Entierro con Lagrimas de Cera – Burial with Tears of Wax – Ενταφιασμος με Κερινα Δακρυα

This is the result of a juxtraposition of the creations of two people who have not met in their lifetime. Both made Spain their home. Both originated in another country (culture). The occasion of this is the Holy Week that is now approaching its climax. I chose to focus on the zenith of the drama, the burial. The beginning of the trip to Hades.

The creators:

El Greco, The Burial of Count Orgaz, Self-portrait (Detail)

El Greco: Domenikos Theotokopoulos, Painter.

Born in Crete, Greece, El Greco was trained as an icon painter.
It was as a painter who “felt the mystical inner construction” of life that El Greco was admired by Franz Marc and the members of the Blue Rider (Blaue Reiter) school: someone whose art stood as a rejection of the materialist culture of modern life.

Source:El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos) (1541–1614) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art

El Lebrijano

El Lebrijano: Juan Peña Fernández. Lebrija (Seville), 1941. Singer.

García Marquez wrote: “When Lebrijano sings, water gets wet.”

(Please refer to FlamencoWorld for a biography and more).

The works:

The Burial of Count of Ortaz

El Greco, The Burial of the Count of Orgaz

The huge painting is in the Church of Santo Tome, in Toledo, the city that El Greco made his home in Spain.

Lagrimas de Cera (Tears of Wax)

“…The director of the company wanted to record right away and it occurred to me to say, almost as a joke, “I’m going to make a record about Holy Week.” When I was on the AVE to Seville I asked myself, “What did I say to this guy?” He called me up and said “How are you going to do it?” And I said to him, “What am I doing?” Then he said to me, “Come to Madrid because Hugo is here.”….As soon as we got there, in a recording studio on the Alameda de Hércules in Seville, we put together a multicolored musical ensemble: a Belgian producer with his French engineer, the Moroccan brothers that Juan has worked with for 10 years on strings and vocals, four Bulgarian singers, Antonio Moya de Utrera on guitar, Rosario Amador, niece of Raimundo also on vocals, and Sainkho from Southern Siberia. “It was like the U.N.,” jokes El Lebrijano.” (exerpt from an  1999 interview to Louis Clemente, published in Flamenco World)

This stunning music written for “Santa Semana” – the Holy Week – evokes the Universal aspect of Passion and Drama, universality that knows no boundaries or religions. The music unites the Christians and the Arabs with the itinerant Romas and the Jews in mourning for the Death and Burial of a Man, a God, our own.

The Video (Slide Show)

I have put together a slide show with photos of the painting, and one song from “LAgrimas de Cera” as audio background. Here it is.

Dinner Party on the occasion of Despoinarion’s Oscar Celebration and Awards

 Today’s post is a celebration for Despoinarion‘s Oscar Awards. 

The celebration is double in nature: we celebrate first the award for imagination given to Despoinarion by her friend Taste Advisor  

 

and secondly the award that Despoinarion has given to some bloggers, including myself. 

The guests are:

Despoinarion, Errikos, the Taste Advisor, So Far, Marizz, Gabriel, Roula, Orfia (aka Lena), Manolis, Yanna, Katerina, Natalia.

Yiannis Tsarouchis, Iannis Xenakis, Manos Chatzidakis, Karl Popper, Parmenides, Hoelderlin, Paul Celan, Paul Cezanne

Today’s dinner party is seated and the menu is a combination of dishes I have created, with dishes I have tasted in Italy, Spain, Turkey, the Basque country and Austria. The wines come from Italy, Austria, Greece and Spain. 

To start, I will serve Amalia Brut by Tselepos, a fruity fresh sparkling wine, made the traditional way from moschofilero grapes in the area south of Tripoli, Greece.

 

Σερβιρισμενα

Amuse Bouche: Pies with hot sudjuk (my creation) 

Home made closed pies with a filling of hot sudjuk from Turkey, onions, peppers, sun dried tomatoes and spices.I imasgined this combination one day while I was tasting the hot sudjuk from Turkey and was wondering how to temper the fire and the heat without levelling it to something boring.

 They are hot enough to get the human machine started, so that my guests will endure throughout the process.

