Curious Appetite

Spain

Eating & drinking through San Sebastian, Spain

Views along the urban hike to Monte Urgull from the foot of the Old Town

As promised, I’d provide a little list of my favorite places to eat & drink from my last trip to Spain. My last post perhaps seemed a bit strong and slightly negative about Italy. But feelings, like the moon, have their phases and moments. It’s safe to say I have a justifiable love-hate relationship with lady Italia. I think all of us who have spent more than 5 minutes on the ground can relate.

I personally prefer honestly rather than having a happy-go-lucky game face all the time. We’re all human experiencing ebbs and flows in life- why pretend everything is peachy keen all the time?

Italian Aperitivo- you got NOTHIN on Spain’s Pinxtos game

Moving on back to San Sebastian aka Donostia- I’ll be super clear to remind anyone reading I’m no expert on Spanish or Basque food culture. I live for marvelous food and research where to eat more than which museums are open. What I was amazed by was how advanced the Spanish (or Basque) are in terms of food culture compared to the Italians.

The pinxto bar culture puts the Italian unappetizing aperitivo buffets down the toilet. As I mentioned in the last post, the food scene in Donostia tends to be dominated by pinxtos (basque for snacks) and haute cuisine fine dining. After Kyoto, Japan- San Sebastian is the city with the highest concentration of Michelin star restaurants. Continue Reading

Voracious thoughts after 10 days in San Sebastian & Barcelona

quite possibly my most memorable bite in San Sebastian: anchovy toast with a spider crab whip & obligatory Txacoli (slightly fizzy local white wine)

I have no shame in admitting it- I am a glutton, a lush and voracious lover of all things food & drink. Except I do not like raisins unless they are made into wine and I do not like most juices and sodas. Unless the juice is raw and promises to clean my liver and the soda is like a shrub. And not because it is the hipster way. This year for my birthday, I gifted myself a 10 day eating my brains out trip to Spain, split equally between one of the greatest culinary bastions in this universe San Sebastian and funky cool Barcelona. Mainly, because San Sebastian is famed as one of the best places to eat in the world. Continue Reading

%d bloggers like this: