Bar-Tienda
The "primordial knot" that ties together the social fabric of the rural environment of Asturias, the bar-tienda is a unique combination of local pub and general store.[1] Together with the church, the bar-tienda constituted the two most important social outlets in small villages in Asturias prior to automobiles.[2]
The rural world everywhere suffers from a lack of businesses. Mostly this is because the population of a rural area, say a valley or a mountain hollar or what have you, is too small to support the number of businesses it needs. Especially in a place that isn't on the way to anywhere, there might only be one store for miles in any direction. In the US, these tend to be a gas station with a convenience store and maybe a sandwich shop. In some parts of the US (like where I grew up) you can find traditional general stores with gas pumps out front. Some even have restaurants or hot food to go.
In rural Ireland you can find country pubs with a grocery room attached. And in the smallest villages you can find a combination pub and general store. THAT is almost identical to a bar-tienda in Asturias. The only real difference is that the Asturian ones tend to put more emphasis on the tienda, and the Irish ones on the bar. For the city folk reading this from the US, imagine a New York City bodega that you can order a beer in like a bar.
Description
They are always a family business, and always their remit is, like the American general store, to put as many functions as possible under one roof. Need a case of cider? You have it. 50kg of potatoes? You have it. A shot of orujo after work? You have it. A place to pick up packages left by the mail, to get your seeds and plants for the garden, to stick up your ad selling yearling lambs, to find out who has died in the area... All of these functions are what make a bar-tienda what it is: the beating heart of its community.
Some will have signs out front and may resemble any other village bar until you step inside. Others will be virtually indistinguishable from any other house in the village, except for perhaps a table out front with an ashtray. The naming convention is almost always "Casa" followed by the owners name. Some deviation exists; you will find some "Bar" followed by the owners name, and a few named for the village, or a bridge, or a tree.
The bar-tienda is the natural haunt of the paixano - the local villager who has lived in the area his whole life and knows every person, tree, cow, rock, and plant to be found for kilometers in every direction. Ana Paz Paredes relates the story of one Silvino whose wife would send him to the bar-tienda with a shopping list pinned to the money so that the bartender would bag up all the groceries and other necessities for Silvino to carry home when he was done drinking, not trusting him to remember the list after his wine.[3]
Visiting
Though many have closed, there are still upwards of 300 of these country stores in Asturias. Naturally, they are located in villages, smaller towns, and a crossroads in farming areas. If you happen across one of these stores, I recommend going in and having a drink, buying a snack, and soaking in the atmosphere. They are a really unique experience, and a source of hidden culinary delights. There are a number of ciders, cheeses, and sausages I have discovered because they are only available in one bar-tienda in a village up in the hills.
- ↑ David, Fernández Moro, and Späni Arnaud. Bares-tienda en Asturias. pp ii. Ediciones Nobel, Sa, 2004.
- ↑ Méndez Riestra, Eduardo. Diccionario de cocina y gastronomía de Asturias. pp 91. 1st ed., Trea, 2017.
- ↑ Paz Paredes, Ana. “Los Bares-tienda O Chigre-tienda Asturianos, Un Clásico De La Hostelería Asturiana.” Y Si Descubrimos Asturias, 13 Feb. 2016, ysidescubrimosasturias.blogspot.com/2016/02/los-bares-tienda-o-chigre-tienda.html. Accessed 1 July 2023.