Το πακετακι ετοιμο για τυλιγμα

 Antipasto: Greek sushi – sardines with rice in vine leafs (my creation) 

  My Greek sushi uses vineleafs instead of sea weed, rice, and lightly marinated sardine fillets.  I think it is one of the best antipasti because of the unique combination of the oily fish flavors’ and the vine leafs. The rice acts as a mediating agent.

Antipasto: Joselito – Pata Negra 

 Nothing can describe the taste of a slice of Joselito’s pata negra. Keep your eye lids closed, slip into your half open mouth, roll it a bit around without chewing, let it rest for a few seconds, and then open your eyes, and start the cheweing process. Unforgettable!

 

Vino: Albarino – 2006 Granbazán Ambar   

The first wine I will offer is albarino made by Granbazan. Albarino is a wonderful grape, it produces a ehite wine with a good kick and a lot of acidity. I love it and hope you will love it too!!!

Sea Urchin Eggs with Bacalao Tripe

 Primo 1: Sea urchin eggs with Bacalao Tripe (Ristorante Uliassi, Senigalia, Italia) 

I now come to one of the absolutely fabulous dishes of the evening created by chef Uliassi. Frozen sea urchin eggs with cod tripe. What a pandemonium of tastes,  aromas and all of them encased on the tender silky texture of the cod tripe! 

 

Primo 2: Egg with grilled octopus (Restaurante Andra Mari, near Bilbao, Basque Country) 

This minimalistic dish is absolutely stunning. One of the most unusual combination of tastes, married by the chef of Andra Mari in Vizkaya.

 

Secondo: Iberian Pig’s Tails with crayfish (Restaurante Mugaritz, near San Sebastian, Basque Country) 

The humble tail with its skin intact and crispy combines with the white immaculate flesh of the crayfish in a never ending game of pure pleasure, amplified by jamon iberico crisps.  

The flesh of the tail is surrounded by streams of fat, the best tasting fat in the world! 

The contrast in the texture between the skin and the subliminally soft, almost creamy fat  is unbelievable. 

And when you get back to Earth after this excursion into extreme pleasure, the crayfish comes into play and with its soft flesh and sweet flavor takes you to the cool ocean of elevated joy. 

A crisp of jamon iberico completes the palette of tastes and you find yourself asking the simple question: 

“How could I ever taste something more satisfying than this?” 

The Princess has danced with the Serf, the lights are off,  and the Prince with the skull on hand walks by wandering: 

“To be or not to be?” 

He obviously didn’t manage to get even one bite! 

P.S. This dish is on the menu of the re-opened Mugaritz Restaurant, near San Sebastian in the Basque Region, which was completely rebuilt after a fire destroyed the entire kitchen and a big part of the dining area on the 15th February 2010.  

 

Terzo: Bistecca Fiorentina 

The queen of meats could not be absent from this dinner. Bistecca Fiorentina, bought from my good friend Dario Cecchini, in Panzano, Chianti.

The meat is marbled, and it melts in your mouth dear guest, enjoy it!!!

 

Vino: Poeckl Admiral 1995 

The Admiral, a cuvée of Zweigelt, Blaufränkisch and Cabernet Sauvignon, has been one of Austria’s great red wines for years.

My brother Manolis introduced me to this battleship of reds and I am enslaved by it ever since.  

 

Dolce: Tiramisou (Ristorante Uliassi, Senigalia, Italia) 

The tirami-sou, another creation of chef Uliassi, is deconstructed and absolutely fantastic! The mascarponeisintense and ever present, the cream golden and thick, the chocolate dressed in coffee chunky and bitter! A caramelized wet biscuit on top provides the necessary absorbing agent.No cake needed! 

 

Dolce: Dark chocolate praline with campari sauce in the middle, accompanied by blood orange sorbet on the left and orange grog on the right. 

And now the second dessert! The grog was mildly hot, and contrasted beautifully the cold sorbet (Restaurant Vestibuel, Vienna, Austria). What a wonderful way to end the dinner!!!

 

Vinsanto: Barone Ricasoli – Castello di Brolio 

The Castello di Brolio Vin Santo, true to tradition, expresses one of the “historic” grapes of the area, Malvasia del Chianti.

It is silkyy, aromatic, and can stay with you for a long time. The aftertaste is memorable.

