Yesterday we ventured to Bilbao to pick up the fresh-off-the-boat II Sammic Scholars for BasqueStage, Marco Bahena and Cameron Rolka. The excitement of arriving to Basque Country helped the new stages power through their hungry exhaustion. And they were rewarded. Can you imagine if the first view you got of your new home was this?
Few architectural works in Spain are as breathtaking on first sight as the Guggenheim in Bilbao, and the sun was uncharacteristically shining off the river that cuts through the city. A picture perfect arrival for Basque Country’s new American cooks. Being cooks, and having survived off of airplane food for 24 hours, their minds quickly turned to food. Time for Pintxos 101.
We stopped in a classic pintxo bar and talked about the process of pintxo ordering. It’s a foreign concept: walk in, take what you want, then whenever you feel like it, tell the bartender what you had and pay. After a few times practicing, Cameron and Marco handled it like pros. Then we settled down for a menu del dia, or prix fixe lunch menu. It was classic, or as they say here, bueno y barato: lentils, mackerel, and the typical Basque dairy dessert of cuajada. It was awesome to watch Marco and Cameron enjoy their first typical Basque meal…the cuajada was probably everyone’s favorite.
The stages won’t begin their sojourn in Martín Berasategui until next week, but with the festivals of San Fermín right around the corner, they’ll have plenty opportunity to get to know the local way of life before then. Stay tuned!