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At the San Sebastian Gastronomika, why the Basque Country is a food destination like no other

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<p>Every year in October, top chefs from around the world converge in the city of Donosti-San Sebastian for the San Sebastian Gastronomika. This four-day event is different from other food congresses; its focus is on the chefs and techniques, and understanding and sharing culinary traditions from around the world. It is more an academic symposium, with presentations, learnings, and yes, food tastings. And its location in San Sebastian is no coincidence.</p><p>You may also like:</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/food-drink/features/10/22/19/chef-tatung-returns-to-his-quezon-city-hood-with-a-restaurant-brimming-with-nostalgia">Chef Tatung returns to his Quezon City ‘hood with a restaurant brimming with nostalgia</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/food-drink/features/10/20/19/gilda-cordero-fernando-may-be-wheelchair-bound-but-her-creative-spirit-is-as-free-as-ever">Gilda Cordero Fernando may be wheelchair bound, but her creative spirit is as free as ever</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/food-drink/features/10/05/19/youll-never-grow-hungry-in-tondo-where-to-eat-in-mayor-iskos-hood-an-experts-guide">“You’ll never grow hungry in Tondo:” Where to eat in Mayor Isko’s ‘hood, an expert’s guide</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/food-drink/features/09/20/19/family-love-is-the-not-so-secret-ingredient-to-this-ice-cream-makers-hand-crafted-flavors">Family love is the not-so-secret ingredient to this ice cream maker’s hand-crafted flavors</a></li></ul><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/1sebastian.png"/><figcaption>Santa Catalina Bridge on the Urumea River</figcaption></figure></div><p>Simply put, San Sebastian is renowned as the center of Basque cuisine and one of the finest gastronomic centers in the world. This is a unique city, bordered by mountains, famed for its beaches, and once the preferred summer destination of Spanish and European royalty. San Sebastian is elegant and mercurial, a living history of 19th and 20th century architecture, but always cognizant of its history and past. The Basques are resilient, surviving oppression under Franco, and centuries of fiercely defending their land and protecting their culture and way of life.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/2sebastian.png"/><figcaption>San Sebastian’s famous La Concha Beach.</figcaption></figure></div><div> </div><h3>The Basque approach to food</h3><p>Food culture is deeply engrained in both San Sebastian and the broader Basque Country (or Euskadi, in the local language Euskera). The city boasts three restaurants with three Michelin stars (Martin Berasategui, Arzak, and Akelarre). In total, the city has 18 Michelin stars within a 25-kilometer radius—not bad for a city of less than 200,000 people. But, food in San Sebastian is far more than Michelin stars.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/3sebastian.png"/><figcaption>Pigeon in the three Michelin-starred Martin Berasategui in Lasarte</figcaption></figure></div><p>While <i>pintxos </i>is what the city has become famous for, the development of modern <i>pintxos</i> culture was only within the last fifty years. It was actually the private gastronomic societies (or cooking clubs) that served as the center of culinary life over one hundred years ago.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/6sebastian.png"/><figcaption>Pintxos or small snacks, many of them with a toothpick or “pincho” spiking a bread slice.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Their cuisine is their own, marked by an appreciation for protecting ingredients and accentuating their essential flavors. Olive oil, salt, tomatoes, parsley, lemon all feature prominently. Basque cuisine has an abiding love of the ocean, but at the same time produces some of the finest steaks found anywhere in the world.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/7sebastian.png"/><figcaption>45-day aged beef in Laia, presented before grilling</figcaption></figure></div><p>The food is authentic, natural, but still forward thinking. The region even served as the epicenter of the molecular gastronomy movement of the late 20th century. San Sebastian cuisine never lost its sense of treating the integrity of the ingredient as paramount.</p><div><b> </b></div><h3>An economic powerhouse</h3><p>The Basque Country’s gastronomic history is intertwined with their sense of entrepreneurship and industry. This small autonomous region in northern Spain (with only about 2.1 million inhabitants) produces almost 10% of Spain’s national GDP. They have a higher credit rating than Spain, the lowest unemployment rate, and a resilient economy that survived the Eurozone crisis.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/9sebastian.png"/><figcaption>Basque valleys in Igueldo.</figcaption></figure></div><p>This is an old society, the oldest in Europe (the language is the oldest and an isolate), and it has stayed true to itself throughout the long centuries. Basque industry was traditionally based on the ocean (whaling, shipbuilding, and trading) and industry (lumber, mining, manufacturing). As the world changed, so did they. From hardy fisherfolk, whalers, and shipbuilders, they became traders, bankers, and industrialists in the latter part of the 19th and into the 20th century. They were known as the financiers behind the Spanish crown, very early on funding, in part, the expeditions of Magellan and Legazpi.