Best Pintxos in Bilbao

Going out to tour the city through its restaurants, bars and taverns is one of the best things to see or do in Bilbao. In turn, pintxos are a culinary element that you will see in each and every one of the visits you have to restaurants specializing in Basque food, or even in other more modern and abstract establishments.

Taking this into account, I expose in this publication all the information you need to know to enjoy the best pintxos in Bilbao. As well as I also comment on the characteristics that define the experience of visiting each and every one of these picturesque and well-known restaurants. Which have become true treasures of the cultural identity of the largest city on the coast of the Basque Country.

Baste is a restaurant that encapsulates everything you would expect from a typical Basque tavern in the historic center of Bilbao. It is located in the heart of the city's pintxo bar route, just a couple of meters from the Basque Museum and on the pedestrian street Muñoz Maria Kalea. It is one of the basic stops on some of the best gastronomic tours of Bilbao and without a doubt the stuffed mussels are a protagonist in the gastronomic repertoire of this place.

It is characterized for being a restaurant with generous portions, a quite festive atmosphere and a very traditional and quite Basque culinary approach. That is why these mussels, known as mojojones, are usually stuffed with different flavors. The one with bechamel sauce with peppers, fried tomato and breaded in flour is one of the favorites of local diners. They usually accompany it with a regional white wine, either from Euskadi or La Rioja.

It is not a luxurious establishment and it is not too touristy, but the passion that the people of Bilbao feel for this dish is a perfect representation of what pintxos are for this community. As well as how much fun it can be for you to start a tour of the city to enjoy the best of them all.

Details of interest:

• Hours: Baste is open Tuesday through Sunday from 9 am until 1 am. That means it can be a place to have a mid-morning breakfast or also to have a night of drinks eating stuffed mussels in the best style of the Basque Coast.

In the geographical center of the historic center of Bilbao, in the famous Canton Alejandro de la Sota street, is located the modest Bodega Joserra. It is a typical tasca, without too much ambience and with much appreciation for the local public in which the real protagonist of the site are its products. Among them stands out what for many experts in gastronomy in the city is the sandwich par excellence, the medio con bonito y divisa.

This place is practically centenary and in its beginning it was a sales store that went on to ask for a liquor supply license after receiving a fine for its tradition of serving wine to its clientele. Keep in mind that in this place you will only find sandwiches, with all imaginable fillings such as loin, chorizo, ham, sardinillas and anchovies. So it is an excellent idea that during your visit you have a beer inside and live an authentic pintxos experience in Bilbao.

In fact, the interesting simplicity of this place makes it a frequent element among the most gourmet gastronomic tours of Bilbao. For the truth is that the means of Bodega Joserra are a historical element within the gastronomy of the area of the seven streets of Bilbao.

Details of interest:

• Hours: this inexpensive and modest winery usually opens its doors from 8 am to 11 pm. This schedule remains in force from Monday to Saturday both in high season and low season, since the truth is that the public of this site is mainly composed of locals from Bilbao.

Sometimes the best food is found in the most unusual places you can imagine. Salón de Juego Concha-1 fits this description, as although it is not a restaurant in the strict sense of the word, it is still the best place to eat a good Basque-style omelette in Bilbao. This place is located outside the Old Town of Bilbao, as it is on the other side of the river on General Concha Street, a couple of meters from the famous Plaza de Moyúa.

The tortillas could be ordered in different flavors, as there are mushroom, txaka, ham and cheese, Serrano ham and a couple of other similar ingredients. However, the traditional potato one is the best of all and is the one that has turned this place into a place worth visiting when thinking about the best pintxos in Bilbao.

Keep in mind that the appearance of the plating is very rustic and careless, in the best style of a tavern or a gambling hall where the taste of the food served has much more relevance than the beauty of the preparation. In fact, when visiting this place you will notice that most of the people present are only there to taste these famous tortillas that have become a mythical element for the culinary scene of Bilbao.

Do not worry about your children's entrance, as this is a safe and family plan that belongs to the activities to see and do in Bilbao with children. However, I advise you to go in the afternoon in case there is a game in the evening that will make the attendees too excited and change with it the atmosphere of the place.

Details of interest:

• Hours: this place is open every day of the week from 7 am to 1 pm. This makes this omelet a good idea for breakfast, lunch and even dinner.

Right next to the gambling hall is located another establishment that has a food that is just as simple and just as significant to Bilbao's culinary identity. This is Eme and it is basically a very conventional restaurant of sandwiches and pintxos. It has triangles that have won the hearts and palates of the local public.

It is a sandwich of sliced bread filled with ham and lettuce, which is a very typical snack that so far has nothing special. Everything changes when they add the secret sauce that distinguishes these triangles from any other sandwich in town. It is so delicious that it has become a tradition for diners to try to guess the ingredients included in it.

This establishment has more than half a century of history and the triangles since its beginnings have been one of the star menu items. That is why it is common for El Eme to be a place included among the pintxo tours of Bilbao that focus on the history of this community and are narrated by an authentic local.

Don't feel inappropriate if you are left wanting to eat more than one triangle on your visit. And is that another great tradition is to sit down to order a tower for each person at the table and see who manages to eat the whole thing without asking for anything to take away.

