My kitchen Spanish is pretty good 
Perhaps we visited the wrong places. Peppers and potatoes is what we saw for the most part.
I kept wondering where the Spanish hide all their wonderful produce 
Yes, it certainly helps to actually live in the country, and not be limited to a brief visit.
Next time, take a walk through the Mercado de la Paz and feast your eyes on the gorgeous displays at the Mari Carmen stand. Or in the Mercat de Sant Antoni in Barcelona. Or in the hypermarkets of El Corte Inglés if you need to pick up an item or two at El Corte Inglés.
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I finally got a studio apartment with a tiny kitchen, but before that, I ate all of those salads and vegetable dishes in restaurants. I went to cheap places often that had a set menu del dĂa and ensalada mixta was always a choice at every bar and cafe.
There was no shortage of veg at the markets we went to (Valencia in particular), but I wasnât going to buy a kg of tomatoes to take to our hotel room 
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@Madrid,
Yes! I forgot about the wonderful Catalan vegetable dishes of escalivada and samfaina and of course, the pisto manchego which has various different versions in each region. And the Mercado Central in Valencia has wonderful vegetable stands as well and places like Ricard Camarenaâs Central Bar in the middle of the market where one can enjoy them.
Same with Casa Dani in Madridâs Mercado de la Paz. On their menĂș del dĂa there are always a number of vegetable items.
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I remember the treasure that was the Corte Ingles supermercado even back then. Fruit from the Canaries and elsewhere, wonderful berries, my first Cherimoya, etc. Very difficult then to find vegetarian food. Ensalada mixta usually had tuna and most vegetable dishes contained some kind of pork.
You never saw pan con tomate in a tapas bar? Or piquillo peppers?
There are now several chains of vegetarian friendly restaurants, such as Honest Greens (even with a branch in Lisbon).
But yes, some vegetable dishes still contain pork, such as guisantes con jamĂłn. And salmorejo usually is garnished with jamĂłn bits.
Pan con tomate here is always served in bars now but usually we have it for breakfast.
Yup, I saw pa amb tomaquet everywhere in Barca & had it oftenâŠbut Iâd consider that more of a bread dish than a vegetable side. Piquillos, too. Thatâs not a lot of variety, however.
I am always impressed by the quality of the produce in Spanish markets but I agree that the vegetable offerings in restaurants are quite limited compared to other parts of the world. When I think of the range of quality and creative veg dishes in the pacific NW and Thailand when we spend most of our time, I feel that there is a bit of a gap on restaurant menus, that the ensaladas, piquillos, alcachofas and specialty items like the guisantes donât fill it. The markets certainly have great ingredients (we spent 2 months last year doing a lot of cooking) but donât end up on menus in a creative or high quality way outside a few standards (which can be great).
I have noticed the more modern bistro type places having more and more creative veg dishes and an increase in veg dishes overall but I am hoping for further improvement.
Despite the heavy meat, seafood, potatoes egg nature of the cuisine, Spain is the longest lived country in the world. So they must be doing something right with the diet.
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I do agree that menus in starred restaurants donÂŽt offer the creative vegetable dishes that one finds now in modern bistro type places. Except the vegetable-centric El Invernadero in Madrid.
Case in point, a gastro and wine guide friend of mine took a group of highly seasoned food lovers, including food critic Andy Hayley, to have the new (obligatory) tasting menu at the reincarnation of legendary Ibai in San SebastiĂĄn, now reopened by Michelin-starred chef Paulo Airaudo, and they all remarked at the lack of a vegetable course, which Andy highlighted in his review.
If I hadnât seen the couple next to me order the salad at La Lloreaia last night, Iâd never have known they had it on the menu, my terrible Spanish to blame or their descriptions? And the salad I had today at Casa Orellano on the menu del Dia was abysmal, did I get what I paid for? 
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Yes, the starred places in particular are lacking, probably worse than even traditional places.
I think regionally there are better places. In Navarra, Rioja and Galicia we have had some great veg dishes from places with soles to traditional to bars.
Yes pan con tomate or pa amb tomaquet is considered a breakfast item in lieu of croissants or other pastries, not a vegetable dish.
@ tigerjohn,
Navarra and Rioja, Spainâs 2 vegetable gardens, there are outstanding vegetable dishes on menus of both the sol and star places and traditional restaurants.
Our last time at Venta de Moncavillo they had expanded their veg garden and were serving most 100% products from the garden or within 1k including caza and beans. Heavy focus on veg in a way I havenât seen in other parts of Spain. Similarly at Culler de Pau in Galicia.
@maribel: Speaking of Rioja and Madrid, we will try DESBORRE when we are there first week October as my wife liked the menu. Will report back. Have you had a chance to go yet?
No, and Iâm very, very eager to try it. She has had two failed attempts in opening and keeping a Madrid restaurant (first in Salamanca on Ayala and then on GĂ©nova in Almagro), but this looks like a winner, a keeper, and is garnering great reviews. I have it on my to do list.
Venta de Moncalvillo is a great exception as is Culler de Pau, known for its garden. Two Michelin starred restaurants that are focusing on vegetables.
Another exception is Verduarte in Pamplona, housed in the Baluarte performing arts center. Very vegetable centric. We had a delightful tasting menu there recently with only the last course a meat selection.
We also had a surprisingly nice dinner at La Huerta de Tudela (another Navarran) on Calle del Prado last week, entertaining some Basque Navarran friends from Seattle and Boise. (I hadnât been there in years) The tomate feo de Tudela, menestra, pimientos de cristal asados a la leña con velo de papada ibâerica and alcachofas confitadas were stand out dishes.
In the northern business district, El QĂŒenco de Pepa is known for its tomatoes and other vegetable items from her garden.
PabĂș, whose chef, Coco Montes, trained at lâArpege, is very focused in his 8-dish tasting menu on vegetable dishes. I havenât been.
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Iâve seen Pabu get some high praise. One factor Iâm sure is that people coming to Spain are looking for classic flavors, high end places, seafood, tapas bars, pintxos etc and arenât necessarily going for mid range places in Madrid that do this stuff well. So they wonât likely choose veg focused places unless they are vegetarian/vegan.
I agree.
