BASQUE -in the glory
Its natural bounty is the backbone of an exceptional food scene, from buzzing tapas bars to Michelin-starred restaurants. It’s time to discover the Basque Country
No one can argue that Spanish cuisine is among the best in the world but the food in the Basque Country is in a league of its own. The produce in this region is enough to make any gourmand’s mouth water. The Bay of Biscay is at its core and provides a dazzling array of seafood. Expect cuttlefish served in its own ink, tuna belly seared on a griddle and cod swimming in pil pil (garlic sauce), while cattle grazing the lush pastures of the mountains yield enormous villagodio, a local cut always served rare. Throw in sun-nourished vegetables, rich sheep’s cheese and rolling rioja vineyards and you’ll begin to understand why this area is known as Spain’s gastronomic heart.
It’s fair to say the famously fiery locals are obsessed with food. Apartment blocks in other parts of the country may have gyms but here they have communal kitchens. From gastronomic societies, clubs where people meet up to prepare and enjoy meals, to txikiteo (tapas crawls) through Bilbao’s old town, food is the delicious thread that runs through every social occasion.
There are a total of 37 Michelin-starred restaurants here, including Mugaritz and Asador Etxebarri, both of which are in the top ten in the world. A meal at either of these is an innovative journey into the very heart of Basque nouvelle cuisine. Think dried rooster comb sandwiched together with spider crab, toffee, caramelised cod cake and home-smoked chorizo.
However, it isn’t just the high-end restaurants that draw tourists from all over the world. A drive though Guipúzcoa’s verdant hills will reveal more than 80 cider producers that are open to visitors. For less than £25 you’ll feast on a set menu of classics such as salt cod omelette and flame-grilled T-bone steaks, while helping yourself to cider from huge chestnut barrels. It’s an ancient way to immerse yourself in the infamous Basque hospitality. Try Lizeaga or Gartziategi, which have been open for hundreds of years.
Of course, no trip would be complete without a tapas crawl. In traditional towns such as San Sebastián, every other building houses a buzzing bar. Locals flit between them, ordering glasses of txakoli (local effervescent white wine) and pintxos, mouthfuls of explosive flavour held together by toothpicks.
Whet your appetite at the Basque Country Pintxos Bar by Ibérica at Taste of London (14-18 June) where you can sample freshly made, imaginative pintxos, try amazing local wines and watch live cookery demonstrations from top chefs. The Pintxos Bar is brought to you by the Spanish Tourist Office, the Basque Country and Ibérica restaurants, home of quality Spanish gastronomy in the UK.
Search #TapasDay on social media to see what fellow festivalgoers are saying about the authentic tapas and pintxos being created at this year’s Taste of London. Once you get a taste of the region at Basque Country Pintxos Bar by Ibérica, we guarantee you will be hungry for more. For more details on all the activities around World Tapas Day, visit spain.info/en_GB/tapas-day
To get you in the mood, the Basque Country Pintxos Bar by Ibérica will be coming to the Taste of London food festival from 14-18 June.