 

Chillida: Gruss an (Hommage à) Heidegger

Δοκεί δε μέτα τι είναι και

χαλεπόν ληφθήναι ο τόπος

“It appears, however, to be something overwhelming and hard to grasp, the topos (that is place, space)”

Aristotle, Physics, Book IV

The Basque Sculptor Eduardo Chillida in the early 1960′s engaged into a dialog with the German Philosopher Martin Heidegger. When the two men met, they discovered that from different angles, they were “working” with Space in the same way.

Chillida has been quoted as saying: “My whole Work is a journey of discovery in Space. Space is the liveliest of all, the one that surrounds us.” He has challenged the Empty and embraced the Horizon. One might say that his mission in life was to give life to Emptiness.

In one of his interviews, Chillida said: “Heidegger wrote a book, The Art and the Space, that discussed my work: the idea of space as a living space that is in relation to man, and the idea that sculpture reveals the exact character of a space. Heidegger asked for my thoughts because he was astonished to find so many relations between his ideas and my ideas, translated into sculpture.”

Heidegger wrote: “We would have to learn to recognize that things themselves are places and do not merely belong to a place,” and that sculpture is thereby “…the embodiment of places.”

Against a traditional view of space as an empty container for discrete bodies, these writings understand the body as already beyond itself in a world of relations and conceive of space as a material medium of relational contact. Sculpture shows us how we belong to the world, a world in the midst of a technological process of uprooting and homelessness. Heidegger suggests how we can still find room to dwell therein.

Hommage à Heidegger.
Holzschnitt.
Van der Koelen 70016. Signiert und nummeriert. Exemplar 98/100. Auf Japanbütten. 13,8 x 17 cm (5,4 x 6,6 in). Papier: 20,8 x 17 cm (8,1 x 6,6 in).
Beilage zur Vorzugsausgabe des Buches “Martin Heidegger/Eduardo Chillida – Die Kunst und der Raum” von Erhard Kästner, St. Gallen 1970. Gedruckt von der Erker-Presse, St. Gallen, erschienen im Erker-Verlag, St. Gallen. [RS].

Chillida was asked and accepted to prepare the illustrations for the book that was first published in 1969. The illustration above comes from the book.

Gruss an Hiedegger, Frankfurt am Main (1994)

In 1994 Chillida completed his sculpture “Hommage to Heidegger”. The sculpture was installed in open air in Frankfurt an Main.

La Mezquita in Cordoba – Part I

I am not familiar with Islamic art. But my recent visit to the Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain was an ecstatic experience. This is the first part of an article on the Mezquita of Cordoba.

I start with some history, borrowed from the vast resources of the Metropolian Museum of Art in New York, then continue with a short tour of the outside, and conclude the first part with the entrance in the Mezquita and the first impressions and feelings.

“On July 19, 711, an army of Arabs and Berbers unified under the aegis of the Islamic Umayyad caliphate landed on the Iberian Peninsula. Over the next seven years, through diplomacy and warfare, they brought the entire peninsula except for Galicia and Asturias in the far north under Islamic control; however, frontiers with the Christian north were constantly in flux. The new Islamic territories, referred to as al-Andalus by Muslims, were administered by a provincial government established in the name of the Umayyad caliphate in Damascus and centered in Córdoba. Of works of art and other material culture only coins and scant ceramic fragments remain from this early period of the Umayyad governors (711–56).

When the Umayyad caliphate of Damascus was overthrown by the Abbasids in 750, the last surviving member of the Umayyad dynasty fled to Spain, establishing himself as Emir Abd al-Rahman I and thus initiating the Umayyad emirate (756–929). Abd al-Rahman I (r. 756–88) made Córdoba his capital and unified al-Andalus under his rule with a firm hand, while establishing diplomatic ties with the northern Christian kingdoms, North Africa, and the Byzantine empire and maintaining cultural contact with the Abbasids in Baghdad. The initial construction of the Great Mosque of Córdoba under his patronage was the crowning achievement of this formative period of Hispano-Islamic art and architecture.”

(Source: The Art of the Umayyad Period in Spain (711–1031) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art).

Aerial view of the Mezquita in Cordoba (source: Wikipedia)

The Great Mosque of Cordoba was built over a period of three centuries, from the 8th to the 11th. It is a rectangle with a orange tree court with a basin adjacent to it. This court is the oldest Moorish garden in Spain (marked as 7 in the plan that follows).

