 5, 2009)

First post here so hello everyone...

I actually have found the opposite since moving to Spain. I've been here 3 years now (2 in Madrid, and 1 near Seville) and find that I've put on more weight since moving over here. I think the copious amounts of Olive oil in Andalucian food are partly responsible so you do have to watch that (along with lack of excercise). 

But in general I think you can eat more healthily, more easily than in the UK, especially in restaurants. 

BTW - replying to the original post - the one thing I do miss is hot desserts/puddings & cakes (all the unhealthy stuff). I think British desserts take some beating.


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## chris(madrid) (Mar 23, 2008)

Stuartw said:


> I think the copious amounts of Olive oil in Andalucian food are partly responsible so you do have to watch that (along with lack of excercise).


It's the lack of exercise mostly. Look at the Spanish about you - I'll bet LOTS of them are slim. I'm guilty too.


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