This was our second Michelin Star restaurant in two days. Quaint old building, approximately 600…read moreyears old in a small town outside of San Sebastián. The service was excellent, not stuffy at all. Prices where normal for a Michelin Star winner. If your out in this part of Spain it's definitely worth the drive. We had choose three appetizers, two main courses and two desserts.

Are there really only 7 reviews on this place? I am honored to be able to give a review on this…read moreplace and feel lucky we were able to get reservations and have this experience. As we were seated at our table I felt like a queen. Never had I experienced service like this. I took a look at the tasting menu (which I had originally planned to do) but none of the dishes caught my fancy. I hemmed and hawed at what to order and finally ended up with....the tasting menu. When in Madrid.... This is one of my favorite meals of all time and may be one of the less wordy of the bunch ("maybe", I haven't finished yet). A dish by dish review is not necessary and cannot give justice to the umami that the night unfolded. With each tasting set before me, I kept asking myself - how can you put so much goodness in such a small little dish? For example, one of my favorites of the night was shellfish to the royal with fennel flavour. Shellfish to what? and fennel... not a fan of fennel. Have you ever had something so good that you want to close your eyes and just take it all in with only your tastebuds? This frothy little portion had layers of flavor you couldn't imagine. A few of which I was able to guess correctly as uni and lobster (pat myself on the back). I loved it all. Each dish in and of itself was uniquely astonishing in its own way. To hit on a couple other surprises - the mashed potatoes were the jam. They were a runny thick consistency and when I asked what made them so good, the waitress answered "lots of butter". The cheesecake was like no other cheesecake. So good that it called for an additional order to close out the night. The wines (recommended by the sommelier) were less expensive than any red wines sold in US restaurants (even the cheaper US brands). I was wined and dined - an experience I can't explain other than using the word amazing. Which by the way, I need to find a better word because it was actually better than amazing.

From the owner: Las mejor cocina tradicional vasca con producto fresco especialidad en menús para grupos grandes,…read moreraciones y platos combinados. También ofrecemos menú del día, hamburguesas y bocadillos excelentes. La mejor calidad precio disponemos de terraza cubierta con servicio de mesas.

This was supposedly the best seafood restaurants in Hondarribia. We gave it to attempts during our…read morestay there the first one the waiter was very lovely and spoke English. The white asparagus was amazing and that's about where the meal ended. We had ordered the deep-fried monkfish, and it was undercooked and extremely greasy as were the potatoes. Thinking we just didn't understand the menu. We gave it a second try and it was not any better the second time they said they did not have a reservation, but seated us anyway. Our second experience was even more underwhelming. We found this place to be overpriced and difficult to get into for no real reason after two attempts I would not recommend if you're looking for a good restaurant in this area I would recommend Almameda that just received is Michelin star and did not disappoint.

The experience here was superb. Our server, so-so with English, but then my Spanish is so-so; we…read moremade it work. When we pointed to items on the menu - we chose only fish/seafood for the evening - she'd go into the kitchen, bring out the fish to show us, confirming if if it was piece too big (she brought out a 1.5 kilo piece of turbot, which we could normally take care of, but we had ordered other dishes). The dishes were amazing: monkfish (cooked perfectly) & clams in a traditional Basque green sauce, anchovies with green chilies and onions, the bacalao al pil pil was beautiful, and a main course of a type of cod perfectly grilled. It's a modest-looking place, but don't let it fool you. The server made the evening very memorable. So, if you make out to this special little town, and you should, try this place.