The concept was to imitate if not exceed the Great Mosque of Damascus.

At the edge of the tree line at the bottom of the photo is the bank of the famous river, Guadalquivir. The plan of the Mezquita that follows is “turned upside down” compared to the photo. The river is at the top. The resolution of the plan is high so that you can download it and view it in full resolution for the details.

The Minaret, enveloped by a Baroque Tower in 17c

Door of Forgiveness (1 in the plan)

Puerta San Esteban (Door of Saint Stephen) - Marked 3 on the plan

Puerta San Miguel (Door of Saint Michael’s) – Marked 4 on the Plan.

Door of the Psalms, viewed from the Orange Tree Court – Marked 6 on the Plan.

Carved wooden beams in the cloisters – detail (Marked 8 on the plan)

When the Moors first arrived in Cordoba, they were content to share the Visigothic Church of Saint Vincent with the Christians. When this became insufficient, AdbAl-Rahman purchased their part and started building  the Mosque (marked 9 on the plan) with 11 aisles, opening onto the Orange Tree Court. The architectural innovation in the mosque was the superimposition of two tiers of arches to give added height and spaciousness. They used marble pillars and Roman stone from St Vicent’s Church and other buildings in the area.

Once you are inside (you enter in the area marked 8 on the plan) you get overwhelmed by the “forest of pillars” as one traveler put it, and the  completely new feeling of space. It is as if space is distorted, but yet it returns to its normal state, If there is one thing that I will never forget from my visit there is this “feeling” of space. The last time I felt this was when I visited the Chillida museum in the Basque country. The photos cannot convey this feeling, but you get an idea.

This is one of the corridors that take you from the entrance to the Mihrab (marked 13 on the plan), which you can barely see at the end. The two pillars at the beginning of this corridor are supporting the Christian Cathedral that is almost embedded in the Great Mosque. In the photo below you see the parallel corridor on the left as we face the Mihrab.

As I walk down this corridor with direction towards the Mihrab, I get to see some of the marvelous arches within arches of the Great Mosque.

With these first impressions of the inside area, I conclude Part I of my visit to the Mezquita of Cordoba.

In Part II I will cover the Christian Cathedral and the area of the Mahrib.

Bar Food in Cordoba, Spain

As a traveler, there are moments when you want to eat something simple, fresh, well prepared, without having to go through the motions of a meal.  Spain is one of the countries where this is possible. The place is Cordoba, the center of town. Sunday early afternoon and the locals enjoy their bar food with ice cold beer.

I could not resist and joined them.

Here are some samples of the delicious food that is served at prices that would shame some establishments in Greece.

Tortilla de patatas

This is the staple food of Spain: Omelette with potatoes. Juicy, tasty, with a texture that rewards the mouth.

Calamares

Fresh, fried to perfection, wonderful taste of sea with the cold beer.

Boquerones

I conclude with the crispy but tender boquerones, or anchovies, or GAVROS in Greek!

Just for the record, the calamares and the boquerones cost 3,9 EUROs each!

Joselito – Bellota Ham

The picture that you see is not a fake. You see pigs with black feet (pata negra) enjoying the environment of woods and waters in Spain) in one of the farms of Joselito, may be the most famous producer of bellota (acorn fed) ham. The leg is cured for a period ranging from 2 to 4 years and the whole process transforms the flesh of the acorn fed pig into a symphony of flavours. In addition, due to the chemical composition of acorns, the fat of the pig is transformed into an olive oil tasting substance.

There is no way to relay the whole experience, one has to taste this beautiful piece of cured meat. During my recent visit to Munich, Manolis welcomed me with a whole leg of Joselito’s bellota ham. This post is dedicated to Manolis and Joselito.

I start with the presentation of the whole leg on its stand, as presented to me upon my entry in Manolis’ dining room. Next to it, stands a bottle of rioja, “Castillo Ygay”, of 1978. The little card has a poem of Manolis:

“Το συντεκνο ο Μανωλιος

για να καλωσορισει

τον Χοσελιτο εστειλε

να τον προυπαντησει”

(liberally translated this means:

Preparing to  welcome his brother,

Manolis has sent Joselito

to greet him)

The task of slicing is what can destroy or glorify the meat. The thinner the slice, the bigger is the surface exposed to the air, thus more aromas are released. But the most important seems to me is the marbling of the meat, these thin translucent lines of  fat that give to the meat the unique flavor. Although the initial treatment of the leg is in a mix of salt and herbs, the meat is not salty at all! This is the first sign of quality.

