San Sebastian

My guide to eating Pintxos in the Old Quarter

Pictures, opening times and a few words are all you need... so please, go forth and enjoy some of Donostia's best pintxos!

Goiz Argi

In a nutshell: Simple pintxos, focusing on making the star ingredients stand out. Best to try their hot pintxos as recommended below:

Txipirones a la plancha - Pan fried baby squid - exceedingly fresh and tasty

Gambas a la plancha - pan fried prawns with salsa

Txangurro al horno - Baked spider crab - creamy and unctuous

Fermin Calbeton Kalea 4

Wed - Sun 18:30 - 23:30
Wed - Mon 09:30 - 15:30
Closed Tuesday

http://www.tripadvisor.com.sg/Restaurant_Review-g187457-d989170-Reviews-Bar_Goiz_Argi-San_Sebastian_Donostia_Guipuzcoa_Province_Basque_Country.html

Bar Zeruko

In a nutshell: Modern, creative pintxos which are a big on flavour and are quite daring. 

'La Hoguera' - 'The Bonfire' - melt-in-your-mouth cured cod 'smoking' on a mini bbq - my favourite pintxo!

Lagostino frito - Giant prawn wrapped in vermicelli noodles, strawberry sauce (which goes surprisingly well with the fried prawn!)

Morcilla, pistachio and strawberry sauce- an odd but delicious combination

Calle Pescaderia 10

Tues - Sat 12pm - 4pm, 7pm - 12am
Sun 12pm - 4pm
Mon Closed

http://www.barzeruko.com/

Bar Azkena

In a nutshell: Open for breakfast and lunch, this place focuses on awesome omelettes, and after 11.30am you will be treated to modern, elegant and highly sophisticated modern hot pintxos – and all of them are outstanding – I think no other pintxo bar serves this level of cooking. Especially when these hot pintxos are only 3 euro each. Phenomenal value. 

My favourite pintxo bar!

Tortilla de bacalao - cod omelette, tastes better than it sounds!

Bacalao frito con salsa de pimenta verde y tinta- pan fried cod, green pepper sauce and squid ink 

Morcilla de cebolla y berza - Blood sausage of onion and cabbage, green pepper and red bean salsa. A subtle yet sublime dish

Confit iberico pork, orange and champagne reduction, thyme flavoured wafer

Berejena rellena de lomo adobado - Stuffed aubergine with marinated tenderloin

Kokotxa de bacalao en salsa verde acompanado con laminas de pulpo y una espuma de beberechos - Cod throats with green sauce, slices of octopus and foam - melts in your mouth, quite delicious 

Basement floor
Mercado La Bretxa

Mon - Sat 08:00 - 17:00
Closed Sun

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mercado-la-bretxa-BAR-Azkena/701460156550319?sk=info&tab=page_info

La Vina

In a nutshell: Famous for their Basque cheesecake

Cheesecake - light and airy yet rich and decadent, 'burnt' on the outside yet fluffy in the middle, one of the best cheesecakes I've ever eaten

Calle del Treinta y Uno de Agosto 3

Tues - Sun 10:30am - 5pm, 6.30pm - 12am
Closed Mon

http://lavinarestaurante.com/

Borda Berri

In a nutshell: Hot pintxos, cooked to order. Big, bold flavours. Sometimes a little salty but these dishes are never dull! All the below are highly recommended, especially the pig's ears (unfortunately no picture):

Arroz bomba con txipiron - Mixed rice with baby squid

Carrillera de ternera en vino tinto - Beef cheeks slowly braised in red wine

'Kebab' de costilla de cerdo - Pork rib 'kebab' - crisp on the outside, tender in the middle, brought to life with notes of cumin

Ravioli de txangurro - ravioli stuffed with creamy spider crab

Calle Fermin Calbeton 12

Mon - Sat 1pm - 4pm, 8.30pm - 10.30pm
Sun Closed

http://www.yelp.com.sg/biz/borda-berri-san-sebasti%C3%A1n-2

La Cuchara de San Telmo

In a nutshell: In some ways, the cooking style is similar to Borda Berri - classic dishes/ingredients, brought to life with a bit of modern flair. Everything was tasty, but not as well executed as Borda Berri

