Welcome back to Foodistory! It has been a while indeed but I’ve never been more excited to start again. In the upcoming months, I will take you along to the kitchens I work in and the history of places I visit. ¡Vamos!
As I mentioned in the previous update I’ve moved away from my trustworthy Rotterdam and went abroad. The reason why I chose to go abroad has multiple reasons. Primarily, I was seeking a new adventure because my previous job no longer provided me with enough challenges. And so, I knew I wanted to look for a new place to work.
Last summer I visited the Basque region during my vacation and immediately fell in love with San Sebastian. Until that time, I had no experience living outside of the Netherlands. But when I strolled through the narrow streets of the Casco Viejo in San Sebastian, I knew it would be the perfect first city. With that in mind, I started making plans to move abroad.
Bar Berta
After completing my bachelor's degree, I immediately decided to return to my old love, working in a kitchen. For the last 1,5 years, I’ve worked at one of the best restaurants in Rotterdam, Bar Berta, which has been an absolute blast. It was way better than I could have imagined, let me give you a quick recap of the last 1,5 years.
After deciding to return to the kitchen, I created a list of restaurants in Rotterdam that I would be happy to work for. Bar Berta was at the top of the list, primarily because of its Spanish-oriented menu and the ambiance that I remembered from my previous visits to the restaurant. Call it luck but after two days of doing shitty jobs like rolling croquetas and cannelloni’s, I got the job.
As it was my first full-time job in the kitchen, I had to learn many things. And I soon realized that my cooking skills were not as advanced as I had thought. I lacked basic knowledge, such as how to make a Jus de Veau or a buerre blanc, as well as proper techniques for cleaning certain meats and fish. For about a year, I learned by observing and listening to the other chefs.
I loved being back in the kitchen. After years of studying, it was a relief to work with my hands again. Additionally, a quote from a famous chef perfectly captured my feelings for the past year: "People confuse me, food doesn't."
Every morning, I would go to work with renewed energy. It was a type of energy I hadn't felt in a long time, and it remained constant. Each day brought something new in the kitchen. One day, you would learn how to fillet a dogfish, and the next day, the fridge would stop working, which is quite an important piece for the kitchen. But most importantly, each day I learned something new.
A couple of months ago, that chapter came to an end. After a certain point, you become familiar with every dish and mise en place (MEP), which can lead to getting too comfortable with your work. However, I wanted to challenge myself and continue learning about the skill of cooking. That's when the idea of switching places crossed my mind. Soon after, I decided to say goodbye to the wonderful team at Bar Berta and set out plans for a new country and a new city, San Sebastian.
¡Donostia!
And so, that's where we’re at. This Edit is being written from one of the most gastronomical cities of Europe, a place where people during lunch already think about what they will eat for dinner. Everything in San Sebastian evolves around food and you can feel it everywhere. A random conversation here often tends to go about what will be cooked today or what good quality fish the fishmonger has in the neighborhood.
In the upcoming weeks, I’ll be working on my Spanish vocabulary to eventually join those conversations. Next to that, I will be looking for a restaurant that is open to take me under its wing and teach me about the Basque ways of cooking. Let me tell you a little history about this place.
Pintxo tio?
If you follow a food blog, I'm sure you must have heard about 'Pintxo.' It is a small bite that you enjoy at one of the many classic bars in Parte Vieja, accompanied by a typical drink from the Basque region such as Txakoli, Kalimotxo, or just a simple Zurito. Pintxo is probably the most famous food from San Sebastian, or is it Bilbao?
Tapas and pintxos are not the same; a Basque will probably slap you in the face if you say this out loud. Tapas is older than pintxo, way older. Tapas has been around for almost 700 years now, while pintxo for only 100. However, pintxo means more than just food, it's an activity.
The History
If you have ever visited San Sebastian, there is a good chance you have had pintxos in the Parte Viaje, the old part of the city. This is where the story of the pintxo began almost 100 years ago. At that time, the Parte Viaje was filled with cider houses (siderias), bodegas, and other shops. People from Donostiarra would go there to buy groceries at the end of the day, and while they were at it, they would tackle a few glasses of cider.
During the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), the streets became dangerous to walk. This danger persisted until the end of Franco's reign in 1975. However, life had to go on. From 1940 onwards, the streets in Parte Viaje became crowded again. This is when the term 'txikiteo' was born, which refers to the practice of going from one bar to another. Of course, this was not done alone; people would have their fixed group of friends, or 'Kuadrillak' in Basque. During this time, the bars did not yet serve the pintxos we are used to now. Instead, they would often offer pickled foods such as olives, peppers, and anchovies.
Oh Gilda
The first pintxo was born with those three ingredients, and it happened in the Casa Valles, which still exists today. One of the regular customers, Joaquín Aramburu also known as ‘Txepetxa,’ skewered the three ingredients together on a stick. And voila, the very first pintxo was born. Other people began doing it too and it became a staple snack at Casa Valles.
In 1946 the movie ‘Gilda’ starring Rita Hayworth aired in San Sebastian. At that time this became a worldwide controversial movie because of its sexiness. Txepetxa found similarities between Rita Hayworth and his newly made creation. Both were salty and green but a little bit spicy! Gilda became so popular it didn’t take long before the little green snack could be found throughout the whole Basque country.
In 1960 a massive upshift happened in the culinary scene of San Sebastian. The food industry has become lucrative for many Donostiarra, the markets have begun to expand, fishmongers have an incredible selection of locally caught ‘pescados’ and vegetables are more affordable than ever.
Bars become known for their specialties, one bar is the best in making pintxos with ‘boquerones’ and the other is the best in ‘bacaloa’ related dishes. Creativity replaces necessity, the gastronomic scene is around 1990 at its peak. Newly discovered food techniques and influences from other countries are immediately applied in the many bars of San Sebastian.
Spain currently has 7 restaurants that hold 3 Michelin stars, 3 of those restaurants can be found here, in San Sebastian. Arzak, Akelare and Martin Berasateguí. Except for Tokyo, San Sebastian has the most Michelin-starred restaurants per square kilometer. Not bad for a city with only 180.000 inhabitants! And so, enough to learn.
Hasta la proxima!