I love the buzz of a busy pintxos bar in San Sebastian but Saturday night can be a bit too manic especially the likes of La Cuchara de San Telmo. We leave
Borda Berri at 8.30pm and people were already spilling out onto the street. Luckily we'd booked a table at the brand new
Zeruko which is a just few doors down from the old branch, still open on
Calle Pescaderia in the old town.
I've always been a fan of the old Zeruko which is a bit more modern in it's approach but the food to my mind is more often than not successful. 'La Hoguera' is a must, smoked cod, brought to you on its own little grill. We sampled that again the previous evening.
The new Zeruko (just open this July) has a brand new, totally different menu and it's all sit down tables and waiter service. It has a more relaxed, modern vibe. The prices remain very keen. Pintxos are around the €5 mark and friends were drinking bottles of red for €10, a very drinkable rioja I think. We were enjoying delicious cold Keller beer.
We knew nothing about the food before we came here but it was fun, and inexpensive so I keep ordering, I'm on a roll.
We all enjoy the Stone Cooked Tuna. (€7.50) You get it raw and lightly season and cook it on hot stones. A bit of a gimmick true but the tuna is good quality and it's all good fun, especially in a group of people.
Also the fish and chips (€5) in a little basket. Better than any fish and chips I've had in the UK, beautiful fish (a different one each day I can't remember what it was, possible seabass?) and light batter with perfect chips. I also enjoy the kokotxa surf and turf cheeks (€4.50) and the razor clam in it's own citrus and chicken broth (€5.90). You have to fish the razor clams from a jar. There's also a Lamb & Potato and Tabbouleh (€6) and our favourite, Pig's Snout and Foie Gras (€5 see pic below). This is full of jellied fat and flavour almost too rich but so good.
The new Zeruko is a great success. Service was actually very good, the food is a little gimmicky but underneath all that it's actually very good especially for the price. Besides, I enjoy the kooky presentation, it's like being at a Michelin star restaurant for a fraction of the price. We all really enjoyed it and will definitely return on our next trip to Donostia.
No comments:
Post a Comment