Risotto Cremoso - Creamy Risotto

Manita de ministro - sauteed pig's trotter - their best pintxo, crisp on the outside and gelatinous within

Cochinillo de salamanca asado lentamente con cerveza - Suckling pig from Salamanca slow-roasted with beer

Vieira - seared scallop - fresh and tasty, but I expected more

Pulpo de roca asado - roasted rock octopus with peppers - the octopus was a tad overcooked 

Calle del Treinta y Uno de Agosto 28

Tues 7.30pm - 11.30pm
Weds - Sun 12.30pm - 5.30pm, 7.30pm - 11.30pm
Closed Mon

http://www.yelp.com.sg/biz/la-cuchara-de-san-telmo-san-sebasti%C3%A1n-2

A Fuego Negro

In a nutshell: Experimental tapas, with bold, unique flavours. Uses ingredients and techniques from around the world to create dishes which are distinctly different to those pintxo bars mentioned above.

Tuna and tomato tartare

Grilled whole quail with sweet potato puree

Calle del Treinta y Uno de Agosto 31

Tues - Sun 10am - 12am
Mon Closed

http://www.afuegonegro.com/

Gelatinous Goodness

I am a lover of simply cooked, well-executed seafood. No frills, not too much fuss, just cooking that focuses on making the star ingredient stand out. 

In a small seaside town by the name of Getaria, only 40mins bus ride away from San Sebastian, you'll find a temple which pays homage to this cooking philosophy: Restaurante Elkano. I could tell you more about the history of this family-owned business, but I want to get straight to what matters most.

To whet our appetites, an amuse-bouche of fresh anchovy with a delicately spicy tomato and onion salsa was presented before us. It did indeed entertain our palettes.

Between the three of us, we had three starters, one complete portion of hake kokotxas (kokotxas de merluza) cooked three ways (grilled on charcoal, deep fried, green sauce), one half portion of grilled white prawns (gambas a la plancha), and one half portion of oven baked spider crab (txangurro al horno).

Kokotxas aren't for everyone, in my opnion. They are a tad slimey and I guess some people would prefer the cheek of a fish or the main body. The fried and with green sauce versions were nice, but not overly impressive. However, in fitting with what this restaurant does best, the charcoal grilled rendition was memorable (middle in the picture below) - smokey, melt in your mouth goodness.

The standout starter for me was definitely the pair of white prawns. Exceedingly fresh - maybe some of the freshest I've ever eaten - whose sweet, tender and juicy flesh, when combined with smokey shell exterior (which I ate) was a truly memorable taste sensation. And, of course, the head juice of these prawns was simply sublime. 

The baked spider crab, creamy and rich, was delicious, and paired very well with Elkano's truly awesome bread. But it didn't quite reach the levels of the prawns that preceded it, so we had even high expectations for the main event.

We waited in anticipation for our mains - a whole grilled turbot (rodaballo a la parilla), the speciality of the house (April/May is the season for turbot, so we were in luck). I just had to go and see these beauties on the grill - but be warned that if you also decide to have a peek, the intense heat will make even the hardiest folk sweat just a little.

The sight, smell and sound (yes, you can hear the skin sizzling) of the rodaballo was indeed matched by the taste. The waitress divided up the turbot into 3 types of flesh: 'white' skin flesh with the skin not facing the charcoal, 'black' skin flesh with the skin facing the coals, and lastly the bones and fins.

The first two were delicious; but the overriding memory will doubtless be that of eating the bones and the fins:

The charred outer bones were crispy, and the bones further towards the main body were surrounded by gelatinous collagen. This combination of smokey crispyness and unctuously creamy collagen is a truly memorable taste and textural experience. Of course, this restaurant has great service and an excellent set of cheap yet brilliant matching wines, but for me, this part of the turbot was probably the secret weapon restaurant in helping this restaurant win its Michelin star.