Monthly Archive for June, 2010

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San Sebastian Pintxos Crawl: Bar Zeruko, A Fuego Negro, Gandarias Taberna

Published by Gastronomer on June 14, 2010 in Restaurant Review, San Sebastian, Small Plates and Spanish. 20 Comments

In Basque Country, tapas are referred to as pintxos, and the hours between lunch and dinner are dedicated to the sport. It’s customary to order a small bite and drink at each bar, consume them jollily on the premise, and then move on to the next joint. Grazing is the name of the game, and one should feel properly full and slightly tipsy by the end of the night.

Whereas the bars in Barcelona and Madrid kept their tapas behind glass cases along the bar, in San Sebastian, the pintxos were beautifully laid out for all to see, covet, and drool over. The Astronomer and I dedicated one evening to exploring the city’s pintxos scene. We had a list of buzzed-about places in hand, but in the end, we trusted our eyes and noses to lead us in the tastiest direction.

Our first stop on the San Sebastian pintxos crawl was Bar Zeruko. We hadn’t planned on dropping in here, but the extensive collection of colorful and unique pintxos on display proved impossible to resist. The Astronomer and I ordered two glasses of cava and tucked into a few choice morsels. We tried to limit ourselves to one dish apiece, but ended up greedily hoarding more.

Our first bite was an egg-on-egg extravaganza consisting of fluorescent caviar paired simply and successfully with a slice of hard-boiled egg.

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Eat My Blog: Sweet Menu, Sweeter Cause

Published by Gastronomer on June 10, 2010 in Eat My Blog and Los Angeles. 11 Comments

The Eat My Blog charity bake sale will be taking over the patio of Tender Greens in West Hollywood on Saturday, June 19th from 10 AM to 4 PM. All proceeds from this tasty event will be donated to the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank. All items will be priced between $1 to $4 for your convenience (and gluttony). Come early for the best selection and bring singles, please. I hope to see you there!

Bodegón Alejandro – San Sebastian

Published by Gastronomer on June 9, 2010 in Restaurant Review, San Sebastian and Spanish. 7 Comments

Under normal circumstances, our extravagant meal at Akelarre would have been followed by a solid week of home cooking to give our arteries and bank accounts a chance to recover. Alas, our honeymoon was anything but normal, so The Astronomer and I headed out for a three-course lunch at Bodegón Alejandro instead.

Supervised by 3-star Michelin chef Martin Berasategui, Bodegón Alejandro is a casual taverna serving traditional Basque cuisine with a splash of innovation. My brother ate here three times in four days when he last visited San Sebastian and encouraged us to do the same.

After hoofing it down a flight of stairs, we reached a charming subterranean space with bright yellow walls and sturdy wooden furniture. We had the lovely room mostly to ourselves because we once again managed to arrive at the tail end of lunch service. [Truly, this was the story of our lives for two and a half weeks!]

Bodegón Alejandro offers a three-course lunch for 34.50€. The menu changes daily and features a variety of options, each one highlighting the seasonality and bounty of the Basque country.

While we perused the menu, we nibbled on slices of crusty country bread and thin rye wafers served on a log.

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Bison Burgers with Cheddar and Onions

Published by Gastronomer on June 7, 2010 in Burgers, Main Course, Recipe and Sandwich. 16 Comments

I am generally quite fearless in the kitchen, but have always shied away from grilling. In spite of my liberal leanings, I long held onto the silly notion that cooking over an open flame was dude territory. As a result, all of the grilling in our household was assigned to The Astronomer and his little Smokey Joe. I was content with baking and sauteeing—you know, chick stuff.

Our longstanding division of kitchen duties came to a halt two months ago when I received a fantastically fun photography assignment that required me to grill like I’d never grilled before. From loins to shoulders to burgers, I did it all, and in the process, I discovered a great appreciation for the sport. I love how grilling makes me feel like a culinary badass and how it requires me to trust my instincts. I also like how cleaning up entails scrubbing a metal brush back and forth and little else.

For my first non-work-related grilling session, I decided to prepare bison burgers. Bison meat is often lauded for its nutritional prowess, but doesn’t have the greatest reputation for moistness due to its lower fat content. However, this recipe for Bison Burgers with Cheddar and Onions from Cooking the Cowboy Way by Grady Spears makes an extremely flavorful, juicy, and satisfying specimen. And as an awesome bonus, it’s actually good for you. Grill on!

2 pounds ground bison or chuck beef
3/4 cup grated white cheddar cheese
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper
12 English muffins or hamburger buns

Prepare a charcoal or gas grill to medium-high heat. In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground meat, grated cheese, onion, salt, and pepper thoroughly with your hands.

Divide the mixture into 12 small patties, making sure they are compacted and firm. Place the patties on the hot grill and cook for 5 minutes on each side, or until they register an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.

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Akelarre – San Sebastian

Published by Gastronomer on June 4, 2010 in Fine Dining, Molecular Gastronomy, Restaurant Review, San Sebastian and Spanish. 34 Comments

Spain really was the perfect place for us to honeymoon. While The Astronomer enjoyed practicing his rusty Spanish and whooping it up at rowdy futbol games [See: FC Barcelona and Real Madrid], I had the pleasure of taking in some spectacular art and eating at the world’s greatest restaurants. Of all the places on our culinary itinerary, it was a trio of thoroughly modern restaurants that I was most stoked about. I’ve always adored the playful, innovative, and twisted genre of molecular gastronomy, and experiencing it on its home turf was a dream come true.

Our first stop on the cutting-edge cookery tour was at Chef Pedro Subijana’s 35-year-old restaurant Akelarre in San Sebastian. Located high above the Bay of Biscay, Akelarre boasts a magnificent view. Taking in the ocean in between bites made the dining experience all the more wonderful. A table by the window is a must.

The dining room was comfortable and understated, while the service was efficient and quite friendly for a 3-star Michelin rated restaurant. I love fine dining but hate stuffy atmospheres. Akelarre hit all the right notes to make me feel at ease. I also appreciated that there were a handful of English speaking staffers who could answer my questions (sometimes cryptically) about ingredients and techniques.

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