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Dieta Mediterranea

Dieta Mediterrana is a romantic-comedy film about Sofia, a talented chef from a small Spanish village who strives to become the best chef in the world and is helped by her relationship with two men from her childhood. The film was supported and sponsored by the Catalonian government and was mainly shot in Barcelona. The director of the film was also Catalonian which would lead many to presume that the film would showcase Catalonia’s regional identity and cuisine.

However, that wasn’t the case. The film featured famous Spanish street eats such as patatas da bravas and bocadillido (Spanish sandwiches) with Mediterranean flavours such as the combination of sweet and salty (sardines and chocolate, tuna and cherry) but never put an effort to distinguish Spanish cuisine from a Catalonian one. The film moves from the traditional Spanish cooking to haute cuisine reflecting the battle between tradition and modernity in Catalonian cooking taking place today but food is ultimately delegated to the background in the film questioning its identity as a foodie film.

What does take precedence is the relationship between Sofia and the two male characters, but in a detriment to Catalonia’s cuisine and the role of women in the culinary industry. Sofia is constantly shuffled between the two male leads and succumbs to any request made by them. Sofia is reduced down to her sexuality and her cooking is conflated regularly with sexual scenes which is a problematic narrative to push to the audience. Although the movie went for laughs and highlighted some of Spain’s best street foods, it failed to distinguish Catalonian cuisine and build on the role of women in the culinary industry. 

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Zeppole di San Giuseppe

Zeppole di San Giuseppe is a popular traditional Italian fritter found in most Italian bakeries and street fairs. It’s similar to the traditional Italian doughnut Zeppole but this particular variation is even more popular than its original form and is the beloved dessert of the southern regions in Italy including Campania, Apulia, or Calabria. The dish is a fried/baked doughy pastry with delicious custard inside the pastry, topped off with powdered sugar and black cherries.

Nowadays, this dish is traditionally eaten along with wine to celebrate San Giuseppe also known as St. John (who was considered Mary’s husband and the father of Jesus Christ). However, this recipe originally dates back to the Roman Empire where this fritter would be consumed to celebrate the Greek god Bacchus. Dating further back, the word ‘zepolle’ comes from the Arabic word zalābiyya giving an insight to the Middle Eastern influence in medieval European cuisine.

After Italy had split from the fall of the Roman Empire, regional identities were strengthened and this sweet dish highlighted the diet of the time, mostly starch and fat. The recipe for this fritter was made famous by popular gastronome Ippolito Cavalcanti who lived in Naples. His cookbook came long before the reunification of Italy in 1861 and Artusi’s cookbook thus, highlighted regional differences in the language used.

Around the world, this dish has gained notoriety thanks to countless cookbooks published by Italian migrants reminiscing the cooking of their nonnas.  In Melbourne, suburbs with large populations of Italian migrants surely have this dish served in its restaurants.

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Degraves Street and Centre Place

Degraves Street and Centre Place’s proximity to Flinders Street Station defines its identity as a foodscape for the people on the go. The narrow lanes are lined with alfresco styled umbrellas outside of several eateries and are defined by the bustling of tourists and locals looking to grab a bit over their office break. Signs of the restaurants loom over this quintessential Melburnian laneway with colourful street art decorating the otherwise bland red walls. Typical Melburnian brunch places stood alongside a more traditional French crepe place and just ahead, a dumpling place and an eclectic little sushi bar sat at the end of the laneway.

Although this pedestrian precinct doesn’t have much of a history of migration as reflected in other foodscapes around the city, its strength lies in its modernity. Situated right next to the city’s central district, the area localizes everything considered Melburnian.

I don’t think I’ve seen any other laneway in Melbourne more fitting of the Melburnian foodscape than these two laneways. The trendy melting-pot of eateries offers visitors a wide range of choices in picking their lunch but is also mindful of the limited space. It alleviates the problems caused by limited space and the demands of the frantic lunch rush by offering street food. Gelatos, churros, French baguettes and other delicious street food are on offer for the crowds. These laneways take Melburnian street food to the next level.

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Coca de llardon

Coca de Llardon

Festivals and Carnivals always have their own delicious street fares to offer to attendees and coca de llardon happens to be one of the best street foods on offer. Nowadays this dish is served up in traditional pastry shops all year round such as Farga around Barcelona in Spain. Coca de Llardon is a traditional Catalonian pastry cake made with eggs, flour, sugar, pork rinds and pine nuts; it’s usually consumed with a sweet wine. This sweet dish is an outlier among the savoury “cocas” of Catalonian cuisine including the coca de Sant Joan and coca de recapte which closely resemble pizzas.

Marking the beginning of summer, the fatty dish is traditionally consumed at summer festivals on Saint John’s Eve and during Lent, a Christian celebration before Easter where observers fast for 40 days, for preparing the body for the fast. The strong religious influence in a country which used pork as the central meat for assimilation is reflected in this dish with the addition of pork rinds. The events of 1469 and 1492 where Granada was reconquered and Spanish Jews and Muslims were given a chance to stay in the country if they converted to Christianity strengthened Spain as a Christian nation and therefore, built its own culinary identity marked with the inclusion of pork.

However, mistaking this dish to be simply Spanish would be wrong as the Catalonians have distinguished their regional identity from Spain in a larger movement to gain independence. Although this Catalonian dessert isn’t found much outside of Spain, it’s easy to make at home and warrants a trip to Barcelona.