Eating Joselito ham is a long process, that requires very good wine, that can accept the role of the second violin, as the first violin and the conductor of the orchestra is unquestionably, Joselito! The experience grows on you as you overcome the shock of the first tasting. I have tasted Joselito now since 2003, and it is always a revelation. The aftertaste is long and complex. This requires a slow eating process, long pauses to enjoy, to close your eyes, to relax and retreat into the world of the senses!

The first day’s session lasted almost 6 hours, and as you can see it had a noticeable  impact on the leg.

When you see the meat close up, you will be impressed by the thick ruby color. Another important feature of bellota ham, is that it sweats, i.e. it releases its fat gradually and steadily once it is cut.

The hard work of day 1 required a second wine, which was a native Austrian red, with the impressive name “Admiral”, produced by Poeckl, in 1999.

The hard work with Joselito work continued on day 2 and the results are noticeable.

After such a wonderful experience, you are no longer a mere mortal, but an angel. May be not as beautiful as the Angel created by Manolis’s daughter, Athina, but nevertheless an Angel!

"Angel", by Athina Payatakis

Thank you Manolis, thank you Marion, thank you Athina, for this wonderful treat!

Thank you little acorn fed piggy! You are an angel too!

Thank you Jose Gomez, for producing the ham!

Mercat de la Boqueria, Barcelona: Κρεατα και Πουλερικα

Αυτη η αναρτηση ειναι η πρωτη μιας σειρας που αφορα τη φημισμενη αγορα Μποκερια της Βαρκελωνης. Το πρωτο μερος αφορα κρεατα και  πουλερικα.

Η επισκεψη στην Μποκερια ειναι μια εμπειρια που ξεπερναει την αγορα τροφων, μιας και μπορεις να φας, να διασκεδασεις χαζευοντας το αμετρητο πληθος και βεβαια να δεις τα εκλεκτα τροφιμα που προσφερονται. Το μονο προβλημα ειναι οτι στο τελος παντα θελω να αγορασω και να παω σπιτι να μαγειρεψω!

 

Η Εισοδος

Με τνην εισοδο στην αγορα, αντικριζω τα γουρουνακια γαλακτος, σα να κοιμουνται.

Γαλακτος

Εκτος απο το εκλεκτο αυτο προιον, υπαρχουν και τα ταπεινοτερα, οπως ποδαρακια και αυτακια, και κοκκαλακια με ιχνος κρεατος επανω. Στην αγορα υπαρχει κατι για ολα τα βαλαντια! .

Ποδαρακια και Αυτακια

Και ενα κατσικακι γαλακτος!

Κατσικακι

Και τι θα ηταν η αγορα χωρις το χαρουμενο αυτο προσωπο!

Meat Seller

Και ολιγον κυνηγι μας προεκυψε λιγο παρακατω, λαγουδακια και κατι πουλακια που δεν τα γνωριζω. Το διχτυ στο βαθος ειναι γεματο υπεροχα σαλιγκαρια.

Λαγοι και Πτηνα

 Κια μια και ο λογος για πτηνα, παρε κοσμε κοτοπουλα, φραγκοκοτες, ορτυκια, και αλλα!

Κοτοπουλα, φραγκοκοτες και αλλα

 Και μπολικα κουνελια αραδιασμενα ετοιμα προς μαγειρεμα!

Κουνελια

Πεναμε στα πιο βαρεια κρεατα και δη το βοδινα, και αρχιζω με τις γλωσσες!

Γλωσσες

Και οχι μονο! Υπεροχα νεφρα για μαριναρισμα και μαγειρεμα, αμελετητα για τους μερακληδες, η αγορα τα εχει ολα! 

Νεφρακια, αμελετητα

Στο βαθος θα δειτε πνεμονια και πατσα!

