Food from the buffet at Fresc Co. Photo by unite.

By Regina Winkle-Bryan in Barcelona—

At first glance, it may not seem like healthy options abound in Barcelona. The endless ham, the white bread and chocolate croissants, the fried and breaded tapas… and all of it, as one of my friends from North America put it, is “swimming in olive oil.”

Fair enough. But remember that this is also the land of the Mediterranean diet. Fish, fruit, nuts, steamed greens, and delicate salads are also on the menu in the Catalan capitol. Healthy eating is not hard to come by in Barcelona if you know where to go in the city. Until recently, it was a headache to be a vegetarian, but now this too is no big deal in Barcelona.

For your five daily doses of fruit and veggies, here are my local recommendations:

Fresc Co
Locations throughout Barcelona

Fresc Co is a buffet-style restaurant with an enormous salad and pasta bar. This is a good place for vegetarians and picky eaters because there are no surprises and you take only what you want. It’s also a steal, at about €10 for lunch or dinner. The downside is that Fresc Co does not score high in the charm or uniqueness department but the price makes up for this. There are many Fresc Co locations in Barcelona; visit the website for more information.

Sesamo
C/Sant Antoni Abat 52 08001
934 416 411

Not only is this cute spot vegetarian-friendly, it is also organic! In the hip El Raval neighborhood, Sesamo is a bit hidden, so check your map before heading over—it is worth the journey. Tuesday through Sunday the restaurant offers a set meal for €15, which includes three course, bread, and a drink. To some Cheapos this may seem a bit pricey, but portions are large and €15 is an excellent deal for a three-course lunch in Barcelona.

Ra
Plaça Gardunya, 3-4
933 014 163

Another one of my old favorites is Ra Restaurant, which also offers a set meal for €13 on weekdays and weekends alike. Ra is a popular choice for locals and tourists because it is right off Las Ramblas and has one of the nicest outdoor terraces in the city center.

Ra is not a veggie restaurant, but it always offers a veggie option, usually lasagna or some other delicious creation. Ra changes its menu all the time, but the eats are always tasty. I have never been disappointed at Ra, and I have been there many times. Tip: Go before 1:30 PM or you WILL NOT get a table.

Juicy Jones
C/ Hospital, 74
934 439 082

Amazingly, there are even vegan options in Barcelona! Juicy Jones offers vegan fare, smoothies, and fresh squeezed fruit juice. There are a few Juicy Jones around the city, but I am only familiar with the ones in the Gothic Quarter and El Raval. Dreadlocks, hipsters, and new generation hippies abound at Juicy Jones, sipping guava shakes and warming up with homemade soups in the winter months. The prices are reasonable for the high quality.

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Le Grenier de Notre Dame. Photo by ewanmcdowall.

By Liz Webber—

Going to a restaurant when you have some sort of dietary restriction can be difficult enough as it is, let alone when you’re in a foreign country where you may not speak the local language. Never fear, we’ll show you how to find restaurants in Paris where you can eat freely or simply communicate your circumstances “en français.”

Vegetarian/Vegan restaurants in Paris

Being a vegetarian in France is something of a punchline, and veganism is all but unheard of. However, there are some options for herbivores in Paris. A vegetarian friend of mine recommends Macéo (15 Rue des Petits Champs) and Brasserie Lutetia (45 Boulevard Raspail), both of which have vegetarian menus.

She further suggests using the website Happy Cow to search for restaurants in Paris. The site lists four vegan eateries, and includes several other vegetarian and veg-friendly options.

While it may not be “real” French cuisine, you can also try Asian restaurants, which may be more used to the idea of meat-less dishes. Check out the Chinese and Vietnamese places in Belleville in the 19th and 20th Arrondissements.

Celiac/Wheat-free dining in Paris

My dad is a celiac, so when he came to visit me he looked up gluten-free restaurants on CeliacHandbook.com. Le Charlain (23 Rue Clauzel) was on the list, and we enjoyed a great meal there – with a delicious flour-less chocolate cake for dessert.

Celiac disease is not as well-known in France as in places like Italy, but it is possible to find wheat-free dishes in most restaurants. Just tell your server, “Je suis allergique à la farine” (I’m allergic to flour). Stay away from mysterious sauces, and (depending on the restaurant’s recipe) you most likely won’t be able to eat the “frites,” either.

Disappointingly for my dad, we couldn’t find any bakeries in Paris that make gluten-free products. Naturalia, a chain of natural food stores, sells some wheat-free bread products, but they generally aren’t the same quality you’d find in the United States.

Lactose Intolerance and Other Allergies

Although the French are fond of cheeses and cream sauces, it should be easy to avoid dairy products in most Paris restaurants if you make your intolerance known. Simply say “J’ai une intolérance au lactose” (I’m lactose intolerant). Another option is to try kosher meat restaurants, such as those you would find in the neighborhood of the Rue des Rosiers.

