'We are part of history' - Catalan restaurant still serving diners 500 years on

Record ID: 1880129

  • Title: 'We are part of history' - Catalan restaurant still serving diners 500 years on
  • Date: 5th December 2024
  • Summary: PINOS, CATALONIA, SPAIN (FILE - JULY 25, 2024) (REUTERS) CUSTOMERS TALKING WHILE DRINKING COFFEE CUSTOMER DRINKING COFFEE CUSTOMERS EATING (SOUNDBITE) (Catalan) BUSINESS OWNER, MONICA SEGUES, SAYING: "I think... I don't know if this is one of the oldest places in the world serving food. Perhaps there is a culture which is older. But I believe we are the oldest in Europe."
  • Embargoed: 19th December 2024 12:25
  • Keywords: 500 years Catalonia Pinos Spain anniversary oldest restaurant
  • Location: PINOS & SOLSONA, CATALONIA, SPAIN
  • City: PINOS & SOLSONA, CATALONIA, SPAIN
  • Country: Spain
  • Topics: Europe,Living/Lifestyle,Society/Social Issues
  • Reuters ID: LVA006326020102024RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: On September 26, 2024, Hostal de Pinos, nestled in the heart of Catalonia, marked a remarkable milestone—500 years of continuous operation. From serving food to pilgrims in the 16th century to becoming a culinary landmark, the restaurant has evolved, but its rustic essence remains unchanged.
    Business owner Monica Segues, whose family has run the restaurant since 2002, proudly shares:
    "We know (the restaurant) has been open since 1524 because we have documentation from all years, I mean from all centuries."
    The historical continuity of Hostal de Pinos is reflected not only in documents but also in the stonework that adorns the restaurant. One notable engraving dating back to 1677 reads in Old Catalan: "It's true that without money (here) you get nothing."
    At the nearby Diocesan Archive in Solsona, assistant archivist Josep Porredon discovered the document that proves the restaurant's long-standing history and shared it with Reuters. The document confirms the founding of Hostal de Pinos by a family in a farmhouse next to the sanctuary in 1524.
    Unlike other venerable European establishments, such as the Guinness World's oldest Madrid’s Casa Botin, Hostal de Pinos hasn’t garnered a Guinness record, and it might be due to a technicality: The concept of the "restaurant," as we understand it today, didn’t exist in the 16th century. Instead, the Hostal was a hybrid of lodging and kitchen, a stopover for weary travellers and pilgrims.
    Reuters has reached to Guinness for comment but has yet to receive a response.
    For Segués, the restaurant's legacy is deeply personal: "I am very happy to be the one celebrating the 500 years. I'm the one being here for it. It makes me happy living through it." She adds "We are part of history."
    (Production: Bernat Parera, Albert Gea)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2024. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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