I am not going to name and shame this restaurant in Spain, as it would be unfair, as the practice of providing a ghastly, synthetic wet-wipe instead of a finger bowl is all too common in most modern restaurants. What is the point of the wet-wipe? You cannot use it in the middle of your meal, as it would be used up too early, and it makes your food taste horrible too! Our waitress was also confused that we requested a plate or bowl to put our shellfish debris in! What exactly were we supposed to do with all those shells?!
When I was a child and we went on holiday to Southern Europe, you were given a good honest finger-bowl; a nice bowl of cold water and a slice of lemon, to enable you to rinse your fingers in-between mouthfuls. Nowadays, I not only get through a ridiculous number of napkins, but everything gets mucky, including your wine glass or whatever else you happen to be drinking from. On this particular day in Spain, I was almost tempted to take the lemon from my drink and fill up the ash-tray thoughtfully provided, with water to make our own make-shift bowl.
Does anyone else mourn the demise of the finger bowl? Or maybe the restaurants we are going to are not high-class enough to warrant their use!