By Michael Niven
Enjoy seasonal fruit and vegetables grown within a short distance of where you live. Fresh flavours, richness of colour and variety. You can’t beat it, but we seldom bother.
I’m the same, it’s so easy to pop down to the local Supermarket and just get everything all in one go, mindless of where it came from. Apart from bakeries, which seem to survive in many places, the local fruiterer, butcher, fishmonger have all but disappeared in much of “developed” Europe.
Not so on the Costa del Sol. There is still a market for small shops, a personal service, fresh produce and close to home.
In all the centres of Marbella and the towns and villages of the Costa del Sol many little “fruterías” can be found offering a selection of local produce. Of course, in an era of stiff competition, these shops also sell flown in wares from around the globe. Pandering to the modern taste for having what you want when you want, whatever the cost to the environment, or to the quality of the product.
A fresh Orange, plucked from the tree just a short while previously, has a flavour and richness almost beyond the imagination. You’ll have to try one if you don’t believe me. It’s the same story with lemons, peaches, custard apples, mangos and tomatoes, to name a few of the better known fruits of this fortunate region.
Quite apart from anything else. It’s great fun to pass along the older streets of the local towns and villages, amongst the locals, enjoying the smells and sounds of Spanish living. A “frutería”, displaying brightly coloured shapely fruits and vegetables announces itself with a delicious aroma that may, like it does to me, prompt childhood memories of shops in pre-supermarket times. There’s a special “Mediterranean” flavour to this scented air from the heady mixture of herbs and produce which draws you in from the street.
Most of these little shops have a self service system even though they rarely have regimented aisles. Just potter around picking what you fancy. They usually have baskets and bags handy for your purchases. When you are done just join the slightly haphazard queue for the till. You’ll find there is often a lot of banter and chat between the shopkeeper and clients. Don’t forget, these people have been coming to this shop all their lives and they all know each other pretty well!
Of course you won’t be the first foreigners they’ve served, and you may even be surprised at the command of English the shopkeeper has, but you will feel this ¡is a better, more entertaining way to shop than trudging around a supermarket. And the rewards you’ll get from your taste buds will keep you coming back for more.
Oh, and don’t be surprised if you are offered a fistful of fresh flat-leaf parsley or coriander to take away with you. It’s a little thank you for shopping there, and one that always makes me smile with pleasure every time I get it.