Gonza's Spanish Tapas

Its origin is not very clear. On the one hand, according to The Chronicles of the Indies, we know that the first egg omelets were made around the year 1519, both by the Spaniards and by the Aztecs. And on the other hand, we know that Pizarro brought potatoes back from America to Europe in the year 1537 as food for animals, because at that time food that came from the ground was considered poisonous for human consumption, they had to wait up to 200 years for them to be considered suitable for our consumption. The Spaniards mistook the potatoes for sweet potatoes due to their similar appearance and that is why they started to call them potatoes, and the name is still used nowadays.

There are several theories regarding the exact moment when these two ingredients were combined, creating the recipe for the Spanish omelet.

Until recently, the first document we know of in which they referred to the Spanish omelet, was a document dating back to 1817, addressed to the Court of Navarre, which recounts that the inhabitants of Pamplona consumed it, and the document stated: “... two or three eggs in an omelet for five or six, because our women know how to make it big and fat using few eggs by mixing with potatoes, breadcrumbs or something else...”. Legend has it that the inventor of the Spanish omelet was a humble peasant who lived in the forests of Navarre, and one winter night he received the visit of the Carlist general Tomás de Zumalacárregui (1808-1835), who asked him for something to eat. As he only had eggs, onions and potatoes, he made an omelet with these ingredients and the general loved it and would later make it popular among his Carlist troops, since it was a simple, cheap and very nutritious dish. Most traditional dishes were created out of necessity rather than a desire to innovate.

Our product, the "Tortilla Española" is the second most popular dish in Spain. It consists of 3 ingredients: eggs, potatoes, and onions. It is pretty simple, yet very palatable and unique. What makes this omelette Spanish, is the eggs combined with the potatoes making a thick, fluffy and moisty omelette. In Spain, this omelette is eaten at any time of the day and it is typically cut in pie piece shapes and shared. However, we wanted to cook individual omelettes, given that people often are either single, live by themselves or they just like to each order their own individual meals. We are trying to introduce the concept of eggs being eaten at any time of the day. Typically, in America omelettes are eaten right after they are cooked; the Tortilla Española is not necessarily eaten right after it is cooked. This is because in Spain it is also common to eat it at room temperature, or a couple days after it is cooked. That being said, introducing this concept has been a challenge but fortunately we have been succeeding. 

 Our Mission, "To cook for our customers in the same way that we cook for our family, with care and high quality standards."

Our Values, "To serve our customers with excellence, taking our hat off for those who keep our business alive and growing. Focusing on providing a product of quality and show respect to our roots."