The best restaurants Basque Country

A Parte Vieja institution since 1980! This tiny tavern has only one table, the famous Mesa 19, which must be reserved in advance for the chance to eat there. Otherwise, like the others, you'll have to lean back at the bar to taste the Bar Nestor's specialities. The divine tortilla, to begin with, is invariably served at 1pm and 8pm (you'll have to reserve your share by noon, as it is so much in demand!). Then the excellent tomato salad, roasted peppers, and the best prime rib (txuleta) in town. Always crowded!

An essential stop on the road to the pintxos of Donostia! Located in the Gros district, not far from the Kursaal, the Bergara bar offers miniature cuisine in a modern setting. Don't miss the emblematic pintxos of the house, such as txalupa (mushroom and scampi gratin) and bacalao ajoarriero (cod-based), but also foie gras with mango jam, itxaso (monkfish with leek cream), scrambled eggs with anchovies and peppers... Everything is delicious and well explained on the map: handy for beginners!

This is a traditional cider house that only opens its doors during the Txotx season. On the menu: chorizo in cider, cod tortilla, cod with chilli peppers, grilled prime rib, Idiazábal cheese and delicious Tolosa biscuits. A simple and traditional menu, with top quality products, especially beef, perfectly cooked "a la brasa". Here we eat standing up in a large, friendly room, or next to the kupelas (cider barrels). Between each dish, a glass of cider is served directly from the barrels!

Led by chef Ander González, this renowned table occupies a beautifully restored old banana warehouse. In addition to its beautiful decor, the restaurant offers quality traditional cuisine, inherited from a long family tradition (Ander's grandparents owned a bar in the Plaza de la Constitución). On the menu, you will find, for example, excellent scallops a la plancha, small Orio sausages with roasted peppers, or a carrillera simmered in red wine. For dessert, try the caramelized torrija (a variant of French toast).

Here, simplicity and quality go hand in hand and are combined in all weathers. First, there is the large room with tables simply covered in white and bistro chairs. In the warm and courteous welcome. Finally, in the kitchen, chef Daniel Lopez (one Michelin star) works with rare precision, using good products with Basque accents. Some examples to convince yourself: partridge terrine, Iberian pluma (pork) with cherries and basil, Bresse pigeon in its stew... Very original!

Housed in the Ficoba Conference Centre, this restaurant offers a unique concept, as here you order from the bar before being served at the table! However, the place is not a fast food restaurant, on the contrary, it offers a true gastronomic experience led by the Basque chef Iñigo Lavado, who claims to be a "cuisine of emotions". Refined dishes from the Basque tradition, to which are added more exotic influences: bluefin tuna tartar with aguachile, oxtail with grilled tomatoes and Kalamata olives...

This is the restaurant of the friendly and talented Pedro Subijana - 3 Michelin stars! Splendid sea view through large bay windows, where you can enjoy a sublime cuisine combining tradition and advanced gastronomic research. Akelarre's sommelier, Juan Carlos Muro, is an institution in his own right. The "maridaje" (wine accompaniment) option is a must, as it is just as intense an experience as tasting the dishes. Discreet, friendly and French-speaking, Juan Carlos offers an admirable accompaniment.

It is first of all for the setting that you will choose this restaurant: located on the heights of Orio, it offers a privileged panorama of the ocean. Its rustic interior, where stone and wood are mixed, is quite charming. Under a sturdy frame, you can enjoy an excellent traditional cuisine. One of the restaurant's specialities is chuletón (rib of beef) à la parilla. The menu also offers a wide variety of top-quality fish and seafood.

Famous chef Martín Berasategui has set up his gourmet restaurant in an elegant villa less than 10 kilometres from the centre of San Sebastián, offering beautiful views of the surrounding countryside. This illustrious restaurant, which has been awarded three Michelin stars, offers impeccable service, a surprising menu, and a very well-assorted wine list that has convinced even the most discerning palates. In fact, people come from all over the world to discover the cuisine of Berasategui, rightly considered one of the greatest Spanish chefs.

