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San Sebastián is like a chocolate . A stately city, with a beach and an impeccable global reputation as a gastronomic capital, custodian of Michelin stars and restaurants that day after day make a niche for themselves at the top of any list of favourites, in a top 100 of experts or in one of the blogger ranking. Beyond the great temples, something is simmering . A new generation of chefs is gaining relevance , the same ones that have been hidden under the fame of the old guard and outside the target of the international media. They are all in their thirties, they were born and raised in the Basque Country and their CVs include the best Spanish and French cuisines. Its spaces combine a passion for cooking and temper it with an informal spirit. With the exception of one or two girls, the gang is made up of boys. A mystery in the hometown of Elena Arzak.
Today the ingredients triumph. The new wave does not skimp on basque basics , such as world-class fish, wild mushrooms, eggs and vegetables from family farms, nor does it give little prominence to sophisticated techniques. The very modern gastronomic offer is more typical of the first decade of the 21st century. The feeling today is relaxing . Devoid of corsets, they try to highlight what is worthwhile against what is most superfluous and pretentious.
XARMA
Next to the overpass of the almost always busy Avenida de Tolosa, the location may seem unpromising at first. However, this tiny space with only ten tables makes one of the most interesting proposals in Donostia. That is already a compelling reason to be encouraged to try it.
The chefs Aizpea Oihaneder (37 years old) and Xavier Diez (39 years old) are not a couple. Even so, they share a daughter, Laia, and this restaurant. The appearance can be confusing. Xabi's appearance seems rough, he is full of tattoos and could pass for a real biker (in fact, he is a proud owner of a Harley). However, the chef exudes the typical Basque attitude between dynamism and genuine friendliness. From her kitchen he looks around the living room and greets me. Behind him I can see her partner, Aizpea –a short girl with dark hair tied back in a ribbon– is busy at a busy stainless steel bar. Both met in Arzak's kitchen in 1995 . “We are a tandem. We share the same point of view”, confesses Aizpea.
Aizpea Oihaneder, chef at Xarma
Like most San Sebastian cooks, they have worked with the best: Michel Bras, Martin Berasategui, Juan Mari Arzak. After this impeccable track record, which includes five years at the Rocamador Monastery (with a Michelin) in Extremadura, they wanted to set it up on their own and their restaurant in Ibaeta perfectly illustrates both their experience and his wishes.
Xarma has also signed up for the Vanguard League . Tradition, represented in its local ingredients, such as pigeon, apples and cheese, is alternated with contemporary currents. I loved the smooth white asparagus ice cream garnished with crispy ham crumbs . Xarma's version of cod in sea bream substantially surpasses the classic Portuguese. It is a cod brandade with a smoked pumpkin bonbon presented as if it were an egg yolk. “The era of great restaurants has passed, now it's about surviving. My only responsibility is to make people happy." Xabi concludes
_(Avenida de Tolosa, 123; tel. 943 317162; for two: about €95) _.
Jon Ortega, the young chef from Saltxipi
SALTXIPI
Although we are in the north of Spain we are still in the south of Europe and family businesses rule. In 2007 the Ortega Añorga clan it was moved from an old cider house in Usurbil to a mansion on the outskirts of Gros, whose sturdy beams and dark clay tiles give it the appearance of a century-old home (it was conceived in the 1980s). Under the baton of the marriage of Javier and Ana Maria , **Saltxipi** has become a neighborhood favorite. It was, and still is, renowned for its spider crabs , which are stored in the basement.
Today his son ** Jon Ortega (35 years old) ** is by the stove, preparing some appetizing prawns. Upstairs in the living room, his brother Gorka , wearing casual jeans and sneakers, brings to my table a bottle of white Remírez de Ganuza which, given its origin (Rioja Alavesa), tells me that it is genuinely Basque, like him. The former Real Madrid junior player seems to be ten years younger than the 38 he has.
On weekday nights, like this one, the pretty country-style room is usually quiet. Today two ladies with pearls and permanent have dinner with their nephews. On weekends, says Gorka, the restaurant is filled with groups of friends and couples in their thirties who follow the restaurant's Facebook page. Above the fireplace there is a portrait of Santi, Jon and Gorka's grandfather, wearing a txapela . He is the patriarch.
The patriarch of Saltxipi presiding
The food is equally wonderful and amazingly simple: a fresh crab salad, perfect croquettes (crispy on the outside, melty on the inside), hake kokotxas in green sauce, and a memorable mamia (Basque curd). Next year the parents of Jon and Gorka will retire and the generational change will be a reality. The idea of the brothers is to take advantage of the best of Saltxipi. Gorka plans to build, on the leafy terrace, a refuge halfway between an English garden and an Ibizan chill out. Among other improvements, they want give prominence to the barbecue, the same where today Jon Carefully heat the hake, monkfish and ribs. the next will be clams and kokotxas . After all, a good part of Saltxipi's innovation lies in continuity.
_(Calzada Vieja de Ategorrieta, 3; tel. 943 323310; dinner for two: about €100) _
Saltxipi grilled turbot
NI NEU RESTAURANT
Good food is the guarantee of a good business, and in San Sebastian more than anywhere else. The IXO group, the financial muscle of Mugaritz and Nerua of the Guggenheim, is more than a solvent company. The chef Mikel Gallo he is, in the best sense of the term, a company man: smooth talker, affable, with penetrating blue eyes. In his trendy shorts and t-shirts, he could pass for one of the surfers at nearby Zurriola Beach.
