marcelo's with marcelo

Only a few weeks ago we revisited a historic village, Santiago de Corruptela, a magnetic destination for both Catholic pilgrims and corruption. I guess the two of them can easily go together, hand by hand. Last year everyone in the municipal government, except for one or two losers, had to resign because of their unresolved business with the department of justice. Corruption is not unfamiliar in sPain, but resignation is kind of a novelty that can happen from time to time. Either way, it is always shockingly entertaining to watch how bush league politicians repeatedly try to abuse the system.

We hadn't tried the new project by Marcelo yet, so we walked towards his place down the cathedral square.

rural winter flavours

My first fifty days of the year have been rurally enriching. Good simple food, great sleeping, birds as noise, and a whole lot of green field exercise made this post-xmas period a pretty stimulating one.

axpe valley

It was this rainy Saturday that we had the best meal of the year, so far. After a long drive through Galiza, Asturies, Cantabria, La Rioja and Euskadi, we parked the car in a gorgeous spot where food acquires a glorious dimension.

Atxondo happens to contain a fabulously small architectural treasure that makes the outdoor visuals of the visit a quite spectacular one.

Goat's butter with topping ashes to start the lactose share of the afternoon already marked the greatness of what was about to come.

Queso fresco from Víctor's buffalas with honey and shaved hazelnuts was a pretty sweet and silky start.

Home marinated anchovies from the Cantábrico were simply spectacular. And I can say this after visiting Santoña -the Spanish capital of anchovies- the day before.

Their very own rectangular chorizo ibérico, which somehow reminded me of the old "zorza" moments, was as tasteful as it could possibly get.

This cooked oyster with hidden spinach was without a doubt the best non-raw one I have ever had.

A beautiful pair of gambas de Palamós, perfectly cooked, and full of Mediterranean grace helped consolidating the marine part of this omnivore celebration of Basque ungodly talent.

Not having a Pedralonga option on the wine list, for physical proximity I contemplated the Rioja alavesa possibilities, which normally would not be the region where my brain would gravitate towards regarding white wines. So, we risked it, and I followed the good advice from our sommelier du jour. Our 2013 bottle of Qué bonito Cacareaba made the afternoon shine.

A nice "espardeña" (sea cucumber) with white beans came next. Even if it wasn't the highlight of the day, it fitted perfectly well in the overall experience.

Six pulpitos on caramelized onion plus their own ink provided the cutely sweet step of this wonderful trip.

White truffle "revuelto" completed the truffle duet with a far deeper and richer  sense of truffleness.

Cod "kokotxas" were a specially requested double chin dish, which I always enjoy, but given the high standards of the meal, they weren't able to shine with the usual intensity.

Cooked to perfection "besugo (sea bream) y verduras" almost felt like one of those traditional home meals you never forget. A perfect dose of magnificent and simple authenticity.

I honestly think this "chuleta de vaca" would have made cried any proud vegetarian who had the courage to try it. I probably can count with one hand the number of times I enjoyed such a creamy and intense explosion of flavour,  on every single bite of the way.

Desert time started with an extremely refreshing reduced milk ice-cream with beetroot juice.

This was our second coming into exceptional dining in the Axpe valley, one that I could easily keep replicating for ever.

guatemala with a punch

Yesterday morning this was a brand new debut in my Castro cup, and it took me a while to digest the full experience around it. For some unexpected reason it kind of felt like a punch on my face.

As you can often hear in Spain, it took me from Guatemala to Guatepeor, which isn't necessarily worst. I guess it was the surprising effect what marked one of those days not to be forgotten.

milky sunday

The first lunch of the year in Barizo was a rather spectacular one. The food, as usual, was delicious, but the views of this wild Atlantic were hypnotizing.

The water, for the most part, looked like an agitated milk shake, and the sound of the waves hitting the coastal granite felt like a symphonic march by mother nature.

Being in the middle of the lamprea season, it was a given that we would get some. This particular recipe looks like a chocolate gravy, but in fact it happens to be made with the own eel's blood. It's a very rich fish dish, but unique enough to be enjoyed once a year, at least.

Mero al horno con garbanzos was Lyn's choice of the day, and not a bad one. I went for a more conservative hake, but still pretty amazing.

I never had it before with rice noodles, but besides the insignificant impact of this sort of innovation, the overall process was fully satisfactory.