Mugaritz is iconic! It is not the best meal you'll ever eat, it is not the most comfortable you'll…read moreever be in a dining setting, and it is certainly not the most enjoyable time you'll have at lunch or dinner. But we're here for art - Mugaritz is truly an expensive piece of art that you get to experience if you so decide to go! I've been to Mugaritz twice, and each time has been extremely unique. Not one repeated course, and the experience overall felt different. The attention to detail and care with which they make the meal at Mugaritz is just stunning, and the overall ability to interact with a staff that so clearly loves their job is so fun! Most recently we had everything from pig snout to roasted bees to a soup that we made a as a group of diners. Every dish was plated beautifully, had a story behind it, and felt like true performance food art. The wine pairing is such a treat because they bring you wines that are mainly collaborations, and you get to try so much during your journey. If you want a good steak go to Casa Julian, if you want to save money eat pintxos in San Sebastian, and if you want the best meal ever go to Azurmendi - but if you want an experience that is truly worth having, spend 4 hours at Mugaritz - you will not be underwhelmed.

Has anyone seen the It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia scene where Frank Reynolds pretends to be an…read moreart collector? That scene exemplifies Mugaritz. To be fair, the service and ambiance were on point. The whole experience has a sense of theater, and we genuinely liked the mold water at the beginning. They clearly know how to create a vibe. But if you're going to turn food into art, the food still has to be legitimately good. Here, it ranged from bland to genuinely awful. Of the entire tasting menu, only two savory courses were actually enjoyable: the sweetbread and the pesto-wrapped item. At one point they served what they described, more or less, as their take on glue: a white, multi-textured concoction topped with caviar. I took a bite and my immediate thought was, "Well, you nailed it." Unfortunately, that isn't really a compliment. Who wants to eat glue? That was also roughly the point where I started wondering whether Ashton Kutcher was about to walk out and tell us we were being Punk'd. We've eaten at plenty of Michelin-starred restaurants. We understand experimentation, and we don't expect every unconventional dish to land. But a .250 batting average is decent in baseball. It's disastrous for a tasting menu. Ironically, one of the best things we ate was dessert. And surprise, surprise, it was created by a guest chef. Mugaritz absolutely succeeded at being interesting. It just rarely succeeded at being delicious.

We splurged at this place on our last night Hondarribia with a group of ten and had a great time…read more The atmosphere of this upscale restaurant is luxurious with the upholstered chairs around the extravagantly decorated tables, the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and the carpets on the wooden floor. In summer, so I have been told, is the terrace a beautiful spot as well. The chef greeted us very friendly and took the time to explain his menu and the specials of the day in a mix of Spanish, French and English. You could really see that he is passionate about the dishes he makes. The food was a revelation: The starters like a degustation starter, the fish soup or the filled raviolis, the mains like the filet steak, scallops with mushrooms or turbot and even the desert were all delicious. The service was one of the most attentive, caring and fun I have seen in a while. We really indulged ourselves and still paid less than 50 Euro per person, which in part is due to the fact that necessities like water or coffee are priced more than reasonable (3 and 2 Euro respectively). So if you feel like having an excellent dinner which still is reasonably priced, go for it.

Hondarribia is an extraordinary town with a gastronomic explosion…read more Few tourists (contrast with Saint Jean de Luz). Little urban blight (contrast with Donastia) Picturesque everywhere. (The ugly stuff was foisted off on the neighboring town of Irun.) And magnificent restaurants everywhere. Ironically - Cafe Exteberria is NOT one of the famous restaurants. If you want the places the New York Times or the food critics love - go down to the waterfront. The critics say - probably correctly - you will eat like a king. Cafe Exteberria is a neighborhood joint. It is in the old city within the ancient city walls. An unusual (and highly desirable) feature of the old city is that there is VERY LITTLE COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT anywhere in the old city. There are not only few tourist stores. There are no stores period stop the end. In the Middle Ages, walled cities had the houses people lived in, a castle and nothing else. If you did business, you did it in the streets. Hondarribia has kept things exactly that way. Not a single house has been knocked down or cleared out for modern business. The houses have been upgraded for modern comforts. (They now have flush toilets instead of people dumping their bedpans in the street.) Everything else has been maintained. So if you want to eat, there are only two choices. There are some tavernas off of the central square. In the southern part of the old city far from the central square, there is Cafe Exteberria. It pretty much only takes care of the locals. It is a wonderful establishment. It carries a small but wonderful assortments of global microbrews. (None from the U.S.. but intriguing examples of Mexican, Danish and Scotch artisanal beers.) There is plenty of Spanish/Basque food and drink. They keep a local red vermouth in a barrel and serve it with fruit and ice. That is a fine fine beverage and I endorse it heartily. They have a nice little menu of sandwiches and pinxtos. We went with the omelet with tuna and the deep fried hot peppers. Fine dishes both. Two additional marks of class. a) The television was set to the Mainland Chinese channel (with Spanish subtitles.) While we ate we watched Chinese telenovelas. The middle aged owner of a business was scheming against his brothers and being morally corrected by the rest of his family. b) The owner has a first rate jazz collection - mostly in vinyl - which she plays as the background music. Great vermouth, fine basque food, Chinese telenovelas, and late fifties jazz vocals. What's not to like?

