Come on baby light my woodfire

It remains on my forever favourite list. There is a feeling of timelessness about dining in this rustic, high-ceilinged, stone walled bungalow located in a tiny Basque village cradled amid nature. Every single dish (meats, seafood and dessert et al) is cooked on woodfire. The low profile and brilliant Chef Victor Arguinzoniz uses different types of wood depending on what he’s grilling. I love the fact that his dishes are sans flamboyant embellishments. They’re just the richest, most flavourful textural bombs. Elemental yet refined. Therein lies the Etxebarri (pronounced Etcha barri) magic.

Every single dish is cooked on a woodfire (Right); Chef Victor Arguinzoniz uses different types of wood depending on what he’s grilling (Left)

FROM GRILL TO PLATE

FLAVOUR FIRST The rustic, highceilinged, stone walled interiors of the restaurant (Right); Etxebarri is located in a gorgeous, verdant location (Below right)