A gastronomic restaurant that lives up to its Michelin star, with the added bonus of a privileged location on Mount Ulía, with panoramic views of the ocean. The chef Rubén Trincado elaborates an innovative and uncomplicated cuisine, although rooted in tradition. The tasting menu is obviously the best option to discover his culinary universe: lobster salad, rice with clams, roast pigeon, and vegan and vegetarian options. Take your time and enjoy the view: this is one of the most beautiful panoramas of San Sebastián!

On the essential Avenue Calle San Pedro, the place of concentration of tapas bars, a compulsory stop for its raciones of squid, its varied pintxos and its large terrace. The perfect place to get involved in the lively atmosphere of Hondarribia.

The mischievous Basque chef Karlos Arguiñano owns this hotel-restaurant located in an old palace from the beginning of the 20th century, known as Villa Aiala. The hotel has a dozen stylish and slightly retro rooms, enjoying a beautiful beachfront location. The restaurant offers seasonal dishes in a pretty maritime setting, with large bay windows overlooking the ocean. A la carte: txangurro (crab) and avocado salad, cod with pil-pil sauce...

Once you get past the imposing and somewhat impersonal side of this large restaurant, located in a complex along the harbor, you'll enjoy Mikel Bermejo's lively cuisine, which is mainly focused on the sea. The view of the harbor and the surrounding area is one of the prettiest in Zumaia, and the large open terrace is very pleasant in summer, but also out of season with a little wool. A large parking lot is available if you have a car. The restaurant also organizes quite a few events, so it tends to be a bit noisy on weekends.

Ideal place to enjoy very good fish and its speciality, spider spider.

Designed by Andoni Luis Aduriz, chef of the prestigious Mugaritz, this restaurant was born from the union between Basque and Latin American cuisine, inherited from the many exchanges between these two cultures. The highly conceptual menu reinvents the classic tacos, quesadillas and ceviches using local produce to offer original and richly flavoured dishes. Don't miss the guacamole, whose presentation will surprise you! On the drinking side, we test without hesitation the different micheladas, based on beer and lime juice.

Traditional cuisine in this small, unpretentious restaurant in the heart of Gernika, just a stone's throw from the Peace Museum, where a large number of regulars come every day to enjoy a hearty del dia menu at great prices. In a warm canteen setting, you can enjoy good Basque recipes made with local products: chipirons in their ink, alubias (beans) from Gernika, fish soup, hake a la plancha... A popular and noisy address!

Here you can use day menus, sandwiches, farm chickens and typical "platos combinados". In the season, mushrooms and game are also prepared. In short, it is a typical village restaurant where hikers find at any time anything to eat.

Traditional and copious cuisine in this tavern with a rustic decor. The place is particularly prized at aperitif time for its impressive choice of pintxos! Often crowded, always friendly, it is a good place to treat yourself to some tapas. If you have trouble identifying what some of these delicious little Basque bites are made of, don't hesitate to ask the waiters for a little more explanation, some of them even speak French. Certainly one of the most popular addresses in town.

The best tapas bar in the Plaza Ensanche! Located in the heart of Irún, it extends its vast terrace facing the famous bandstand, a meeting place for people of all ages. You can sit down to drink a coffee, have an aperitif or a lunch of good regional cuisine. All the pintxos on display at the counter are a delight, especially those made with anchovies. But don't forget to try the à la carte pintxos (prepared on the spot), especially the one made with liver and port sauce. Also try the Idiazabal mushroom and cheese risotto.

This restaurant specialises in organic farming: they offer delicious 100% organic vegetarian dishes.

Restaurant located on the small port of Elantxobe, with a very pleasant terrace in the beautiful days. Fresh fish, fresh fish, but also good pintxos. Nearby, in the old fisherman's brotherhood, Ogoñope (managed by the same owners) offers an elegant setting for a more chic meal.