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/sebastian10.png"/><figcaption>A baserri (caserio) or farmhouse in the Basque countryside near Getaria.</figcaption></figure></div><p>It makes sense then that the center of Basque society is the <i>baserri </i>or farmhouse. Found throughout the Basque countryside, these farmhouses are low, squat stone buildings with peaked wooden roofs. But hidden within many of the oldest ones are cider presses, used for the making of cider.</p><div class="embed-wrap" style="text-align:center"><div class="embed-wrap"><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/8sebastian.png"/><figcaption>Txuleta in a Petritegi sidreria or cider house.</figcaption></figure></div></div></div><p>Basque culture and economy was born in these cider houses, still existing today, which exemplify the art of woodworking (which translated into shipbuilding and whaling), the sense of cuisine and communality which is a hallmark of the Basque food experience, and even trade and entrepreneurship.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/sebastian12.png"/><figcaption>Merluza al horno in a typical Basque restaurant, Sebastian, in Hondarribia.</figcaption></figure></div><div> </div><h3>The Basque-Philippines connection</h3><p>their implacable sensibilities, their fierce independence, and love of language and society. They have stood apart, even when they became one of the drivers of the global economy during the Spanish Imperial era. In fact, the Philippine economy owes much to Basque entrepreneurs who settled in our lands. A number of the most prominent companies historically and present day were founded or owned by Basque immigrants.</p><p>This year, the Gastronomika celebrated the 500th anniversary of the departure of Juan Sebastian Elkano from Cadiz in 1519. Born in the small town of Getaria in Basque Country (coincidentally, also the birthplace of Cristobal Balenciaga), Elkano is known as the first man to circumnavigate the world. Filipinos know him as the navigator of Ferdinand Magellan’s ill-fated expedition.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/sebastian13.png"/><figcaption>Floor of the Gastronomika 2019 in the Kursaal.</figcaption></figure></div><p>To mark the 500th anniversary, the 2019 Gastronomika decided to trace Elkano’s journey around the world through taste and food, inviting chefs from every country or territory he visited. The Philippines had two representatives: Chef Rosauro “Sau” del Rosario and Chef JP Anglo. This was the first time ever that the Philippines has had chefs invited to the Gastronomika, a perfect moment to mark the 500th anniversary of Elkano’s voyage. These chefs stood alongside Spanish culinary stars Elena Arzak, Joan Roca, Pedro Subijana, Martin Berasategui, Hilario Arbelaitz, and the best chefs from Latin America and Asia.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/sebastian14.png"/><figcaption>Chef Sau del Rosario on the Gastronomika stage.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Chef Sau, ably assisted by Chef Bong Sagmit, were the first Filipinos to present in the Gastronomika. His presentation, as requested by the organizers, focused on the cuisine of his hometown of Pampanga, its traditions and the roots of its food culture. Chef Sau spoke glowingly and emotionally about his own food journey (he is the fourth generation cook in his family) and with pride about Pampanga itself. Importantly, Chef Sau took time to focus on the history (and plight) of the Aetas in Pampanga, those affected by the Pinatubo eruption, and encroaching modernity. With the top chefs in the world watching, he presented the roots of Philippine cuisine through the essential, basic techniques used by the Aetas: charcoal, vinegar, bamboo for cooking, pork, and the art of foraging. No matter where our food journey has taken us, these are the basic building blocks of Philippine cuisine.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/sebastian15.png"/><figcaption>Chef Sau’s refined version of champorado.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Chef Sau, naturally, prepared live two dishes which are hallmarks of Kapampangan cooking: <i>sisig</i> and <i>champorado</i>. His <i>sisig</i>, as it should, had a bit of spin and an elegance to it. He used traditional ingredients (pork ears and face), but seasoned the dish with cacao vinegar, which he fermented himself. The dish went over sensationally with the audience who, it has to be said, were a little skeptical of Filipino cooking to start. They were soon won over by Chef Sau’s presentation and flavors.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/sebastian16.png"/><figcaption>Chef Sau’s take on the sisig of Pampanga.</figcaption></figure></div><p>The next dish was a harder sell: <i>champorado</i> or chocolate rice with grilled fish and fish floss. Again, the use of locally sourced Philippine cacao, and the uniqueness of the flavors won over the collected participants and chefs. While Chefs Sau and Bong were presenting on stage, behind the scenes was a brigade of young chefs preparing smaller, almost <i>pintxo</i>-sized versions of the dishes for participants to sample.</p><p>On the final day of the Gastronomika, the Philippines was ably represented by Chef JP Anglo, who prepared his own interpretation of Negrense cuisine. He presented <i>inasal</i> and brought a taste of beach culture (it is worth noting one of the beaches in San Sebastian is famed for its surfing) to the stage with a boodle fight.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/sebastian17.png"/><figcaption>Chef JP Anglo prepping for his demonstration.