Absurd new law on restaurant olive oil

Anyone familiar with Spanish restaurants will be used to the bottles of vinegar and olive oil found on tables in addition to salt and pepper pots and accept it as the way things are done. However, from January onwards restaurants will be obliged to serve only labelled bottles of olive oil in sealed bottles rather than what they do now, which is to top up their olive oil dispensers whenever required.

Absurdly, Europe tried to force restaurants to take this measure earlier this year and failed. However, the PP government, which continues to show it really has no clue about anything whatsoever, has decided to press on with this measure anyway, adding further costs to restaurants while everyone is suffering from the biggest economic crisis in living memory.

The rationale behind the move sounds sensible enough; protect the producers of olive oil by ensuring that DO olive oils haven’t been tampered with, and that consumers aren’t conned.But there is a problem with this; how many people actually care what olive oil they are being served?

Obviously there are some people who really do care about such things, and they will benefit I suppose. However, most people will use whatever is on the table. I’ve never even thought to ask.

Let’s put it another way. If I order a Priorat wine, I want to know exactly what it is I’m getting and I expect to be served it. That’s what I’m paying for. However, if I order a carafe of house wine, I don’t care. It just needs to be drinkable.

And that isn’t the case with olive oils, as they are freely available on the table. I pay through the cover charge, not for any specific brand or DO. I don’t see an olive oil list, I don’t need (or want) a choice, I just want it there in front of me.

So, does that mean that wines will be only available labelled and in a corked bottle any moment now, as surely it is wine producers that are more at risk from this. Or have I missed something (quite possible) and it is already illegal to serve draft wine anyway and (some) restaurants don’t care about the law?

Source: Empordà.info

Tags: Food & drink, Olive oil, socialmedia