Updated Food Budget

It’s really impossible to say because it depends what kind of restaurants you want to eat at. Have a look at online reviews. Michelin star will be into the hundreds of euros a head, tapas a few euro each! You can literally pay anything.

We travel with a 12 year old granddaughter that we're raising. She hardly passes a McDonalds in Europe where she doesn't want to stop.

She told me the other day that she wants to return to Italy. I said "Why?" And she said it was for the spaghetti. She really enjoyed a big sit down meal we had in Venice June, 2023.

We're not big foodies, but we found Spain 3 years ago to be very reasonable on food outside the big cities.

As mentioned, it's a tough one to answer. The best meal deal in Spain is always the 'menu del dia', which should run 11-15pp. (The most I've ever paid for a menu was 18.50, on the terrace at a higher-end place in the center of Madrid.)

I did a 14-course tasting menu at a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant in Cordoba for 70, including wine pairings. It felt like an absolute bargain to me, but I could never tell my Spanish friends how much I spent on that lunch—they'd think I was insane.

I don't know if he covers prices, but the food videos on the Spain Revealed YouTube channel could be insightful for you.

I refuse to budget for food. One of the reasons I travel is to enjoy the food. As Napoleon said: an army travels on its stomach.
If you feel the need to reduce food expenses, then cook some meals in your AirBnB.
Personally, I think Bilbo is the most affordable city to dine in—because pintxos !

Hi Stephen,
Since you mentioned Logroño, I think I can help a bit. Also have a son who was 3 ½ in 2004 (his sister was born in July ´04)

Starting with stuff I know… For a ¨tinto¨ and ¨pintxo de tortilla con picante” I pay 3€ at my local bar. That´s 1.2€ for the wine and 1.8€ for the tortilla. If you go for a crianza it will cost 2€ for Azpilicueta or 2.2€ for a Pierola. Sometimes when I´m walking my dogs, I will stop for a beer. A “corto” or “zurito” is 1.2-1.3€ and a bottle or “caña” is 2-2.2€

This summer the four us went out for pintxos. We hit four bars, and spent 20€, 17€, 15€ and 14€ (appx). The 20€ stop was for 4 pintxos, two tintos del año, a white wine and bottle of water. This was in the Calle del Laurel. Was it good yes, but a bit overpriced. The tintos were 1.6€ for example. We only went there because my daughter´s best friend was working there, if not I avoid El Laurel. The others were in calle San Juan. Two were pintxos and one was a “racion”.

A small add on, Saturdays after doing the shopping I have a coffee in a local café. A “café americano” and a “croissant a la plancha” is 3€, if I ask for Costa Rican coffee is 20cents extra. If I add an O.J. it´s 5€

A few weeks ago we went to a hamburger restaurant with my daughter. For the three of us, 3 “gourmet” burgers and a chili fries with drinks was 53€ (touching on the tipping topic, we left 55€ on the table). Last September a new Mexican place open close to Laurel. For the 3 of us it was about 80€. It was a bit overpriced, especially the margaritas.

My advice is that in Logroño, skip el Laurel and go to San Juan, you will get the same quality of food at a lower price, and less touristy. There is a bar on the corner of calle del Laurel, which has a large variety of wonderful looking pintxos, and it is always full. One because what they offer really catches the eye, and two they open pretty “early” like 6ish (and often the only one open for a while). So it is often full of tourist. But they also have a pretty good jack up of prices.

In the summer of 2022 in Galicia & Asturias, a seafood restaurant meal would cost about €25-35 pp at mid-range places depending on location (more if you splurge for expensive items), and meat dishes were less expensive. Without drinks, but those are cheap in Spain.

It's true that prices have definitely gone up in Spain these last couple of years. Depending on where you are I think it is still possible to eat well in Spain for between €40-€55 per person:

Breakfast (€3-5): at a neighborhood bar or cafe with a combo deal, either a pastry and coffee or mini-baguette and coffee.

Lunch (€12-15): look for 'Bar-Restaurante', these are establishments frequented by local workers "on the go" during the weekdays. They serve a 'Menú del día', these are by far the best value in Spain and not many foreigners know about them; a seasonal three course lunch including drinks for around €12-15. Menus change daily so you can visit the same Bar-Restaurante and eat a different menu every day of the week!

Snack (€3-5): gelato on the go or a quick tapa.

Dinner (€22-30): dinner is a tricky one as a lot of places are more expensive then, most locals just eat at home. You can probably hit the local pizzeria for cheap eats. Tapas are a good choice if wanting a lot of variety. However if you go out for Tapas at night, it's very easy for the cost to start adding up, especially if you visit multiple bars on a Tapas crawl. It is a popular misconception among foreigners that tapas=cheap eats, that is not the case.

You could also try gastronomic food markets, these are where local restaurants have food stalls located in the main market, that sell street food to eat on site. These types of food markets have become quite popular in Spain in recent years, especially for those looking for a quick drink and a bite to eat. In Zaragoza I recommend Puerta Cinegia Mercado.

We almost have a menu del dia mid-day <€17. Then tapas/pinches in the evening <€10 . Obviously we are not foodies but we eat well.

I’m just on my way home from RS Spain. Average sit down afternoon dinner meal for two people with wine 2 glasses person was 60-70 euros.

Tapas meals are whatever you choose so like for 10 euros you get a wine and a tapas to share or have for one person.

At bars go in readily with your drinks choices. Order then stay at bar. Drink arrives, wait a few or less minutes, and free tapas is served. Fun for tapas hopping.

Plenty of American fast food places, I was surprised at how many. McD, KFC, Starbucks everywhere, hamburgers offered in cafes and cafeteria,

A good option is department stores go up to Terrace levels for cafeteria style service with endless options (salads), and the city views.

Menu boards are available outside or on the building.

I like Carlos' post on costs, but still, his are on the low side. Suggest that it could run a bit more.