</figcaption></figure></div><p>The relationship of the Philippines with the Basque Country began when Elkano arrived in 1521. It continued with the arrival of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in 1565, and was embedded even further over the three hundred years of Spanish rule. Our food is a reflection of that history, as little studied as it is. But the Basques also show signs of influence from us, economically, socially, and even culinarily. The Gastronomika this year was a reminder of that shared history. It was a success and an important step for Filipino cuisine, too. Just the very first of many.</p><p>While this year’s Gastronomika has ended, there is still reason to visit this part of the world. Donosti-San Sebastian is one of the meccas of food culture. You can find bad meals, but you almost have to look for them. And while the <i>parte vieja</i> (Old Town) in San Sebastian is what most people think of, with their myriad <i>pintxos</i> bars and raucous street culture, the rest of the city is moving forward, experimenting with new flavors, and establishing different food traditions. Outside of San Sebastian, the Basque Country itself is worthy of exploration. From Hondarribia to Durango, small town taverns to vineyards to elegant fine dining, usually washed down with a hearty red from La Rioja or a bright and sparkly local white called <i>txakoli</i>.</p><div> </div><p>The relationship of the Philippines with the Basque Country began when Elkano arrived in 1521. It continued with the arrival of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in 1565, and was embedded even further over the three hundred years of Spanish rule. Our food is a reflection of that history, as little studied as it is. But the Basques also show signs of influence from us, economically, socially, and even culinarily. The Gastronomika this year was a reminder of that shared history. It was a success and an important step for Filipino cuisine, too. Just the very first of many.</p><div> </div><h3>A not-at-all definitive list of where to eat</h3><p>While this year’s Gastronomika has ended, there is still reason to visit this part of the world. Donosti-San Sebastian is one of the meccas of food culture. You can find bad meals, but you almost have to look for them. And while the Parte Vieja (Old Town) in San Sebastian is what most people think of, with their myriad <i>pintxos</i> bars and raucous street culture (sipping a gin and tonic on the steps of a church is an experience), the rest of the city is moving forward, experimenting with new flavors, and establishing different food traditions. Outside of San Sebastian, the Basque Country is an ancient and mysterious country that demands exploration.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/5sebastian.png"/><figcaption>The streets of the Parte Vieja in San Sebastian teeming with pintxos bars.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Drawing up a comprehensive or definitive list of restaurants and bars to visit in San Sebastian (much less the Basque Country) is impossible—captured by personal taste and comfort. It is not just about the meals in San Sebastian, but individual dishes. Classic <i>pintxos</i> bars will specialize in one or two dishes: Ganbara for their <i>hongos</i> (mushrooms, grilled and served with a poached egg), La Cuchara de San Telmo for <i>pulpo</i> and <i>carilleras</i> (or the <i>orejas</i>, <i>cochinillo</i>, and razor clams), Aste148 for <i>pastel de pescado</i>, Txepetxa for anchovies, and Bar Nestor for <i>txuleta</i>, tomato salad, and grilled <i>guindilla</i> peppers, and to finish, La Viña for <i>tarta de queso</i> (though they make an excellent <i>txuleta</i> and salad too).</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/untitled-design.png"/><figcaption>Pulpo at La Cuchara de San Telmo.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Off the beaten path, in residential districts like Gros, you’ll find places like Topa and Gatxupa, which have brought Latin American flair and flavors to the city. Or Bodega Donostiarra on Peña y Goni Street (not in the Parte Vieja) which is a locals’ haunt for excellent <i>pintxos</i> and traditional Basque dishes. Maun, manned by two young chefs, is a grill bar in the middle of a bustling market that pushes out simple, elegant dishes à la minute. Further afield, places like Rekondo have perfected their Basque cuisine, but only in the service of their wine cellar, known as the best in the world. And for modernity, Arzak and Martin Berasategui are the standards. This not a list, just a few little mentions. The depth of gastronomy in the city is practically endless.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/food-n-drink/2019/26/4sebastian.png"/><figcaption>Monkfish in Martin Berasategui in Lasarte.</figcaption></figure></div><p>From Hondarribia to Durango to Loiola (the birthplace of Saint Ignatius) to Getaria, visitors can enjoy the food and culture from small town taverns to bustling <i>pintxos</i> bars to vineyards to elegant temples of modernity, washed down with a hearty red from La Rioja or a bright and sparkly local white called <i>txakoli</i>. History and modernity. Culture and food. Always on their terms. This is the Basque Country.</p><div> </div><div><i>This contributor, who prefers to stay anonymous, splits his time between the Basque Country and the Philippine.</i></div>

<p>This annual culinary event celebrates this northern Spanish region’s love of food, exploration, and sharing—and two Filipino chefs, Sau del Rosario and JP Anglo, were part of it for the very first time.</p>

This annual culinary event celebrates this northern Spanish region’s love of food, exploration, and sharing—and two Filipino chefs, Sau del Rosario and JP Anglo, were part of it for the very first time.