What to Eat in Bilbao
Bilbao (Bilbo in Basque) is the largest city in the Basque Country and the capital of the province of Biscay. Most people know it for the Guggenheim Museum; for me, it's the little bars of the Casco Viejo, the old town. For me, Bilbao is above all the city of txikiteo - a bar crawl where you have one small glass and a pintxo or two in each bar. And this is where the custom was born.
Pintxos are just as much a fixture here as in neighboring San Sebastián, and they tend to be a little cheaper; on the counters you'll also come across the gilda, the most famous Basque pintxo. Beyond its bars, though, Bilbao has a big theme of its own: cod. For centuries the city was the main port through which salt cod made its way into Spain, and you can taste that in Bilbao's cooking to this day.
What to Eat in Bilbao
- Bacalao al pil pil. Cod cooked slowly in olive oil with garlic and chili; the oil and the gelatin from the fish are then whisked into a thick emulsion. A classic tied directly to Bilbao: city legend has it that a merchant named Gurtubay received more than a million cod because of a typo in a telegram - and when the Carlists later laid siege to the city, people lived off his warehouses. Historians don't buy the legend, but cod belongs to Bilbao even without it.
- Bacalao a la vizcaína. Cod stewed in a sauce of dried choricero peppers and onion. It takes its name from Biscay, the province Bilbao is the capital of.
- Carolina. A puff pastry tartlet crowned with a tall cone of meringue and decorated with chocolate and an egg yolk glaze. It was born in Bilbao's pastry shops, and outside Biscay you'll hardly ever find it. I tried it in Bilbao itself and liked it.
- Bollo de mantequilla. A fluffy brioche bun filled with a cream of butter and sugar. Swiss confectioners Franconi and Matossi brought it to Bilbao at the end of the 19th century - their pastry shop stood on Correo Street in the old town - and the city adopted it as its own.
- Pastel de arroz. A crumbly tartlet with a creamy filling that, despite its name, contains no rice: it was originally baked with rice flour, but today it's made with wheat flour and only the name has stuck. Together with the carolina and the bollo, it makes up the classic trio of Bilbao's pastry shops.
- Txikiteo. The way Bilbao eats and drinks: a group of friends makes the rounds of the bars, with one small glass in each - wine (a txikito) or beer (a zurito) - and a pintxo or two to go with it. The custom took shape in Bilbao's Casco Viejo at the end of the 19th century, and the city keeps it alive: every year on October 11, txikiteros make their way around the old town in a procession, singing as they go. Order a txakoli with your pintxos.
- … and dozens more Basque dishes on the list: What to Eat in the Basque Country.
Where to Eat in Bilbao
- Iñakiren Taberna. A restaurant that serves traditional Spanish country dishes as part of its menú del día. Highly recommended!
- Bacaicoa. A bar on Plaza de Unamuno, open since 1965, with a modest counter and a board of four specialties it does to perfection: a button mushroom a la gloria with garlic sauce, flambéed chorizo al infierno, a wild mushroom al purgatorio with oil and parsley, and cod croquettes. Eat the button mushroom in one bite, or the sauce will end up on your plate. Exactly what txikiteo is all about: a pintxo or two, a zurito, and on to the next bar.
- Café Iruña. A café dating from 1903, across from the Jardines de Albia park, with a neo-Mudéjar interior where you eat breakfast like royalty: tostada with tomato and jamón ibérico (see Spanish breakfast), café con leche and freshly squeezed orange juice. It's a bit pricier than the bars nearby, but the interior is worth it. The ideal spot when you want a breakfast that's a little out of the ordinary.
- El Globo. A renowned pintxos bar with a counter lined with glass display cases. The cheese pintxos I picked here were excellent.
- Basaras. The bar where I realized a pintxo doesn't need any fireworks: a pickled anchovy on bread, simple and perfect.
- Erriberako merkatua. A covered market hall from 1929 on the riverbank, with fish counters and meat downstairs and a floor of pintxos bars upstairs. People come here mainly to shop and to admire the building; the pintxos cost more than in the bars in the surrounding streets.
The city has its Michelin high point too: Nerua Restaurant, right inside the Guggenheim Museum, where chef Josean Alija, one of the most distinctive talents in contemporary Basque gastronomy, holds one star in the Michelin Guide.
What stuck with me most from Bilbao is the board at Bacaicoa: heaven, hell and purgatory in a few bites. Good food here needs nothing more than a bar counter, a board and a small glass.
Enjoy eating your way around Bilbao!
Txikiteo: The Basque Bar Crawl
Txikiteo is the Basque habit of doing the rounds of the bars with your friends and having one small glass of wine (txikito) or beer (zurito) at the counter of each, along with a pintxo the place is famous for. The name means going out for small ones. The habit is older than pintxos and it spread from Bilbao to Navarre and La Rioja. How txikiteo works, who pays and why you should read the whole board.
Erriberako Merkatua: The Covered Market in Bilbao on the Banks of the Nervión
Erriberako merkatua, Mercado de la Ribera in Spanish, is the covered market in Bilbao on the bank of the river Nervión: a concrete hall from 1929 that people call a ship for its long, narrow shape. There has been a market on the site since the 14th century - fish and seafood downstairs, cured meats and cheeses above them, and a whole floor of bars serving pintxos. You can tell Basque produce by the little flag on the price tag.