Every time I visit Donostia/San Sebastián, I return home with the same mix of happiness and fulfilment. It’s only a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Bordeaux, yet the feeling is always the same: I cross the border and step into a small culinary paradise. Not long ago, I decided to take a short trip to visit two spots that had been recommended to me —both members of the Donostia Pintxo Institute— and what an excellent choice it was.
Prawn ravioli at Antonio
Right in the city centre is Bar Antonio. Open since 1995, they work with one clear idea: top-quality produce, careful preparation, and a smile behind the counter. Despite being on a quiet street, by ten in the morning it was already full. I wasn’t surprised: their tortilla de patatas is famous, huge and delicious. Javi, one of the owners, told me they make nine in the morning and two more in the afternoon. Absolute madness… which of course I had to try. And yes: spectacular.
But my mission was something else entirely: discovering their star pintxo. I still haven’t dared tackle Basque, but I put my Spanish to the test and asked Javi directly. He didn’t hesitate: “You have to try the prawn ravioli with white Martini sauce.”
The base is a sheet of wonton pastry wrapping a prawn with slowly cooked vegetables. The combination is both delicate and explosive, all brought together by that Martini sauce that rounds it off perfectly. When I asked about the secret, Javi took me a little further: to the Mercado San Martín, next to the cathedral.
The base is a sheet of wonton pastry wrapping a prawn with slowly cooked vegetables. The combination is both delicate and explosive, all brought together by that Martini sauce that rounds it off perfectly. When I asked about the secret, Javi took me a little further: to the Mercado San Martín, next to the cathedral.
At the Coro Sotero fishmonger’s, Iván showed me some incredible Huelva prawns. Fresh, shiny —the kind that already smell of the sea before you taste them. That’s when I understood what makes the pintxos in this city so special: authenticity, proximity, and produce that speaks for itself.
Carrot
Spring onion
Leek
Butter
Onion
White Martini
Large prawn (or langoustine or Norway lobster)
Wonton pastry
Parsley sauce
PREPARATION
Slowly cook the vegetables in butter over a low heat for an hour and remove any excess butter.
For the sauce, sweat the onion, add white Martini, reduce the alcohol and add cream.
Peel the prawn and place it inside the pastry with the vegetables. Seal carefully and cook for two minutes.
Add the Martini sauce and garnish with parsley sauce.
Spring onion
Leek
Butter
Onion
White Martini
Large prawn (or langoustine or Norway lobster)
Wonton pastry
Parsley sauce
PREPARATION
Slowly cook the vegetables in butter over a low heat for an hour and remove any excess butter.
For the sauce, sweat the onion, add white Martini, reduce the alcohol and add cream.
Peel the prawn and place it inside the pastry with the vegetables. Seal carefully and cook for two minutes.
Add the Martini sauce and garnish with parsley sauce.
Oxtail pintxo at Biarritz
After wandering through the city centre, I headed towards the sea. I can’t help it: the view from La Concha, with Santa Clara Island in the middle, always moves me. And even if I don’t live here, I can still allow myself a treat now and then: a pintxo with a sea view. So I headed straight to Restaurante Biarritz.
This traditional Basque restaurant is beautiful, just like the entire Hotel Niza —to which it belongs— a 1908 building linked to the sculptor Eduardo Chillida. As soon as I sat down, I knew exactly what I wanted: their signature pintxo, the famous oxtail.
It’s a block of meat cooked at a low temperature for eight hours. The result is a melt-in-the-mouth texture, almost spoon-tender, infused with the flavours of the vegetables it’s cooked with.
It’s a block of meat cooked at a low temperature for eight hours. The result is a melt-in-the-mouth texture, almost spoon-tender, infused with the flavours of the vegetables it’s cooked with.
I was lucky enough to step into the kitchen and watch Adony, the chef, plate it with absolute precision. I asked him for the secret behind the flavour, and he was clear: “Good ingredients are everything. We buy the meat from Patxi Aduriz, a family butcher’s in Donostia that always selects the best cuts for us.”
Veal tail (oxtail)
Carrot
Onion
Black pepper
Potato
Butter
PREPARATION
Cook the oxtail at 90 °C for 8 hours with vegetables. This slow cooking allows the meat to become very tender and juicy, almost falling apart.
Shred the meat and press it to form a terrine or compact block.
For the sauce, blend the cooking juices released by the meat together with the vegetables. Strain and reduce to concentrate the flavor and obtain a smooth, glossy sauce.
Before serving, sear the terrine on a hot griddle to lightly brown all sides and add texture.
Serve with potato parmentier and the reduced sauce.
Carrot
Onion
Black pepper
Potato
Butter
PREPARATION
Cook the oxtail at 90 °C for 8 hours with vegetables. This slow cooking allows the meat to become very tender and juicy, almost falling apart.
Shred the meat and press it to form a terrine or compact block.
For the sauce, blend the cooking juices released by the meat together with the vegetables. Strain and reduce to concentrate the flavor and obtain a smooth, glossy sauce.
Before serving, sear the terrine on a hot griddle to lightly brown all sides and add texture.
Serve with potato parmentier and the reduced sauce.
* Donostia San Sebastián Turismoa and the San Sebastián Pintxo Institute are working to preserve pintxo culture and, thanks to NEXT funding, have launched the PINTXOEN SEKRETUA project.
