Bites from the best eating city on Earth
San Sebastián, in Spain's Basque region, is a culinary capital
Friends,
This week I’m at a culinary conference called Gastronomika in San Sebastián (called Donostia in Basque), a city in the Basque Country that’s very famous for its food. It’s a small city but there are EIGHT Michelin starred restaurants in the surrounding area, including three 3* restaurants…it is the densest city for stars in Europe!
But you know, I’m not all about the stars and the high-end restaurants…when I am in San Sebastian, I love to eat at all of the amazing bars that are around the city. I’ve told you all about tapas culture, and San Sebastian has its own take on tapas. Throughout the Basque Country, you’ll find Pintxos (also spelled “pincho” in Spanish or “pinchu” in Asturian), which means “spike” in Basque, referring to the toothpick that’s used to skewer the bites that are present on every bar in the region.
Throughout the city, you can travel from bar to bar, having a bite and a drink at each one. It’s such a deep part of the culture, there’s actually a word for this in Basque: txikiteo. There are cold pintxos that are already sitting on the bar, and warm ones that you order and the kitchen makes for you. There are classic pintxos, like Gildas—olives, peppers, and anchovies, supposedly created in the 1940s at Casa Vallés in San Sebastian and named after the character in the Rita Hayworth movie…according to the story, the pintxo is “green, salty, and spicy,” just like Gilda in the movie. And there are newer pintxos, like one with foie, sweetcorn, and white chocolate, served at Atari Gastroleku.
Here are three of my favorite pintxos, but you can see a theme here…make them your own! Even the toothpick is negotiable.
Gildas