Basque cooking has blown up in recent years, and one result has been an increasing prevalence of pintxos ("peen-shos”), or Basque-style tapas, in restaurants everywhere. From Barcelona and London to Montreal and New York, foodies are crazy about the rich flavors and creative spin on traditional ingredients – salt cod, anchovies, mushrooms, baby squid, hake, Idiazábal cheese and crusty bread, to name a few. But anyone who’s traveled through Euskadi, or Spanish Basque country, will tell you that pintxos are more than just another deliciously innovative import. Ingredients and culinary know-how aside, no city in the world can replicate the social art that is txikiteo, or pintxos bar-hopping, in Basque country. And there’s no better place to experience it than San Sebastián, in northern Spain.
The culinary capital of a food-obsessed region, San Sebastián is fat with Michelin-starred restaurants, but throughout this enchanting coastal city, appetites are first whet on pintxos. Delectable and lovingly made, the pintxos here are little gourmet works of art. These gastronomic marvels might be simple, buttery tortillas de patata (potato omelets); sautéed pulpo (octopus) or anchovies; a hunk of crusty bread topped with Iberian ham, mushroom and melted cheese…or a hundred other things.
Txikiteo is a fancy word for a pub crawl, but this pre-dinner ritual comes with some unspoken rules. Traditionally, the Basques go out with a small group of friends around 7pm, and they remain in each bar for 15 minutes or less – just long enough for everyone to indulge in one or two pintxos, down a short glass of beer (a zurito) or wine, have a smoke and perhaps discuss the latest in fútbol. Txakoli is the favorite among wines; it’s a tangy, fuzzy local white typically poured with a flourish, from high above the glass to maximize effervescence.
The skinny cobblestone streets of the Parte Vieja (Old Quarter), roamed equally by tourists and dapper old Basque men, boast the most pintxos bars in the city, so that’s where your lesson begins. To make like a local – and weed the good bars from the great – follow those tidy old men into their watering holes. And here’s what you do:
- Approach the regal display of room-temperature pintxos on the bar. (Hot pintxos and small-plate raciones must be ordered and heated or cooked.)
- Help yourself to a pintxo and order a drink. Don’t even think of sitting down.
- When you’re finished, tell the barkeep what you had. Be honest – an important tradition of txikiteo is its self-serving honor system. And you've no excuse, anyway: Most pintxos only cost between US$2-$5.
- Toss your napkin on the floor and head for the next bar. Nobody uses the garbage receptacles – you know you’ve arrived late when you enter a bar and find more crumpled napkins on the floor than pintxos on the bar.
The real challenge, of course, is knowing when to stop. If you stuff yourself silly with pintxos, you’ll miss out on San Sebastián’s world-class restaurants. But that’s another story.
IF YOU GO
Some txikiteo highlights in San Sebastián:
La Cuchara de San Telmo (Calle 31 de Agosto 28, at end of alley) – Risotto with gorgonzola cheese and txipiron relleno (stuffed squid) have been among the made-to-order blackboard offerings here.
Bar Txepetxa (Calle Pescadería 5) – Even landlubbers will love this bar’s marinated anchovies, the house specialty.
Borda Berri (Fermin Kalbetón 12) – Try the excellent foie gras toast and stuffed peppers with tuna at this popular bar.
Bar Ganbara (San Jeronimo 21) – Don’t miss the exquisite wild mushrooms and grilled prawns here.
La Viña Restaurant (Calle 31 de Agosto 3) – Albondigas (meatballs), mushrooms and more in the heart of the Parte Viejo.
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