Λουκανικα

Ερχομαστε τωρα στα υπεροχα λουκανικα, με κορυφαια για μενα αυτα στο κεντρο, που ειναι με αιμα και πλαισιωνονται απο πικαντικα λεπτα και χοντρα λουκανικα. Δεν υπεισερχομαι σε ονομασιες, γιατι στην Καταλωνια (οπως και σε καθε περιοχη της Ισπανιας) οι ονομασιες ειναι αφθονες!

Χοσελιτο

 Και για να μη ξεχνιομαστε, στη χωρα του χαμον, οπως λεγεται το αντιστοιχο προσιουτο στην Ισπανια, κυριαρχει ο παμμεγιστος Χοσελιτο, ο αρχοντας της παγκοσμιας αγορας, που η Γκραν Ρεσερβα τιμαται περιπου 100 ευρω το κιλο. Το συνιστω ανεπιφυλακτα, σερβιρεται στα καλα εστιατορια σαν ορντεβρ.

Παπιες

 Οι Παπιες σε καθε ειδους συσκευασια δεν θα μπορουσαν να λειπουν, αλλωστε η γειτνιαση με τη νοτια γαλλια το επιβαλλει!

Μοσχαρι τυλιγμενο σε λαρδι

Και μια αλλη διασταση, εκεινη της απολαυσης ανευ οριων! Μοσχαρι τυλιγμενο σε λαρδι για ψησιμο στο φουρνο!

Γλυκαδια

Κοιταξτε αυτα τα λαχταριστα μοσχαρισια γλυκαδια!

Πικαντικο σαλαμι

Στην αγορα υπαρχουν και πολα προιοντα απο μικρο- παραγωγους. Αυτο που βλεπετε στη φωτογραφια ειναι ενα πικαντικο σαλαμι που σπαει κοκκαλα!

Λεω εδω να σταματησω, σας εδωσα μια εικονα για τα κρεατα και τα πουλερικα, και επεται η συνεχεια!

Guggenheim Bilbao, Jatetxea, Restaurante

Suspended Figure, Munoz

I visited the Bilbao Guggenheim Museum in July and had lunch in the restaurant. It is a restaurant much acclaimed and I was quite curious to see, smell, and taste the food.

The Chef is Josean Martínez Alija, a disciple of Martín Berasategui’s. 

Before lunch, I had the opportunity to visit the brilliant exhibition of works by the Spanish Artist Juan Munoz.

Back in the restaurant, I opted for the gastronomic menu with the rather overwhelming title “Creation, Freedom and Tendencies”.

View of the interior

Having in mind that this is a title more suitable for a Ph.D. in Philosophy, I waited for the amuse bouche.

It turned out to be “tempura” peppers, which I liked very much. They were sweet, tender and very fresh.

 

The first dish of the menu was “Stewed tapioca pearls”. I was told that this is a simulation of a traditional Basque dish which has humbler ingredients. The dish was perfect, the pearls had absorbed the flavours of the stew and I had the sense of the pearls exploding in my mouth, releasing their flavours. Imaginative and pleasing. 

 

Stewed tapioca pearls

The “Roasted red endives” followed. This was a “minimal” dish and I have mixed feelings about it. I like endives, but at the end of the day an endive by itself is not the most pleasing dish. Although it was full of flavour, this was not enough to constitue a dish in a gastronomic menu.

Roasted Red Endives

Another roasted vegetable was next: “Roasted aubergine flavoured with “makil goxo”. I have the same comments as in the endives dish. Yes, the aubergine was very tender and juicy, but there was no complexity of flavours, no synthesis worth mentioning.

Roasted aubergine

The next dish was also roasted: “Roasted fish of the day”. The “minimalism” of the previous dishes continued with the hake. A good piece of fresh fish is not a gastronomic dish.

Roasted fish of the day

 The last dish was the “Iberian pork stew”, and it was a very good stew. But only a stew.

Iberian pork stew

 

 All in all, I was rather diappointed. In my view gastronomy requires synthesis of ingredients, tastes (and traditions in some cases), an abstract concept is not enough.

Visit to “La Brecha” Fishmarket, Donostia, San Sebastian

 

This is a report on a short and late visit to the fishmarket of “La Brecha” in Donostia, San Sebastian. I went there around 1130 hrs by which time most of the seaffod selling stalls were closed! 

The market is large and houses also meats, game and vegetables.

