Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 944 15 08 71; Calle de Perro 4; mains €9-12)
An institution that shouldn't be
missed. It specialises in light Basque seafood and heavy inland fare, but to most
foreigners the sheep brains or squid floating in pools of its own ink are the makings
of a culinary adventure story they'll be recounting for years.
RESTAURANTE GUGGENHEIM €€€
Gastronomic
( 944 23 93 33;
www.restauranteguggenheim.com
;
bistro set menu €20, restaurant
set menu €75, restaurant mains €30-35; closed Mon & Christmas period)
El
Goog's modernist, chic restaurant and cafe are under the direction of superchef
Josean Martínez Alija. Needless to say, the
nueva cocina vasca
(Basque nouvelle
cuisine) is breathtaking and the ever-changing menu includes such mouth-waterers
as Iberian pork meatballs with carrot juice and curry.
MINA RESTAURANTE €€€
( 944 79 59 38;
www.restaurantemina.es
; Muelle Marzana; menú del día €53.50)
Offering unexpected sophistication and fine dining in an otherwise fairly grimy
neighbourhood, this riverside (and appropriately fish-based) restaurant has recently
been making waves in the Bilbao culinary world, with some critics citing it as the fu-
ture
número uno
of Basque cooking.
Gastronomic
CAFÉ IRUÑA €
Basque
( 944 23 70 21; cnr Calles de Colón de Larreátegui & Berástegui; menú del día
€13.50)
Moorish style and a century of gossip are the defining characteristics of this
grande old dame.
Pintxos
Although Bilbao lacks San Sebastián's stellar reputation for
pintxos,
prices are gen-
erally slightly lower here and the quality is about equal. There are literally hundreds
of
pintxo
bars throughout Bilbao, but the Plaza Nueva on the edge of the Casco
Viejo offers especially rich pickings, as does Calle de Perro and Calle Jardines.
Some of the city's long-time standouts (all charge from around €2.50 per
pintxo
) in-
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