From Seville to San Sebastian making stops in Cáceres, Madrid, or Segovia, these are the seven best places to eat in Spain.
The modern traveler chooses more frequently destinations where tourism offer goes beyond monuments, museums, or beaches. Spaniards love to enjoy a good meal or dinner to recover strength and get to know in-depth the different cuisines offered by the various autonomous communities of the peninsula.
San Sebastian, Pais Vasco
The capital of Gipuzkoa always appears in any gastronomic ranking that boasts, and it is not in vain. Of the seven Spanish restaurants awarded with the highest distinction in the Michelin Guide, three of them located in San Sebastian: Akelarre, Arzak, and Martín Berasategui – the latter, in the nearby town of Lasarte, adding a total of 16 stars among all those located in the province.
Santiago de Compostela, Galicia
The superb quality of Galician products, both from the sea and from the garden, have made Santiago de Compostela a unique culinary destination. From mesones or pulperías to refined restaurants or seafood restaurants, it is impossible to eat poorly in Galicia. To admire first hand some of the most popular Compostela creations, such as the octopus a feira or empanada, nothing better than an early visit to the Mercado de Abastos, the second most visited attraction in the city after the Cathedral.
Bilbao
Like its neighbor Donostia, Bilbao has earned its culinary fame by the increasingly spectacular spiked bars that resemble those of ‘its sister.’ Eneko Atxa, in front of Azurmendi, and one of the Basque 3-stars, has many who come to the Biscayan capital do more than admire the Guggenheim museum. The museum’s restaurant, Nerua, with Josean Alija at the front of its stoves, Etxanobe or Etxebarri, number 13 on the World’s 50 Best list, are more than enough reasons to be seduced by the northern municipality.
Madrid
Few cities in the World offer a gastronomic variety and with a range of prices as Madrid. From the calamari sandwich in the outskirts of the Plaza Mayor, or eating the most authentic two-course menu at DiverXO. Defining the gastronomy of Madrid is complicated since it has been influenced by the different regional cuisines. However, some dishes indisputably bear the stamp of the capital of Spain, such as patatas bravas, the Madrid-style callos, or the cocido madrileño.
Barcelona, Catalunya
Few cities in the World can boast a culinary category like Barcelona, the birthplace of some of the most prominent chefs on the national scene, such as the Ferrán brothers and Albert Adrià, Carme Ruscalleda or Sergi Arola. Made with the best products offered by the sea and the mountains, it has adapted to modern times, as well as to the tastes and needs of the tourists that visit Barcelona. Its pleasant temperature makes Barcelona great fans of eating and being outside, and, if possible, on a sunny terrace. Besides, the aperitif tradition, with the vermouth at the head, seems to have returned with more strength than ever.
Valencia, Comunidad Valenciana
Beyond paella, the cuisine of Valencia is vast, natural, and, above all, traditional. Fresh fish and seafood, one of the most fertile orchards in the country, and rice, the jewel in the crown, and cultivated since the Muslim era, the star in most of its dishes. Nothing like being seduced by La Albufera, bread and paprika; clóchinas, a more salty and nutritious mollusk than the mussel that grows only in Valencian waters, or the evolved proposals of two of its most renowned chefs, such as Ricard Camarena and Quique Dacosta.
Seville, Andalucía
Like Granada, the city of Seville has a well-deserved fame thanks to tapas, which every year attracts thousands of travelers to the feet of La Giralda and the Torre del Oro. Gazpacho or ‘pescaíto frito’ is part of its cookbook. The walls of some of Seville’s centuries-old restaurants and taverns have witnessed curious stories featuring colorful characters, as well as those of the Oven of San Buenaventura, one of the oldest in Spain, where since 1385 some of the desserts have been made typical of the area, such as Yemas de San Leandro, torrijas or borrachuelos.
By Carmen Caballero is the Founder of Exotik Traveler.