 

Congrio

Besugo – Sea Bream

One of the signs of freshness in the squid is the light grey - brown colour of its skin. When it starts turning rosy the freshness is gone.

The squid is not only fresh, but according to the seller it has been caught on hook, not on the nets. As a reult, it costs 50% more than the “ordinary” catch.

Chipiron (detail)

Cigala (detail)

Carrillera Rape - Monkfish

 One of my favourite dishes in the Basque country, and wherever else I can find them: hake and cod cheeks. The famous “kokotxas!”. Here we also have monkfish cheeks.

Unbelievable instensity of subtle flavour, as long as you know how to cook them! They are so delicate that I always prefer to cook them in very low fire, in order to preserve the flavours and the texture.

Kokotxa Bacalao - Cod

 

Percebe (detail)

 This is one of the many Spanish mysteries I have not resolved yet.

I have read the stories about extracting them from the rocks, seen the videos, but have not tasted them yet.

Sapito Negro

 I am not sure about the translation of this one, is it “catfish”. Whatever it is, it is sold with is liver sticking out. Which means that there must be a dish with it in the Basque country.

I need to do some investigation on this one!

 

Merluza - Hake

 Another of my favourites, the aetherial “merluza”.

Navajas - Razor Clams (detail)Not ot mention the razor clams.Seller

 

Lubina - Sea bass

Rockfish

Zuberoa Restaurant, Oiarzun, near San Sebastian, Donostia

My first visit to Zuberoa was on a Monday this summer. The drive from San Sebastian to the village is nice, and you can explore the countryside before going to he restaurant. The fresh clean air can do wonders for your appetite (if you need such a build up).

The facade of Zuberoa

The Amuse bouche sequence started with “Creme de foie, and truffle, in a Pedro Jimenez sauce”. Light and tasty.

It continued with “Spider Crab, Bakalao and Potato Chips”. The intensity of the taste in the creamy substance was impressive!

Creme de foie, truffle, Pedro Jimenez

Spider Crab, Bakalao, and Potato Chips

The Gastronomic Menu started with “Lobster carpaccio with ginger flavour, grapefruit and soya”. Of all the dishes I tasted, this was the only one that I would consider in a state of development, or exploration. The balance of the taste was on the sweet side, and this presented a problem for me. I would have preferred it to be more subtle, with nuances of the sweet and bitter coming out of the background here and then, letting the almost liquid lobster to play the first role.

Lobster carpaccio

Red Shrimp from Palombs, its coral oil and salad. When I saw it for the first time, it reminded me of Gauguin! The taste was equally pleasing, the shrimp resting on ultra tender chunks of pork fat. The dish was so delicious that I had the urge to scoop up the sauce with a bit of bread. I raised my head and looked around. Almost everyone in the nearby tables was doing the same.

Red Shrimp from Palombs

Curry flavoured sea fruits in their own juice. Another explosion of taste awaited me in this dish. The ingredients were ultra fresh, almost raw, the aroma of the sea coming through every bite.

Sea fruits

Poached egg, poultry cream, truffle, celery and potato chips. I am a seafood lover, and I must confess that after the sea fruits, the egg had no chance to impress me. It tasted good, but could not provide the complex harmonies of the sea fruits.

Poached egg

White fresh beans with Jabugo ham aroma and sauteed squid. A divine combination, the squid providing the intese flavours, and the beans presenting the smoother side of life.

Beans and squid

Red tuna fillet, basil flavoured tomato with pistachio oil and balsamico of Modena. The exquisite quality of the tuna demands a dash of cooking over fire. Excellent!

Red Tuna

Roasted Lamb. I had the menu choice of a roast pigeon or suckling pig, but the Maitr D recommended the roasted lamb. I thank him for that, as it was divine. I must say that a classy lady in the nearby table used her hands to enjoy this dish. Who could blame her?

Roasted Lamb

Plateau du fromage. Unfortunately I have not written them down, theyt are all local, brom The Basque Country and delicious.

Selection of local Cheese

Following my request, the kind waitress served at the end a spanish digestive, called “Abadia di Cova, Licor de Hierbas”.

Licor de Hierbas

All in all, I am quite impressed by “Zuberoa”. The food is excellent, the service formal but also human, the price is very reasonable, the overall value for money is top.