The Best Of San Sebastian, Spain: Including A Legendary Hotel And A Pintxo Bar Crawl

Descripción

San Sebastian (also called Donostia), near the French border on the Bay of Biscay, is considered the coastal jewel of the Basque region, in northern Spain. This former fishing village became a favorite destination of 19th-century royals and aristocrats, and is now a thriving cultural city known for its love of good food.

ocio donostia gastronomía cultura pincho sidra turismo txakoli

Ficha

Autor: Lea Lane
Fuente: Forbes
Fecha: 2020-02-04
Clasificación: 6.7. Pueblos
Tipo documento: Prensa
Fondo: Sagardoetxea fondoa

Código: NA-010195

Texto completo

Since 1953, the San Sebastian International Film Festival, held in September, has lured movie stars like Elizabeth Taylor, Bette Davis, and Brad Pitt. And it has encouraged a world-renowned foodie scene, with highly regarded competitions, a famed cooking academy, and more Michelin-starred restaurants per capita than anywhere else.

What To See

I started my recent visit with an overview at the Museum of San Telmo, an interactive, three-floor museum, with a 16th-century cloister encircling a small garden.

1,100 viewsFeb 4, 2020, 09:32am
The Best Of San Sebastian, Spain: Including A Legendary Hotel And A Pintxo Bar Crawl
Lea Lane
Lea LaneContributor
Travel
Author, Places I Remember: Tales, Truths, Delights from 100 Countries

old town
Old Town, San Sebastian LEA LANE
San Sebastian (also called Donostia), near the French border on the Bay of Biscay, is considered the coastal jewel of the Basque region, in northern Spain. This former fishing village became a favorite destination of 19th-century royals and aristocrats, and is now a thriving cultural city known for its love of good food.

What To See

I started my recent visit with an overview at the Museum of San Telmo, an interactive, three-floor museum, with a 16th-century cloister encircling a small garden.

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Among the city’s not-to-miss sites: the opulent Victoria Eugenia theater; the modern convention center, Palacio de Congresos Kursaal; The Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, with its wooden statues made to look like stone; the Basilica of Santa María del Coro; and the 16th-century San Vicente church.
We also toured the ornate former casino, built in 1887, used as the Town Hall since 1947. After a visit to La Bretxa Market and Zapore Jai, a typical ham shop, we picnicked by one of the loveliest carousels anywhere. Another lush place to relax, just outside the city, are the gardens of 19th century Miramar Palace.
San Sebastian has three main beaches: La Concha, with a promenade curving along the edge of the Old Town, and including Spa La Perla with unbeatable views of La Concha bay; Ondarreta beach near the Old Town; and Zurriola beach, in the Gros neighborhood. Find time to boat around Concha Bay and stop at Santa Clara Island, with stunning views from the top.

Mount Igeldo offers terrific views from the hotel and small amusement park; to get there you can drive, or ride the vintage funicular. To reach the top of Mount Urgull, on the other side of La Concha beach, a 30-minute hike rewards you with a gorgeous view and a small museum.

Where to Stay

You can find beach-side and in-town hotels, and casual apartments and rental properties in the mountains outside San Sebastian. But we splurged.

In July 1912, Maria Christina de Habsburgo-Lorena, the regent of Spain, was the first guest at the Belle Époque Maria Cristina Hotel, by the river and overlooking the sea. The five-star hotel was designed by French architect Charles Mewes, who also designed the Ritz hotels in Paris and Madrid.
After a $33 million dollar renovation, the Maria Cristina’s 136 rooms and 28 luxury suites. are furnished with exclusive items from the Luxury Collection. Restaurant Easo offers exquisitely plated local cuisine in a setting of gilded Corinthian columns and plasterwork with effigies and flower garlands.

Pintxos Delights

The narrow, cobbled streets of Old Town are lined with shops and pintxos bars. Our super-terrific guide, Eskerne Falcón from award-winning Discover San Sebastian, led us on a memorable (and filling) pintxo bar crawl.
Pintxos Delights

Pintxos are small bites, like tapas, served in bars and restaurants throughout the Basque Country. These memorable morsels are often served with spicy mayonnaise, and accompanied by tart, hard apple cider, or a Txakolí local dry, white wine.

The cider is often served from a barrel spout, poured from on high. (I tried it and spilled it on my shoes!) Cider season runs between January and May, but some cideries remain open all year. Petritegi, 20 minutes away, and surrounded by apple trees, has a wonderful restaurant.

Each pintxo bar specializes in their own creative concoctions, and the fun was sampling from bar to bar, creating a one-of-a-kind meal. Here’s what we tasted in our pintxo research:
— Alfonso made us fresh pintxos at Bar Martinez, almost 80 years old. We devoured smoked salmon with anchovy and onions, red pepper with tuna tartar, cheese croquettes, and fried artichokes with ham.

— Protein is featured at Txuleta, including mini hamburger, fresh foie gras, T-bone steak croquettes, and squid-ink croquettes.

— We ate pork rib at Borda Berri, and we stood at La Mejillonera (no tables), and ordered three pintxos: calamari, potatoes, and mussels (the latter gives the bar its name).

— Paco Bueno is named for the bar’s first owner, a famed boxer; his two sons were celebrated rugby players. We tasted fried shrimp, potatoes, anchovies and sausage omelets, and fried calamari.

— At Casa Urola, established in 1956, chef Pablo Loureiro made us T-bone steak with red pepper and a cream of potatoes; wild mushroom tartalet with cheese; and "Kokotxas," hake chin. Other favorites include asparagus, artichokes with ham, and scallop with almond and garlic cream and coffee vinaigrette.

— At La Cepa, owner Aitziber made us fresh pintxos: anchovies Ribera de Duero, ham toast, and Gilda (green pepper, anchovy and olive).

Other great bars we heard about (but were too full to visit!):

Ganbara, the bar that Anthony Bourdain visited and made famous. Specialties include chicken croquettes, white fried asparagus, crab, wild mushrooms, and “Russian” salad.

— Atari, near the Basilica for beef checks, rice of the day, grilled octopus, potatoes omelet, and torrija with ice cream.

— And to end the experience, La Vina for a perfect San Sebastian dessert: cheese cake, accompanied by Pedro Ximenez sweet wine.

Whether at an informal fish restaurant by the harbor, a pintxo bar in Old Town, or a Michelin-starred farmhouse in the mountains outside San Sebastian, you won’t find better food. As they say in Basque country, “Osasuna”! Cheers.