Azurmendi Spain (3 Michelin Stars)
Our "epic" special meal this Spain trip was at Azurmendi, a 3-Michelin starred restaurant in the neighboring town of Larrabetzu, a 20 minute drive from our hotel in Bilbao.
We had just finished an amazing day touring around the Rioja region. Our guide Gabriella knew our dinner plans, so she purposefully kept our daytime eating (and wine tasting) activities reasonable so that we'd have room for dinner!
Azurmendi's and Chef Eneko Atxa's philosophy is "[u]sing cooking to achieve a more sustainable, healthy, and just society." The restaurant is very active in its community, organizing activities and events to help children with autism spectrum disorder, cancer, and the like, as well as involvement in the Basque slow food movement.
The "Picnic"
Our meal began with a sustainability "feel". We entered a huge glass enclosed room filled with indoor greens and trees.
Our first series of bites came in the form of a picnic basket. They gave us a basket and told us to find a place to enjoy the "picnic." Our "Welcome Picnic" included various unique bites, such as "Lemon Grass", a Smoked Fish Brioche, a Joselito "polvorón" (like a macaron, but savory with jamon!), and Marianito.
After the picnic ended, they guided us into a second room. We left the forest and entered what looked like a busting kitchen. We walked up to a counter.
A chef created a Truffled Egg + Truffled Meringue in front of our eyes. Using a syringe, he squeezed a black truffle essence into a sphere that looked like a yolk. It was, indeed, an "egg" made using the spherification technique. Biting into it gave a pop of truffle-y goodness.
This was paired with a foamy apple + truffle drink.
They ushered us into yet another room. This one was full of fantasy, like Alice in Wonderland in a gprgeous floral garden.
But this was a different garden with leaves you could "pick" and eat (like this glazed shiso leaf).
Finally, to Our Seats
The garden theme continued after we sat down, and more "leaves", "flowers", and dirt appeared in front of us.
Like this "rose & nectar" ice cream bite . . .
. . . or these flattened and dried "chips", made from chard and zucchini flower.
Dew Water
Next, Smoked Asparagus (made using white + green asparagus) appeared in the form of a cream-filled cylindrical cookies filled with cream. Smoke wafted out of the container as the server took off the lid.
MUSHROOM "Guiness" was a deep, flavorful black truffle broth topped with a frothy and creamy top layer. It reminded me of a cappuccino!
The Sea
We moved from the garden and earth to the sea. Our first bite, a "Marine Leaf" chip was made from wakame, a Japanese seaweed.
Caviar
Trout roe
Next was a different type of cylinder, a tiny one-bite maki "roll" wrapped with nori (seaweed) with caviar on one side and trout roe on the other side.
A colorful and delicious Tuna Tartare Taco came next, a signature dish served on Azurmendi's logo branded wooden block.
Spider crab foam topped crabmeat "gelee" was next, served in a sea urchin bowl. Who can resist a lovely Dom Perignon from 2004?
We really tasted the essence of the ocean in this next course, simply titled "The Sea", which showcased a single French oyster served with sea granita and sea beans.
Our final sea-themed cold starter was this unusual Shrimp with naturally blue roe and a vibrant green sauce they called "herbal essence".
Bread Part 1
Like many high end restaurants, Azurmendi waits to serve the bread course a little later in the tasting menu. What's a bit more unusual is that Azurmendi has TWO bread courses. The first one reminded me a lot of a Chinese steamed bun.
Tomato
Tomatoes
Next, a delicious tomato "consomme" served with fresh tomatoes, a tomato powder, and dried tomato skin.
Seafood
Not unlike a falafel, next we had a single chick pea "fritter" (deep fried ball) covered with an ever-so-thin layer of cod skin. The execution was impressive, and the inside was just perfect.
They called this dish TRADITION because it's quite like a traditional Spanish croquette.
The next dish, "A CLASSIC", involved a roasted and peeled lobster tail with grilled pepper jus.
Bread Part 2
A second piece of bread, this time a yeast-risen corn bread.
Meat
The final meat course was "IBERIAN PORK".
The preparation was a pork "duxelle", a minced mixture of mushrooms, shallots, and herbs. It was surprisingly light for a final meat course.
Cheese
Cheese was an optional course, but Bryan (who has never met a cheese he didn't like), happily opted in. The generous portion was plenty for us to share. (36.36 EUROS)
Dessert
Ending on a similar garden theme, our dessert was called "Lost" BREAD and mead. Hidden in the forest were two mini ice cream cones that we picked out.
Pistachio ice cream, cake, and meringue "chip" with granita (ice).
Final (official) dessert was a chocolate and peanut tart stamped with the restaurant's sign.
We finished by choosing from a generous assortment of mignardises, hiding in drawers of a miniature cute box which they brought to the table.
Video
The pictures don't do justice to the entire experience of the dinner. To "sense" the meal in a different way, you can watch the short video I made below.
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jennifer Che (@tinyurbankitchen)
Consider how much work this meal took, 272.73 EUROS per person was quite reasonable. I really liked the garden theme and the overall focus on vegetables, sustainability, and health. I especially enjoyed the use of different techniques to showcase the essence of different vegetables. The overall "journey" -- complete with a picnic in a forest, a kitchen visit, a rose garden, and multiple surprises at our table -- certainly make this one of the more memorable meals I've had!
Related PostsBilbao Posts from this Trip!All Spain PostsSan SebastianEl Cellar de Can Roca - Best Restaurant in the World
The post Azurmendi Spain (3 Michelin Stars) appeared first on Tiny Urban Kitchen.
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