Similarly, for other food allergies it’s just a matter of telling your server. Start with “Je suis allergique aux…” (I’m allergic to…). Some common allergy words include “noix” (nuts), “fruits de mer” (seafood), and “graines de sésame” (sesame seeds).

Tell Us

Are you a vegetarian, vegan, or have a food allergy? How was your experience eating out in Paris? Let us know!

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The new Currywurst Museum opens its doors in Berlin.

Photos and text by Susan Buzzelli in Berlin—

Berlin bursts with street food kiosks specializing in Cheapo-friendly treats. It’s easy to snack on anything from Turkish Döner kebabs to vegan cheeseburgers here. But one speedy snack has been around the longest: the currywurst.

Invented in 1949, currywurst is a colorful concoction of sliced sausage, ketchup-like tomato sauce, and curry powder, served on a ridged cardboard plate with a pile of fries (or a roll) is one of the city’s most iconic meals. The high-fat, high-calorie snack is hardly health conscious, but that doesn’t stop Berliners from snarfing down 70 million currywursts each year!

A grand opening for one hot dog!

This street food standby, available at “Bude” (kiosks) throughout the city (and country) made national headlines this past weekend when the Deutsches Currywurst Museum (Schützen Strasse 70, one block east of Friedrich Strasse, U-bahn: Stadtmitte, open 10 AM to 10 PM daily), nestled on a quiet street around the corner from Checkpoint Charlie and the Mauermuseum, opened its doors.

The low-key grand opening, which featured a dancing sausage and free samples, attracted about 1,500 visitors and a gaggle of pro-vegan protesters dressed in pig and cow costumes (see photo).

Vegan protesters get riled up at the opening.

I was one of the first in line to visit the small museum, which charges a decidedly Cheapo-unfriendly admission of €11 (€8.50 for students). Furnished with a sausage-shaped couch, oversized “drips” of tomato sauce suspended from the ceiling, and a life-sized model of a sausage “Bude,” the museum covers every imaginable aspect of the Currywurst, from its 1949 invention by the Berliner snack stand owner Herta Heuwer to the ecological lifecycle of the snack’s cardboard serving plates. (It even acknowledges—but ultimately dismisses—Hamburg’s rival claim that it is the Currywurst’s true birthplace.)

The privately run museum, which cost €7 million to realize, is full of bells and whistles (including a “prepare-your-own Currywurst” computer game) and fun factoids, but it ultimately disappoints with superficial exhibits (in German and English) that stretch the theme too far.

It takes less than an hour to make your way through the entire museum. Some displays, including four model refrigerators representing the eating habits of different Berlin households, are only loosely linked (at best) to the currywurst.

A bit of currywurst history—for free

The museum’s most interesting display provides a brief history of the snack. Heuwer invented currywurst on September 4, 1949, during the lean, post-World War II years, when food was strictly rationed and Germans had to be creative in the kitchen. Based on the national staple—sausage—and ingredients introduced to the city’s residents by British occupying troops, currywurst struck a cord and became a Berlin institution. She went on to patent her “Chillup” sauce in 1959.

The snack eventually traveled to the rest of the country—and the globe. A map in the museum shows that currywurst is available in Bali, Bangkok, Oklahoma, and New York City, where the German-run sausage shack Hallo Berlin! doles out the Berlin export.

Because of the high admission price and superficial exhibits, I don’t recommend a visit to the museum. But I do encourage you to sample the storied street food at one of the city’s countless currywurst stands. Keep in mind that you may be asked to choose between mild or “scharf” (spicy) sauce or a sausage with or without “Darm” (casing) when ordering.

Where to get a currywurst in Berlin

The two most famous “Bude” are Prenzlauer Berg’s historic Konnopke’s Imbiss (Schönhauser Allee 44a, at the base of the Eberswalder Strasse U-bahn), which has been around since the 1940s, and Kreuzberg’s up-all-night Curry 36 (Mehringdamm 36, U-bahn: Mehringdamm), a draw for the city’s club-goers and bar-hoppers.

Vegans don’t have to miss out: tofu-based varieties are available at the sister vegan eateries Yoyo Food World (Gärtner Str. 27, U-bahn: Frankfurter Tor) in Friedrichshain and Yellow Sunshine (Wiener Str., U-bahn: Görlitzer Bahnhof) in Kreuzberg. Don’t expect to pay more than €5 for your own personal taste of Berlin history.

About the author: A Pittsburgh native, Susan Buzzelli has been a sworn Germanophile since she spent a high school summer as an exchange student in Buxtehude. After stints in Dresden, Munich, and Hamburg she settled (possibly for good) in Europe’s most dynamic city: Berlin. When she isn’t exploring Berlin, she’s traveling throughout Germany (with an occasional hop over the border). Her comprehensive guidebook to Germany, Zeitguide Germany, will be published soon. Look for updates on her website, www.susanbuzzelli.com.

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