José Andrés: Republicans Do Not Understand Tapas (UPDATE)

WASHINGTON -- DCist reports that D.C.-based chef and James Beard Foundation award winner José Andrés noted recently at a Washington Post Live discussion that "very traditional people," though not "necessarily that I mean Republicans" have a hard time with tapas because they don't like to share their food.

Andrés offered some advice to his more "traditional" customers -- move your plate away from the center of the table:

I always tell everyone the rule of the 15 inches. If you want to enjoy tapas and the Spanish way of eating, you put the plate in the middle of the table. If you don't care about the Spanish way of eating and you want only to enjoy a good Spanish dish, you move the plate 15 inches in and you put it in front of you.

This isn't the first time people have tried to match dining habits to political ideologies. Last May, Hunch.com released a survey that revealed some surprising correlations. Among the findings: liberals like strawberry jelly on PB&J; conservatives like grape, liberals like pastas with hard-to-pronounce names while conservatives like spaghetti, and liberals and conservatives are equally appreciative of deep-fried fish.

UPDATE: 10:45 p.m. -- DCist now reports that Andrés did not say that Republicans have a hard time with tapas, as the site originally reported, but that "very traditional people, and not necessarily with that I mean Republicans" have a hard time with tapas because they don't like to share their food. This article has been updated to reflect this change.

RELATED VIDEO: José Andrés talks to DC Metro Cuisine about tapas.