Asador San Martin San Martin, Orio Spain…read more Easily our most favorite restaurant in Basque Country so far.... Located on the top of a hill in the middle of pastures and fields of grapes. In the middle of nowhere. Amazing to see how much food can be consumed in one meal! When it's this delicious, you take your time to enjoy. Ideally with family and friends in a group so you eat everything together and revel in the splendid tastes of some of the best food on Earth. This is the Basque way of life-how lucky to be able to live this way! Our gigantic beef steak was lean,and cooked with sea salt...and raw! And perfect that way! The red peppers were SO deeply flavorful and our dessert....Perfecto! Simple milk pie was warm, slightly sweet from the carmelized sugar top accompanied by a light banana with chocolate bits ice cream. This was like a very light bread pudding. The Basque cheesecake was light, slightly sweet SO very full of flavor served with the perfect side of macerated cherries. The depth of flavor, simplicity of the ingredients and their absolute freshness in a cozy Mountain View setting and the ocean down below. There was light hail falling outside before the sun came out....divine. Speaking Spanish certainly helps as google translate doesn't always describe what's on the menu. Wait staff speak minimal English but can certainly recommend what's wonderful. Parking right out front and reservations recommended.

We saw this place on one of our favorite shows "somebody feed Phil" and it was every bit as good as…read morewe anticipated. We ordered the Brem fish like in the show, the asparagus and a bottle of wine. It's soooo good! Are outside on the perfect day.

Terrific grill restaurant 10 minute drive outside of San Sebastián in a nice little town called…read moreOria because of a river than runs through it. The only concern you will have is finding parking. Aside from that the restaurant is pure magic, delivering excellent fish and beef.we had the turbot and the chuletón. Some Navarran white asparagus, a mixed salad, some anchovies and roasted peppers. Everything is top quality and cooked to perfection. Service is also amicable and spot on. Wines are limited in selection but very reasonably priced and the restaurant is beautifully appointed. A must try!

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

The food is as beautiful as the town here. Txoko was one of the best culinary experiences I have…read moreever had. The combination of amazingly tasty food mixed with precision service and breathtaking ambiance is next level. The meal we shared as a group will never be forgot. The chefs were cooking live on a flaming hot grill next to us on an incredible patio area. The aroma was intoxicating. As the food came out, the group would hush with anticipation and excitement. Each course was flawless in execution and flavor. We were all so blown away with this incredible experience. I highly recommend for you to come here and also enjoy what we had the chance to enjoy.

Our favorite meal in Getaria. The food is fresh and tasty, with a beautiful view! Make a…read morereservation, so you can be sure to get a nice spot outside.

I came here on a Sunday evening. I am walking the Camino del Norte and staying in Orio tonight. The…read morewaitress greeted me and was friendly and patient with my basic Spanish. I picked this place because there was outdoor seating and it looked like many locals were frequenting the establishment. It had been a long day of walking 20 km in 103 F heat, so I was glad for the chance to sit down and eat a meal. It looked like many people ordered multiple plates to share.

My family and I got the privilege of living in Zarautz for 6 months in 2014 and Kirkilla became our…read moreweekly date get away for a killer lunch in the coolest shop around. Great friendly owners. Excellent food and service. Extremely accommodating to us foreigners and we went back countless times and were pleased continuously. They've been around a long time and the great young (and friendly) chef recently got additional world class training, came back to his home base at Kirlkilla, and is apparently hitting it out of the park. We want to go back just to eat there. The aforementioned "dates" were just my wife and I but we took our three boys there once before we returned stateside and they too enjoyed the experience. The whipped cream raspberry mousse thing was so awesome. My title is ridiculously bad and I'd never order something like what I just typed... But we ate it over and over and over and over and over and over again. They redefined arroz con leche for us and their use of cinnamon is awesome! The fish was always fresh and perfect, excellent squid in its ink (best we had in Basque Country), gambas rocked, "burrito" is not a burrito and is to die for (and from), any soup we had was fantastic, and the list goes on. The price, especially for lunch, was such a steal I know it cannot last. Cute, quaint, humble, clean, tasty, warm, casual, nice, local, hidden gem, killer food.

Excellent food with very creative cuisine. Last main dish was an oxtail (no bones) with foie gras,…read moreappetizers served on rocks and more. Have been there several times over the years I visited Zarautz on business, and never had a bad meal there. My favorite in town!

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.

One of the best "menú del día" deals I've seen in a long time - 11 euros for two courses plus wine…read more(or even better, local cider) and dessert on the beach. The menu board claims "fresh fish", and I have to admit, I had forgotten how good fresh hake can be, especially if it hasn't been overcooked. So far I've had paella, ensaladilla rusa, beef ribs and that hake, and so far all my meals have been superb.

An amazing lunch experience in a unique town. 3rd generation family ownership in a small village…read morewith great food, amazing views and nice service. This place was really great (as most all food in this region of Spain). The staff didn't speak great English, but that isn't their responsibility and they were very nice and we communicated good enough. The fish is the star here. We got turbot and Dover sol. Price is by the kilo so 2 people can share one fish. A great lunch

In gateria do not miss. We went after Museu Balenciaga…read moreIt's the charcoal fish best place. One of the best in the region! We had amazing fish appetizers and mais fish. Definitely stay on the fish as you can have meat in tons of other places! Make sure to leave the sommelier choose your wine. We were about to have a cotton Charlemagne and he offered us an amazing local wine! It's an amazing true experience. Perfect for lunch