Wow! Little more need be said... let the food speak for…read moreitself; you'll just have to get a table and enjoy. Instead let me wax lyrical about the incredible service... world class. Makes you feel like a king but also like family at the same time. That the world's best female chef made time for small talk says it all. Ps Shout out to the concierge at the Maria Christina for the last minute table.

This an excellent tasting menu who history dates back to the father of the current chef. It has its…read moreroots in Basque ingredients and terroir. The service is exquisite and each dish is special. The dining room is elegant and modern, befitting the food that is being served. It is complex and whimsical. This alone is a reason to make a pilgrimage to the Basque area.

Outstanding Michellin star restaurant that was perfect from beginning to end. The seating is…read morespacious, the ambiance is relaxed, and the food was as good as it gets. The prefix menu changes frequently. Each course is served with Silver Service and explained. Pacing was perfect. I attached our menu to give a sense of what's offered.

From the moment we were greeted to our check the service was excellent! The waited was fluent in…read moreEnglish and described the menu with great descriptions. The started with local sardines and tomato jam that had the perfect balance. The regional in season white asparagus was so amazing, so tender and flavorful. The short rib we a special local dish that they added their own creatively to and the carrot purée was the right balance. We had local oysters in a local wine and like all things here it was great. Their belief is the source needs to be very close to the kitchen. The ambiance is clean with new designs and a pice of dirt wood at each table with the location. We would definitely recommend this restaurant to anyone.

Highly recommended is an understatement. This food is fantastic, creative modern Spanish cuisine…read more We will never forget the pork belly tacos. Tapas style food but filling and really affordable. Our only regret is that we didn't have stomach space enough to consume everything on the menu. Service was SO good she even gave us an inside track of every great place to eat in the city.

What a wonderful find! MUST VISIT ON YOUR TRIP!! We were wandering by when we looked through the…read morewindow and saw how modern this place looked. We glanced at the menu and decided to give it a try. They have a wide variety of food. We got several dishes to share. Beginning with table guacamole, they give you the components to mix for yourself with a mortar and pestle. I hate onions and cilantro, so I was able to get my share before my friends mixed them in! Served with crispy chips, it was a nice change from regular pintxos in the area. Next was the ceviche, tuna and sweet potato (with a lot of onions), onions aside the tuna was delicious with a well balanced spice of peppers that were included in the dish. Next up was the Iberian ham cheese quesadillas: perfection! The simplicity of the dish was what made it taste so good. Exactly what it sounds like, but the cheese was delicious. But the BEST part of the meal was the al Pastor tacos! They were better than some of the tacos I had in Mexico City! Perfectly seasoned meat, with just the right amount of guacamole. MUST HAVE!!! Lastly, the desserts! The churro dessert was AMAZING! And the rice pudding was also delicious, light and flavorful! We were all amazed by this meal. Everything was delicious. The most consistent meal we have had by far during our stay in San Sebastián.