AfricaSan Sebastian 2022
Our room
Monday 22 August, we had a 13:45 flight from London City Airport to San Sebastián. We spotted Damian Lewis while we waited for our gate to be called.
After a short flight and a short taxi ride we arrived at Lasala Plaza Hotel located at the eastern side of the San Sebastián bay.
The first ice cream
After checking in we headed back out for a walk around the town picking up a lovely ice cream from Oiartzun.
That evening we started a Pintxos tour - basically eating our way around San Sebastián.
Pintxos
Many of the bars serve small plates of food and some of them have become renowned for their particular specialty. Local Michelin star chefs have listed their favourites and we were using an app to pick off the best of the best. This evenings tour consisted of:
- La Mejillonera for patatas bravas
- Casa Urola for scallops in a cream broth
- Ormazabal for spinach croquettes
With each small plate it’s also traditional to have a small glass of Txakoli, the local white wine, poured into a glass from a height.
We called at Loco Pop for a tangerine ice lolly on our way back to the hotel.
Birthday run
Tuesday 23, my birthday! There was quite a lot of drizzle in the air but I nonetheless started the day with a run, making my way up the 100m climb to the top of the Motako Gaztelua and then completed a return circuit all the way around the bay to make 10km.
Some sunshine
By the time I finished the sun had burnt through the clouds and it was starting to be a lovely day. However the drizzle had taken its toll on my trainer and they had become quite wet. A long blast under a hairdryer seemed to sort them out!
Bar Nestor
After a refresh we made our way to Old Town Coffee where we picked up coffees and a light breakfast and then back to Bar Nestor where we queued for about 10 minutes to put our names down for the world famous tortilla. We were lucky, after our names were added to the list only 1 slice of tortilla was left for those behind us!
Bar Nestor
We had seen Bar Nestor featured on a TV program and knew we had to be queuing by 12 in order to get our names on the list.
Bar Nestor
After a stroll around the old town we made our way back to Bar Nestor for tortilla and a glass of txolina. It was worth it!
Pintxos
Pintxos that afternoon consisted of:
- Haizea for scallop and prawn skewer
- Bergara for shredded mushroom and langoustines
Birthday drinks
We stopped for another small ice cream before heading back to our room.
The hotel had noticed it was my birthday and left us a bottle of champagne and some handmade chocolates. A nice touch!
Arzak
After a rest and a bit of reading we freshened up and took a taxi to Arzak.
The couple from Hampstead who left the hotel in the taxi in front of us were also going to Arzak but upon arrival the maitre’d struggled to find their booking. We jumped ahead of them and went through to the restaurant but they did not join us. We assumed they must have gotten the wrong day.
Arzak
We had a lovely tasting menu and this ended with a lovely birthday cake which we took away with us for the following day.
Wednesday 24th, feeling quite tired it was a late start to the morning but I managed to go for a run. I stuck to the coastline completing a 7.5km circuit but with the sun already quite high in the sky is was getting hot.
For our lunchtime Pintxos we called at Gambara for tuna carpaccio and king crab tartlet.
We then returned to Bar Lobo and Tammay ordered drinks and food but after nearly 30 minutes we were thinking they had forgotten about us. Something had clearly been lost in translation as they hadn’t realised we wanted food. We moved on to Bar Antonio for langoustine ravioli. This was our second visit. The first time we tried it was too busy!
To work off our lunch we took a walk along the river as far as Puente de Maria Cristina. We took the long route back to the hotel taking the ‘costal path’ right around the mount.
Another birthday drink
Once back at our room we enjoyed the birthday cake from Arzak along with the Cava from the hotel. The balcony door was open and the sounds of the waterfront poured in.
Marinaded tuna
That evening we went to Tamboril for their marinaded tuna.
Tomato salad
Once in there restaurant we also liked the look of the tomato salad. We enjoyed them so much we order both again.
Cheesecake from La Vina
After a number of attempts during the holiday to find La Vina we finally made it and Tammay was keen to try their renowned cheesecake… it was not that great and I ended up eating it!
River run
Thursday 25th, I started the day with a run along the river. Our first stop of the day was Starbucks as I was craving a large latte. After a short walk on the sea front we made the trek to the top of the mount overlooking our hotel.
Gaxtupa
For our lunchtime Pintxos we ran out of luck at our first stop which had already finished serving. We crossed the river for Gaxtupa, a Mexican restaurant and we were not disappointed! Tammay ordered a daiquiri and to my surprise it was delicious so we ordered 2 more.
We ended up ordering a second serving of the prawn tostada and another 2 daiquiris.
The daiquiris were so good we ordered a lime squeezer on Amazon so we could make them at home that weekend.
The view from our room
We headed back towards the hotel and picked up one last ice cream which we enjoyed while sitting on the pier looking out onto the bay. We returned to the hotel feeling very sleepy and spent the rest of the afternoon dozing!
Mugaritz
By the time we were ready to go to Mugaritz I still wasn’t feeling at all hungry which was a little worrying. Mugaritz is a highly experimental restaurant that often splits opinions. We had a 22 course tasting menu that contained some very unusual dishes. We finished our 20:30 sitting at a touch past midnight.
Friday 26th, a relatively leisurely start to the day with a short taxi ride back to San Sebastián airport ready for our 12:35 flight back to London City Airport.