Etxebarri is nothing more than a barbecue joint. Albeit a very good one, honing its repertoire over its 27 year history to become what some consider to be the best the World has ever seen. My own view is that this asador (or New house…
Aside from Clare Smyth’s solo debut (slipped to 2017) and Phil Howard’s takeover of Elystan Street slated for the fall, this is the opening that I am most excited about this year. As you well know, Azurmendi is currently floating on cloud nine. Top spot…
Coming here is like coming home, my first visit was 2003 and predates my bloggero shindig, during which they were a group of two, Cambio de Tercio and Tendido Cero across the road. This is my longest relationship with any restaurant in London. I am…
There must be hundreds of pintxos bar found in Parte Vieja, the Old Town of San Sebastian. Pintxos are so much more than bar snacks, otherwise known as cocina en miniatura. I think it’s where Basque cuisine is actually being advanced. We didn’t have a…
Pedro Subijana was going to become a doctor but for reasons not known to the interwebs, he aborted his plans to study medicine and enrolled with the Madrid Hospitality School instead. A decision that would reward him greatly. He started his career in a local…
A sense of achievement washed over me after I successfully placed my ‘pre-order’ for a slice of Nestor’s famous tortilla. They only make two of their fabled omelettes everyday, one at 1pm and the other at 8pm. Each about the size of a wheel of…
The makers of Donostia (the restaurant) – a major cog that has transfromed this nether-region of W1 into a minor gastronomic powerhouse – opens their second restaurant in London. Once again, owners Nemanji and Melody are expanding on their love for San Sebastián with their…
Ember Yard is Version 4.0 in Salt Yard’s widely acclaimed group of restaurants, taking the similar if-it-aint-broke formula and upgrading it with a couple of extra tricks in the kitchen. Many dishes are familiar including classics like fried courgette flowers, though this particular menu seems…
…in my dreams, they are delivered through sealed message tubes passed directly from the Arzak to Ametsa kitchens, through an elaborate infrastructure of pneumatically controlled subsea pipelines underneath the Bay of Biscay. On one hand, it should be obvious that quality of food is controlled…
I decided to revisit Jose Pizarro’s flagship restaurant which I still believe was one of the best openings last year, along with its sister sherry Bar Jose just a few doors down in Bermondsey Street. The massive weekend queues appear to have completely died down…
And finally after months of false starts, the tapas restaurant named after the Basque’s capital of gastronomy has finally opened for business. And what big culinary boots it has chosen to fill, after all, San Sebastian is home to a trio of 3 star restaurants…
Rob & David’s eponymous restaurant has only just toasted its ten year anniversary. A decade and a bit, largely recognised as one of a handful of institutions of Iberian cooking in the business. Not forgetting the Eyre Brother’s first effort, The Eagle, which has already…