Gallo, together with Bixente Arrieta, director of the IXO group, is the creative genius of one of the companies with the best culinary trajectory in recent years. ** Ni Neu ** (myself) is located in one of the most envied locations in Donostia, in one of the corners of the Kursaal building, very close to the Zurriola bridge. The success of Gallo and Arrieta is based on an idea: offer a dynamic and avant-garde local cuisine that is both accessible and affordable. For about €30 you can taste a three-course menu (among five starters, nine main dishes and five desserts), which also includes water, bread and a glass of wine.
Nor Neu
On the ground floor, the restaurant, once the headquarters of Martín Berasategui, underwent a major renovation last year. The result is a minimalist space and scrupulously tinted black . Perhaps it can be somewhat intimidating in this very pleasant place. However, all doubts vanish when you try any of their menus. In my case: very fine slices of roast beef with smoked watermelon and walnuts, baked hake with the juice of its toasted skin and strips of aubergine. All exquisite. However, it is not until dessert that Gallo openly shows his pride. French toast (so typical of Holy Week) is, in his words, "the queen of the house" . Succulent and sophisticated, it comes at a price that is something of an icing on the cake.
Chef Gallo grew up in Andoain, a town 13 kilometers from San Sebastián. Later, he worked in the restaurant of the Guggenheim Museum (Bilbao) during his first three years of training, under the direction of Josean Alija. He exudes the satisfaction so typical of him that he has a conscious link with where he came from, as well as the certainty of where you direct your efforts. "I am proud of Ni Nue because I am finally doing what I have always wanted," he says.
_(Avenida de la Zurriola, 1; tel. 943 003162; dinner for two: around €60) _
Ni Neu Hake
NARRU
Turning our backs on the golden cove of La Concha , this local reference is the least similar to a beach restaurant, the place for those who bet on simplicity and the best ingredients treated with due respect.
From 2007 to 2010 – the year the Wall Street Journal named Inigo Pena (31 years old) as one of the ten most cutting-edge young European chefs –, Narru worked in the elegant district of Gros. On the ground floor of the Niza hotel, the new location represents the definitive approach to the bourgeois heart of San Sebastian.
There is a certain Scandinavian atmosphere in the polished concrete floors and, as a counterpoint, they show off the original marble pillars and vintage chairs upholstered in matte orange, blue and gray. The place, an old pizzeria, is modern and cozy on hot days when it seems that all of San Sebastián seems to be heading en masse, ready to spend the day at La Concha.
Narru Hall
This native boy from the Old Quarter did his first steps in the kitchens of Arzak, Mugaritz and Arbelaitz before putting into practice his flagship, a minimalist product kitchen with a staging devoid of artifice.
This young chef transmits rigor in the execution of his recipes, a determination aimed at creating a proposal free of complications and unnecessary costs. It takes a lot of courage to serve up such an astonishingly simple dish like, say, a spring mushroom stir-fry. with a poached egg, a good specimen of grouper (caught just two hours ago) with nothing less sophisticated than a cloud of mashed potatoes and a sautéed onion. “This is the type of menu that I would eat”, he affirms.
_(Zubieta, 56; tel. 943 423349; narru.es; dinner for two people: around €65) _
Igo Peña's creations elevated him to the Wall Street Journal
**KOKOTXA RESTAURANT**
The name is a heartfelt tribute to the delicacy provided by the fish: the lower part of the chin of hake or cod. Usually cooked in green sauce or grilled, it is one of the reasons why many Basques reach paroxysm of pleasure.
its owner, Dani Lopez (38 years old), next to his maître, Estela Velasco , lead one of the most intelligent kitchens in Donostia. Like all worthwhile young chefs, reveres the benefits of the best raw material. On the way to my table, López calls me from his kitchen so that he can admire a beautiful piece of tuna that a fisherman friend has just dragged into his living room in a plastic bag.
Dani López at the head of Kokotxa
Dani López's seasons in Andalusian kitchens have left him with a certain attachment to gazpachuelo (hot Malaga fish soup) and ajoblanco (white almond gazpacho). In addition, Chinese and Japanese influences are also felt in many of his creations. But even the most elaborate recipes certainly seem simple: the roasted lobster on a white garlic emulsion with pine nuts and a delicate spiral of rice noodles with a few pieces of blood (a citrus fruit that helps counteract the intensity of the dish).
After this gastronomic festival, López sits at my table with a broad smile and a three-day beard, much more bushy than his pretty head. It is possible that few know that, for six years, this restaurant in the Old Town has one of the 16 Michelin stars in the city , a fact that has gone unnoticed by the international media. Maybe it's time he got the attention he deserves.
_(Campanario, 11; 943 421904; dinner for two: around €120) _
- This article is published in the Condé Nast Traveler magazine for February, number 70. This number _ is available in its digital version for iPad in the iTunes AppStore, and in the digital version for PC, Mac, Smartphone and iPad in the newsstand Zinio virtual (on Smartphone devices: Android, PC/Mac, Win8, WebOS, Rim, iPad) ._
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In Kokotxa the raw material is loved