In the tiny village of Axpe in northern Spain, against the stunning backdrop of the Basque mountains, an hour’s drive from San Sebastián, Etxebarri has slowly cemented its reputation as one of the best restaurants in the world. Self-taught chef-owner Victor Arguinzoniz cooks everything over la brasa, a huge grill with a system of winches and pulleys to lower and raise ingredients towards the heat – he even makes his own charcoal in a kiln, using different wood to suit specific ingredients. His and his team’s attention to detail is mesmerising.
They smoke their home-made butter, salt their own anchovies, and keep live Palamós prawns in sea water to ensure that when kissing the grill, they are as fresh as they can possibly be. Simply grilled and served, they are a star dish with incredible depth of flavour. Grilled baby squid is delivered with equal precision, showing no char from the grill, having been gently smoked – the manipulation of smoke is a key part of many of the nuances in each dish. Oysters are grilled in their shells, as are fat, smoky mussels, and rarer items like sea cucumber. Txuleton steaks from Rubia Gallega Galician cows are cooked over grape vines, the ultimate expression for this prized meat. Even desserts carry the influence of the grill, even an apple tart is served with smoked milk ice cream.
Open for just six lunches a week, serving in a simple, unpretentious stone-adorned dining room, Etxebarri continues to be a site of pilgrimage for food lovers – it is worth the trek.