Details of interest:

• Opening hours: El Eme welcomes visitors Monday through Saturday from 10 am to 9 pm. For this reason it is recommended that you do not leave this famous pintxo as a midnight option knowing that the restaurant will not be open as in other places on this list.

In Bilbao's Plaza Nueva is located Gure Toki, one of the most famous restaurants in the city's most avant-garde gastronomic scene. Its pintxo bar is iconic within the tourist area of the Casco Viejo and for this reason you will always notice that it is a relatively crowded place at unusual times of the day.

Its proposal is characterized by proposing quite elaborate and gourmet dishes in miniature, making haute cuisine accessible in the convenient format of the pintxo. At the same time, all the recipes are a combination between traditional elements of Basque food with more modern ingredients culturally imported from other parts of the world.

The beef ribs, cheesecake and cod are some of the things you should try from Gure Toki's menu. However, the mollet eggs are one of the protagonists that distinguish this place from other places in the city. They consist of a fishbowl of poached quail eggs with mushrooms, potatoes and idiazábal cheese cream.

Details of interest:

• Hours: Gure Toki is open every day of the week except Wednesdays from 10 am to 11 pm. Sundays are also an exception, as they are only open until 4 pm.

Baibacoa is another one of those places that is not particularly famous within the tourist scene, but it does manage to stand out among true connoisseurs of places that have the best pintxos in Bilbao. It is located in the Plaza Miguel de Unamuno in the geographical limits of the Casco Viejo and is characterized for being a cuisine specialized in mushrooms, mushrooms and regional sausages.

Their pintxos de txorizo al infierno del botxo are the great classic of the house and it is about some sausages that are roasted in a traditional casserole with alcohol and rum. This means that they end up being set on fire with a visible flame that creates a very entertaining spectacle for the local diners.

Mushrooms in purgatory and txapi a la gloria are other favorite dishes on the Baibacoa menu and like the chorizo a las llamas are usually accompanied by a glass of home-grown wine. This distinctive authenticity of this unpretentious and unpretentious place without modern influences has made it a staple stop among hungry participants who tour the area on some of the best tours in Bilbao.

Details of interest:

• Hours: Baibacoa is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 am to 11:30 pm. Sundays are also open but until 3:30 pm.

On Iturribide street just outside the Old Town is located the Melilla and Fez pintxos bar. This is an establishment specializing in tortillas of all styles and flavors imaginable. However, the Moorish pintxo of lamb meat is the element that places this modest local within the best of the gastronomic proposals of Bilbao. And its recipe has remained as captivating for more than 50 years.

The pintxos with cod, tuna with onions and sirloin steak are other dishes that can give you a good impression within the menu of this bar. Keep in mind that sitting down to escape the heat drinking a beer in a place with these decorative features is one of the oldest traditions among the things to see or do in Bilbao in Summer.

Details of interest:

• Hours: the opening hours of this bar change throughout the week. On Fridays and Saturdays they open at 12 noon, close at 3 pm, reopen at 6 pm and close at 1 am. On Mondays they remain closed and from Tuesday to Thursday they advance their final closing to 11 pm.

The txangurro is a traditional recipe of Basque gastronomy that over time has become an indisputable reference when thinking of a truly representative pintxo. It is shredded spider crab meat that in this case is served in tapas portions. Precisely those of the bar El Globo in Diputación street are the best in the whole city for many local gastronomic critics.

In this recipe it is a snack that is gratinized and that is why it is one of the best pintxo preparations for true seafood fanatics. If this is not your case, you can be pleased knowing that this bar has a pintxo bar wide enough for you to try other of Bilbao's most typical recipes under the pintxo modality.

Details of interest:

• Hours: Monday to Thursday open from 9 am to 11 pm. Fridays they work from 9 am to midnight and Saturdays from 11 am to midnight. This makes it a good dinner after participating in some of the best night tours in Bilbao.

You can't talk about the best pintxos in Bilbao without referring to the anchovies and specifically those of Basaras are the most delicious and special in the city. Because of this fact they have become a place with a lot of meaning for the locals.

This tavern is quite modest and has really become a recommended destination within the local gastronomic scene due to the personality of its owners who attend to the regular clientele of the site. As well as for the freshness and quality of the anchovies, the main protagonists of this menu.

If you feel like continuing to enjoy this seafood you could start a touristic route through some of the best villages around Bilbao. Since this is a quite typical meal of the Basque culinary habits.

Details of interest:

• Hours: the Basaras Tavern opens its doors from noon to 11 pm from Wednesday to Saturday. On Sundays it closes its doors at 4 pm and the rest of the days they have a half day break from 4 pm to 7 pm.

With a wide combination of outside and inside tables, the famous Bar Berton is located on Jardines Street. This place is known for its beautiful setting, for the quality of its main dishes, but above all for the incredible taste of its pintxos, of which sirloin is a great component.

The txapelas with quail eggs and the medallions with foie gras are two pintxo recipes that have sirloin and you can not miss if you decide to visit this nice establishment. The rabas are another famous pintxo of this local and most of the alternatives are offered with piquillo peppers as accompaniments.

Interesting details:

• Hours: this tavern of traditional music under modern reinventions is open every day of the week from 9 am to midnight. There are branches, but the Calle Jardines location is the best known of all.