Dinners in Seville, by Destiny Cerni

Being an American student studying in the city of Seville, I have noticed many social and cultural differences between the two countries. One of the biggest differences is dinner - when we eat, what we eat, how we act and are treated at restaurants and so on. In America the typical dinner time is roughly 5-8:00PM, here on the other hand, many Europeans do not go out for dinner or have dinner until well past this time. For my roommates and I we have dinner in our casa at 9, sometimes 9:30PM. Dinner here is also a much smaller meal than dinner in the United States. In the United States in general our meal sizes and portions are huge in comparison to those we receive here. In America we also do not have an option for tapa size or half sizes of meals, at most we can sometimes get an appetizer (starter) version of a main meal but in most cases this is not an option. Here in Seville my roommates and I tend to share multiple tapas and order more as we go, whereas at home we would typically share an appetizer, followed by each having our own entree (main course).

Another large difference between here and the states, is the server/restaurant industry. Back home I am a server and 99% of the money I make comes from tips - here that is not the case. In America it is normal and expected that each time you go out for a sit-down meal, you tip 18-20%. As an American I feel bad not tipping as much, or even at all at times, but that is just one of the many things I have had to get used to. This as well as the length of meal times; Serving at home I want my tables to move quickly so I have a fast turnover rate which allows me to seat more people and make more tips. Here, patrons can sit for long periods of time without feeling rushed or even being approached by a server unless waived down. Overall the dining experiences I have had here are much more relaxed and I am excited to try many more tapas as I go!

In news today, The Olive Press reports that one thousand jobs are unfilled in restaurants and hotels along the coast of Spain. Since COVID 19, businesses are having trouble hiring workers which is having a negative impact on the industry. Over 100,000 people in Malaga were unemployed as of June 2022. In my opinion the server industry is one that has changed since COVID in many different ways but luckily enough for servers, chefs, and bartenders, there will always be people to feed and money to be made.

 

https://www.theolivepress.es/spain-news/2022/07/07/one-thousand-jobs-unfilled-in-hotels-and-restaurants-on-spains-costa-del-sol/