Here’s how to eat your way through Bilbao and Spain’s Basque Country

22.09.2023 - 19:09 / lonelyplanet.com

When I moved to Spain, I knew that the country’s cuisine was vast and varied by region. 

Yet I didn’t know much about where each local specialty came from, or even the difference between pintxos and tapas. (For the record: pintxos are bite-sized and meant to be eaten with your hands, while tapas are generally larger, served in small plates and eaten with cutlery.) One thing I did know was that pintxos hailed from the Basque Country (País Vasco). Having tried them at different Spanish restaurants around the world, I couldn’t wait to visit the region.  

I quickly learned that Bilbao and the Basque Country’s cuisine is famous for far more than just pintxos. The region has vibrant food traditions and an matched passion for quality ingredients, from the succulent txuleta – a carnivore’s dream come true, it’s a local cut of locally sourced beef – to kokotxas, a local fish stew, and bacalao al pil pil, cod in a thick sauce made from olive oil, garlic and chili peppers. 

Since I don’t drive a car in Spain, I set out to reach the region by plane and train. The biggest challenge to a cuisine-centered trip? A limited number of meals means you won’t get to try everything. After a year and a half of living in Spain, I knew that bookings are a must at some places, as well-known restaurants often don’t take walk-ins. (Mercifully, pintxos bars do.) If you want to try the famous txuleta at one of the Basque Country’s best steak houses, you’d be wise to book at least two weeks in advance. 

Here’s everything I learned from my trip to the Basque Country – plus some ideas for what I plan to do on my next visit there.

Beaches or a world-renowned museum? Wherever you go, the whole region is a safe bet for great food.

The Basque Country is an autonomous region in northern Spain known for its robust culinary scene. Its main cities are Bilbao, Vitoria-Gasteiz and San Sebastián, each of them beautiful in their own right. Considered the artistic heart of the Basque Country and home to the Museo Guggenheim, Bilbao is my favorite – yet San Sebastián lures in visitors with its golden beaches. The less visited Vitoria-Gasteiz, the regional capital, offers a view into everyday Basque life and has a medieval quarter worth exploring.

Spaniards associate the Basque Country with abundant rainy weather, particularly in the fall and leading up to winter – though it seems like recent years have brought less rainfall. Summer has the least-rainy weather and warmer temperatures, though there’s never a guarantee it won’t rain at all, and you’ll encounter tourism at its peak. To avoid the crowds and high prices of the high season, the best times to visit the region are June and September. Yet there really is no wrong time to travel to the Basque