In the center, near the church of San Salvador, this traditional family restaurant is run by the young Pili Manterola, who has taken over from her grandfather. You will be welcomed in a large and warm room, and will be seated either in the main room or on the interior balconies. Woodwork and white tables, the atmosphere is warm and friendly. On the menu, a tasty traditional cuisine, where fish is king, but where meat is not left out. Specialty of parilla, cooked on large barbecues.

Buffet service with seafood and all kinds of dishes.

A good asador restaurant located at the foot of Mount San Miguel de Ereñozar, 150 meters from the Santimamiñe Caves and the Basondo Animal Refuge. It is housed in a nice 18th century caserio where you can eat outdoors in its huge terrace, while children enjoy its playground. A la carte, a traditional and copious Basque cuisine, including good plates of red beans (alubias), meat and fish grilled in the brasa, and homemade desserts. Good menu at weekends!

It is the tavern of the gourmet restaurant Jolastoki, offering traditional quality cuisine. Snails with biscayenne, rice to mussels, etc.

One of the best restaurants in town. Its specialities: ravioli cod, grilled octopus, or for carnivores, prime rib with confit potatoes. Appetizing.

Located in the upper part of the village of Elantxobe, and 20 m from the hotel of the same name, it is possible to admire this charming harbour while enjoying the dishes of traditional cuisine, including excellent fish and meat.

This restaurant specialising in cod prepares innovative and refined cuisine. You can taste cod prepared in various ways (with pil-pil sauce basque, or in the form of croquettes). Very neat and cosy setting with views of the ría.

In the modern part of Durango, a 10-minute walk from the Santa Maria de Uribarri Basilica, there is a traditional cuisine restaurant offering good menus at fair prices. You can enjoy them in a large modern room with a curious stained-glass window décor and large wooden tables. A la carte, delicious foie à la plancha and apple compote, creamy rice with mushrooms, and a wide variety of fish and seafood dishes: lobster salad, cod kokotxas with pilpil sauce, grilled octopus, chipirons with ink... Tasty!

Located in the main street of Laguardia, this restaurant (and the hotel of the same name) occupies a beautiful stone residence. Before your meal, take a stroll through the 16th-century wine cellar to sample wines and tapas. The restaurant, with its traditional and elegant décor, allows you to try some very refined regional cuisine, such as red partridge with truffle sauce or suckling pig with apple puree. There is also the "calado", a 16th-century wine cellar in the basement of the hotel, which has been converted into a space for wine tasting and other aperitifs.

Located in the building of the Fishermen's Brotherhood, on the port of Santurce, this restaurant is a classic for eating fish grilled parilla. On two floors, in a pleasant maritime-inspired setting, you can enjoy fish soup, grilled sea bream or hake, clams in green sauce... In the summer, sit out on its large terrace to share grilled sardines and a bottle of txakoli in an informal atmosphere. Good value for money!

One of the classics of Bakio, which since 1968 has been offering seafood cuisine that is highly appreciated by the locals. Its large terrace facing the sea is also popular as an aperitif, especially when the weather is fine. Here you can enjoy Bermeo anchovy fillets, artichokes with ham, grilled monkfish a la plancha, hake in green sauce or a delicious chuletón (rib of beef). The restaurant also offers txakoli experiences with a visit to a bodega, tasting and a special menu.

Housed in a magnificent 15th century mansion in the old quarter, the Portalon, with its antique and sculpture showroom, is a fine example of a medieval interior: paved floors, wooden beams, period furniture and even a chapel! In this setting, you will be served dishes based on vegetables and game, well prepared and representative of the regional cuisine: Roasted suckling lamb with green salad and small onions, Entrecote de boeuf with green pepper or Idiazábal sauce, Kokotxas de Mérou au Pil-Pil...

This beautifully restored 18th century house has a cellar, like most of the houses in Laguardia. Here you will be able to taste tapas (there is a fine selection of tostadas on the menu: slices of toasted bread with gourmet products) to be accompanied, of course, by a delicious glass of wine in an enchanting and typical setting. Guided tours of the house are also possible. A stop for gourmets in a typical atmosphere could not be more recommended, with friends or family!