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San Sebastian also known as Donostia is a culinary mecca and a foodie’s paradise. This remarkable city is widely regarded as one of the best food destinations in the world. Our first visit in 2019 was unforgettable. This is when we tasted our first gilda (a skewer of olives, green peppers and anchovy) at Bar Valles, devoured super tender beef cheeks at Borda Berri, sampled possibly the best cheesecake at La Viña and drank endless glasses of txakoli (a bone dry slightly sparkling white wine) at every bar. Not to forget that we had an unbelievable meal at Arzak where we met chef Eleña Arzak in person.
4 years later, we return to this gastronomic capital with every intention to stuff our faces with more pintxos (small plates eaten as appetizers with drinks before dinner). Bar Nestor (https://bar-nestor.negocio.site/) is where you can get the best tortilla de patatas in the city, possibly all of Spain or in the world. In order to snag your piece (limited to one slice per person), you need to arrive at least 1 hour before opening time to put your name down on the list. Once the doors open at 12:45 pm for lunch or 7:45 pm for dinner, you will be rewarded with an amazing onion/potato omelet unlike any other. Only 16-17 portions are available per shift! It is paired perfectly with a glass of Txakoli. Just watching the staff pour the bottle of wine high above the glass to create tiny bubbles is a show in itself.
To maximize your bar crawl, consult the Pintxos app (no we are not sponsored by them). It lists out which restaurants are near you, if they are open and which dishes you don’t want to miss. Download it here: https://pintxos.es/en/
Some memorable pintxos:
Bar txepetxa (https://bartxepetxa.es/): the Jardinera – a salsa of red and green peppers, guindillas, onion; Crema de Centolla – creamy spider crab; Pintxo de Antxoas con salsa de Arándanos – anchovies with blueberry jam
Gandarias (https://www.restaurantegandarias.com/es/): Solomillo – Grilled beef sirloin; Brocheta de gamba – prawns and Iberian bacon with a vinaigrette of red and green pepper and spring onion.
Txuleta (https://www.txuletarestaurante.com/): croqueta de chuleta – Steak croquette
To our surprise we came during the San Sebastian Carnival. There were multiple parades going on and locals dressed in elaborate costumes and outfits. We also bumped into a talented group that was lip syncing, air guitaring and dancing to 50s music. That is the beauty of travel…you never know what you are going to come across.
00:00 – Intro
00:41 – First trip in 2019
01:50 – Arrival
02:02 – Coffee at Old Town Coffee
02:19 – Sunny day
03:04 – Pintxos app
03:28 – Pintxos 101
03:58 – Old Town pintxos bar crawl
04:03 – Bar Nestor
04:35 – Txakoli
05:13 – Tortilla de Patatas
06:20 – Txepetxa
07:00 – First day of the San Sebastian Carnival
08:05 – Gandarias
08:45 – Back to the 50s performance
09:42 – Txuleta
10:06 – Croqueta
10:16 – Preview of next video