After trying to get a table for lunch without reservations at Elkano and Kaia-Kaipe, we were…read morefortunately about to get into the Mayflower. The service was prompt and not overbearing and friendly. We had a lovely lunch of octopus a la gallega and the turbot for two. It was a lot of food and came with bread to soak up some warm olive oil and garlic coming off the fish. Be sure to order a glass of Txakoli to go with your meal! We ended off with a piece of cheesecake which was light and delicious.

Fills up very quickly, we had to do an early dinner (20:00) and after that all tables were taken…read more We had a monkfish and a "dorada" roasted with some salad as starter. An awesome homemade cheesecake as dessert. Very nice views directly to the sea and with ambient music from the square next to the restaurant. Good service.

Very reasonable prices and great meal with a beautiful view --- we had the fish stew & the turbot…read more Wine was very good and for great price! Dessert was pantxineta-- light crust/ creamy filling. Wonderful!!! Definitely recommended!

You want to know where some of the Spanish Michelin star chefs eat? Well one of them is Xixario…read more The sleepy town next to the water is a mix of coast, steep hills and very Basque culture. I had seen videos of this place for years and had no idea it was reference point for chef's days off. The Arzak family, Quique Dacosta, Martin Berasatwgui, Andoni Arduiz, for example. And they'll bring folks like Enrique Olvera, Javier Plascencia and their other chef friends it's kinda staggering who havee dined at this very straight forward parilla. If you look at the wall facing the restaurant there is a large relief/sculpture of sea bream. Orio and thisnarea is alll anout Besugo. They habe txuletas, rodaballo and all the other staples of Pais Vasco but besugo what you want. You should also do a plate of gambas de Huelva. Tose things are like crack. The prep for these are seemingly simple. Manage your fire, cook with your instincts, and make sure you hit the window when the product is just perfectly cooked. They spray the seafood with some combo of pil, citrus, garlic and maybe the local Txakoli wine. . Then salt liberally. I crushed the gambas super quick and tore the besugo a new one before anyone knew I had even started. Phenomenal. Pair that with a bottle of the local,coder and youre good to go. The dessert of a cream napoleon was good and the espresso decent but I feel like I should have hit a plate of langoustines instead. But thats just me. Or maybe a txuleta...i digress The staff were a bit hesitant about a foreigner at first and then warmed up to the fact that I spoke Castellano and understood their culture. I then found out that the protege of the original owner was a guy from Tijuana! Wat! He'd been working there for years and the boss finally said it was time to retire so he's basically run the operation up until now and he taking full ownership. When he learned that I had an ex from the area near Tequila he brings out a bottle Centenario. Wat again! Next thing I know we are doing shots with some of the villagers and they're having some acclimation issues with the Tequila but we are having a great time regardless. I Felt suddenly like I was part of the community. Ive always enjoyed my time in the Pais Vasco and is has only cemented my love for this area. Outstanding food, hospitality and friendly locals setting up an unbelievable atmosphere and experience

One of the best steaks I've ever had! To get a reservation you must show up at a designated time…read morefor same day reservations. For lunch get there around 11am. I think the lunch reservations are 1,2,3pm. For dinner get there at 5:30 pm for 8,9,10 pm seatings. They don't come out until 6-6:15 to take your name. They only take about 20 people per seating. Fixed menu. Torta, tomatoes, peppers and steak. They bring out raw bone in ribeyes and let you choose your steak. The steak comes out seared and raw on the inside on a sizzling cast-iron skillet. You are able to cook it to your liking on the skillet as you eat this incredible steak. No frills not totally worth the experience.

Place was closing for siesta so only stayed for one dish, those padrones which were superb…read moreNice beer on tap Service was friendly but rushed, understandable as they wanted to close Would recommend.

From the alcohol perspective, cider or sidra rules in the Northwest side of Spain as it is touted…read moreas the apple growing region. That is not to say that wine is not prevalent here, but many tend to gravitate towards that apple fermented goodness! My travel partner is a huge cider fan, so of course I found a sidra house for her to visit, but honestly I did not expect this gem to be the star of the show for the day. When we finally arrived, I honestly thought the place was closed, but apparently four in the afternoon is a tad early for locals to hit the cider bars. We had the entire large sidra house to ourselves!! The lone employee manning the front was ecstatic to show us how traditional cider was made and how the local Spaniards drink it. Of course I paid attention to his entire speech, but was easily distracted by the large barrels with spouts ready to be tapped... We basically paid nothing for a tasting flight, which I thought would be pulled from the back in a bottle or from a keg, but boy was I wrong! He took us to these large wooden barrels and basically explained each one while we had large samples from each with free refills (Take that Mcdonalds!). I think the coolest part of the mini tour and tasting was the traditional way Spaniards pour their cider which is at a distance and basically moon shot it into your glass. It is quite difficult and I will not lie when I say that we may of wasted a few bottles of good cider from trying to aim the liquid goodness into our glasses, but I guess that is part of the fun for the locals. Make a long story short, I came for the cider, so I cannot comment on the food as they do have a huge hall with ample seating and a large kitchen. The cider on the other hand was quite good and well worth it if you show up early when you can really go through the extensive tasting flight!

