2 replies to this topic

[Txacoli]

There was a time not so long ago when one feared to post on this forum. It was highly judgmental and highly competitive…..better have your facts in a row and be ready to defend any lame opinion you might happen upon.

I particularly remember being slammed for being naïve enough to think that Basque people were kind, open and willing to embrace idiot wanna-be’s like myself ....who stumbled blindly through their culture. Silly me…..Reno raised, pidgin Basque-speaking chef.

I have to say that now I miss that critical environment.

There is a rule among the kids who work for me that you can leave a message to a girl or boy…no worries. If they don’t respond, you can leave another….who knows? Maybe they missed the first. Leaving a third is problematic…..and leaving a fourth message is full-on stalking.

That is how I feel with the Spain/eGullet forum. I have four threads now where I am the most recent poster. Full-on stalking. I am the old lady with too many cats….

But, sorry….I still maintain that Spain has the best and most accessible food culture on the planet.

So, I am posting a lame video my wife and I did about one of our favorite places on the planet….Sagardotegi Zelaia, a sidreria in Hernani, outside San Sebastian.

On any quality scale, sidrerias...especially Zelaia....rock: hospitality that will break your heart, killer tortilla with bacalao, then more delicious bacalao with fried onions and peppers, then 90-day aged, thick cut entrecote, grilled over applewood…..local sheep cheese and walnuts…..and, oh,duh: the cider. Made from three dozen different heirloom varieties that are now being cut down in favor of pulp pine paper farms…..

So…..family based, heirloom, simple local foods, reasonably priced, culturally inspiring…...

And.....??

Downside?

None.

[liuzhou]

I still maintain that Spain has the best and most accessible food culture on the planet.

So, you have been everywhere to test that theory, then?

[Txacoli]

Yes. Worked, not just visited.