(This is - obviously - written in English from a tourist's perspective. Modify your expectations…read moreaccordingly.) This was the meal I was looking for. The one I envisaged immediately when my wife suggested traveling to Spain. The one I felt I had to get my hands on, after watching so many food documentaries and reading travelogues about dining in Spain. Some trips just don't work out that way. I have never had that meal in France, for example. The meal has nothing to do with price, location, or reputation: it's solely about the food. In the case of Spain, my mental picture was fresh seafood, large portions, and varied courses. I was not disappointed. The setting was straightforward: a large, below-ground hall filled with long, communal wooden benches and tables. The meal was entirely inexpensive: the three-course menu del dia cost just 10.50€. Yet the quality and quantity of the food could have demanded ten times that price. The first course was simple: melon and ham. This was a meal into itself, with five giant slices of sweet green melon piled high with shaved ham. This arrived with a jug of cider for the table: tart and clean. The second course was a whole broiled fish, cooked head-on with garlic and nuts and served with fries. This was, again, a meal onto itself; the fish (similar to a hake) was succulent, juicy, and flavorful. My wife had a simple minute steak. It, too, was perfect: millimeters thin, yet served medium rare, it was the essence of beef. Dessert was a custard flavored with cinnamon and cardamom, topped with a light cookie. I will certainly be returning here to sample the rest of the menu (lamb! lentils!). I can say with certainty that this meal alone made this vacation a glorious success.

The food, the view, and the service were all wonderful. We also really appreciated that they were…read moreflexible. One of us is a vegetarian and the other is lactose intolerant. We got one Vegetarian Menu and one Degustacion Menu without lactose. When you make the reservation, they ask about allergies and children so that they can tailor your meal to your needs. Our server was a lovely woman (Olatz) who was friendly and knowledgeable. She did a very nice job describing each dish without being obnoxious or pretentious. She paid attention so that she wasn't rushing us through the courses with a very nice pacing. She was attentive without being intrusive. We did not get the wine pairing but ordered individual glasses of wine which were 7 EUR each, water was 4 EUR and espresso at the end of the meal was 3 EUR. The food was wonderful with great flavors, combinations, and creativity.

Amazing 5-star experience all around: the view, the food, and the service! Great value among the…read moreMichelin options, but clear winner for the view. Ecstatic with our choice; highly recommended. View: 15 minutes drive from downtown. Online photos showed nice night and day views, but we chose lunch to maximize visibility. Smart choice: One of our best dining views to date. We sat in front of the panoramic windows and were treated to spectacular views of San Sebastián city, beaches and mountains. TIP: earlier lunch seating probably gives best views. Food: There were 2 tasting menus: we chose the 10-course "de la casa" (house) menu. Food was varied and beautifully presented. We loved the lamb rump mosaic, green apple and cider, live clam rice, and "interludio". Other dishes were good, but not at the same level. We were also treated to an extra dessert course and coffee/baileys shot - a great way to end the meal. We felt the wine pairing was pricey, so opted for a recommended bottle of Albariño which complemented most of the courses, a glass of red rioja for the meats, and a muscatel for dessert. Didn't feel like a compromise. Service: Wonderful staff especially Xabier and Jonathan who took care of us. Service was laid back, sometimes slow, but always warm and friendly. We took over 3 hours for the entire meal, but loved the whole experience.

I love bar Pepe. It's where I start my day out, and where I end my night. They are great for…read moretheir pintxos and the people working here are always extra friendly. Bar Pepe is a great spot to pop in for a bite of food and a drink while catching the latest game on tv.

Quick stop after walking the 2 mile La Concha beach and checking out the queen's summer palace…read more-Miramar, now government offices. 3 Tapas/pintxos , a tuna sandwich, glass of red and a capuccino for 13euros. Not bad at all. Warm pintxos are better of course since they're freshly cooked.

A stylish, chef driven bar serving jazzed up Pintxos with a ton of flair in the presentation…read more Having visited a number of bars, the food here is in a whole other class. Unfortunately I'm not good with the Basque, we got a roasted tomato(bursting with flavor), a pork taco-like thing (yum), and a veal cheeks -that was stupendous. Lots of American customers here too. You can't go wrong with this place and even if you sort of take a flyer on ordering, you will be delighted by the food. Plus the dark brooding atmosphere sets this place apart and gives it almost a nightclub feel. Highly recommended

One of our worat tapas stops in San Sebastian ... so many glowing reviews make me wonder if we came…read moreon a bad night ... or how many drinks the previous reviewers had. The food here was more expensive thsn your average tapas ... but out of 5 things we ordered, only one was somewhat edible (tacos) ... but nothing we couldn't find at a taco stand in Los Angeles for cheaper. All the others were bland, chewy or just a sloppy mess. The staff were all pretty much aloof and when they did come around, were disintetested and snippy. We noticed that the customers next to us pretty much left most of their food after a few bites and agreed with us their food was dissapointing. We only had 2 nights in San Sebastian, so we really regretted wasting a meal here. Maybe our experience wasn't indicative of normal but it was the worst tapas we had in Spain. The hair we found in one of our dishes after the first bite was gross enough ... but the waiter shrugging and removing the dish without bringing another or removing it from the bill was also not a good move. There are much better spots in San Sebastian ... we feel that we wasted a meal here ... not to mention money.