WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:10.140 You're listening to Heritage Radio Network. Hi 00:00:10.140 --> 00:00:12.179 everyone, welcome to Pot Luck Food Talks. This 00:00:12.179 --> 00:00:16.100 is our special after Echeverry episode. I'm here 00:00:16.100 --> 00:00:18.820 with Jose and Stephen. Yeah, this was my first 00:00:18.820 --> 00:00:22.120 time. Jose was here already once at Echeverry. 00:00:22.199 --> 00:00:25.620 Yeah, second time now. And for sure, top three 00:00:25.620 --> 00:00:27.800 dining experiences I've had. Absolutely, without 00:00:27.800 --> 00:00:31.260 a doubt. Yeah, incredible. So let's do a course 00:00:31.260 --> 00:00:35.640 by course review of what we had. So first of 00:00:35.640 --> 00:00:39.700 all, we entered this old Basque farmhouse. You 00:00:39.700 --> 00:00:43.159 go upstairs, we had like this extra large table 00:00:43.159 --> 00:00:46.179 for a group of 11, which was like a private table 00:00:46.179 --> 00:00:49.119 on a second floor, not on the main dining room. 00:00:49.500 --> 00:00:52.579 We just sit down and first thing we get this 00:00:52.579 --> 00:00:56.920 pea soup, like a... Yeah, cazo de guisante, pea 00:00:56.920 --> 00:01:00.810 broth. Pea broth, yeah. Was that like this green 00:01:00.810 --> 00:01:05.670 broth? It tasted fresh, almost raw. Almost like 00:01:05.670 --> 00:01:07.930 a pea juice. Yeah. Super nice. I don't know. 00:01:08.510 --> 00:01:11.670 What can you comment about it? I mean, the color 00:01:11.670 --> 00:01:13.870 was absolutely stunning. It felt like I was drinking 00:01:13.870 --> 00:01:18.609 liquid emeralds. And as was the case with all 00:01:18.609 --> 00:01:20.250 of the courses, and we'll talk about just the 00:01:20.250 --> 00:01:22.709 smell, like the gentle smell of smoke and charcoal 00:01:22.709 --> 00:01:25.709 and fire. It permeates everything. Starting from 00:01:25.709 --> 00:01:27.709 the beginning, it really just kind of... sets 00:01:27.709 --> 00:01:29.469 the tone for you know how the rest of the meal 00:01:29.469 --> 00:01:31.189 is going to go yeah that was that wasn't where 00:01:31.189 --> 00:01:34.069 i was thinking about this was gentle you know 00:01:34.069 --> 00:01:39.569 like the sweet spot to to have those like freshly 00:01:39.569 --> 00:01:44.969 kind of herb hints on it yeah it's perfect to 00:01:44.969 --> 00:01:48.450 start yeah yeah i i really agree with you what 00:01:48.450 --> 00:01:51.549 that sets the tone because i think that like 00:01:51.549 --> 00:01:55.680 a transversal idea across the center was subtleness 00:01:55.680 --> 00:01:59.140 like everything on each course like the interesting 00:01:59.140 --> 00:02:02.079 things about each course were the subtleness 00:02:02.079 --> 00:02:05.560 that are very complicated to communicate right 00:02:05.560 --> 00:02:09.060 like so then next we still were in the snacks 00:02:09.060 --> 00:02:13.479 and we got like a board with sliced costalito 00:02:13.479 --> 00:02:17.180 chorizo like the highest quality iberian ham 00:02:17.180 --> 00:02:21.520 chorizo just sliced with a crust of bread with 00:02:21.520 --> 00:02:25.969 tomato and anchovies Also pretty nice. Also tone 00:02:25.969 --> 00:02:29.270 setting. Yeah, it's still kind of warming up. 00:02:29.430 --> 00:02:32.689 Just kind of whetting the appetite. Not very 00:02:32.689 --> 00:02:36.870 heavy, despite it being very fatty pork. And 00:02:36.870 --> 00:02:42.289 very, not oily, but rich anchovy on top of the 00:02:42.289 --> 00:02:45.889 good crusty bread. Lovely. Yeah, the chorizo 00:02:45.889 --> 00:02:54.280 I was like is... There's like really like playing 00:02:54.280 --> 00:02:55.680 the dance at the end It's like alright who was 00:02:55.680 --> 00:02:57.800 gonna take the last ones like you isn't me It's 00:02:57.800 --> 00:02:59.699 like I want it to be me, but I don't want to 00:02:59.699 --> 00:03:02.379 be I like that Usually you would expect like 00:03:02.379 --> 00:03:07.039 an excess of salt in this type of foods But in 00:03:07.039 --> 00:03:10.199 this case there there wasn't in the case of the 00:03:10.199 --> 00:03:13.060 anchovies You will find like a lot of sourness 00:03:13.060 --> 00:03:16.400 like vinegar or salt in this case. It was just 00:03:16.400 --> 00:03:31.539 like What really stood out to me, honestly, was 00:03:31.539 --> 00:03:35.340 the texture of the chorizo. Very unlike most 00:03:35.340 --> 00:03:37.159 chorizos that you buy, that you get, it's like 00:03:37.159 --> 00:03:41.180 the cured chorizo, it's always... On the tougher, 00:03:41.460 --> 00:03:43.199 a little bit more dried out side, not hard to 00:03:43.199 --> 00:03:46.580 chew, but this one just melted away. Yeah. From 00:03:46.580 --> 00:03:50.039 the first bite, I just didn't need to chew. It 00:03:50.039 --> 00:03:53.060 just dissolved on your palate, and it was basically 00:03:53.060 --> 00:03:54.879 like pork butter, which we'll get into later. 00:03:56.300 --> 00:03:58.900 So next, still with the snacks, we've got this 00:03:58.900 --> 00:04:03.680 little bowl of mozzarella on top of rocket pesto. 00:04:04.280 --> 00:04:08.169 Again, just... Very straightforward just like 00:04:08.169 --> 00:04:11.569 enjoy the flavor of like a plain mozzarella I 00:04:11.569 --> 00:04:13.530 think that was not even olive oil or salt on 00:04:13.530 --> 00:04:16.170 top of it. It was just no. Yeah. It was a very 00:04:16.170 --> 00:04:23.189 nice contrast between like the acid acid bitterness 00:04:23.189 --> 00:04:25.610 a pepper flavor of date of the cheese and the 00:04:25.610 --> 00:04:28.589 bitterness of the But but it was like a short 00:04:28.589 --> 00:04:31.990 lasting bitterness of the of the rocket sauce 00:04:33.250 --> 00:04:34.509 that I eat as a very good contrast. But it's, 00:04:34.589 --> 00:04:37.670 you know, this subtle bitterness of the dairy 00:04:37.670 --> 00:04:40.310 that you could also feel through the mozzarella. 00:04:40.589 --> 00:04:43.029 The sweetness and, like, even, like, again, the 00:04:43.029 --> 00:04:44.949 smokiness, like, permeating through everything. 00:04:45.110 --> 00:04:46.370 Something that we haven't even talked about yet 00:04:46.370 --> 00:04:48.129 is, like, this entire time they're giving us 00:04:48.129 --> 00:04:50.629 house -made sourdough. which is just like a perfect 00:04:50.629 --> 00:04:52.449 accompaniment for everything that we're eating. 00:04:52.589 --> 00:04:55.269 I have the bread. Yeah, the bread was so good. 00:04:55.389 --> 00:04:57.329 Almost every dish that we had, there was like 00:04:57.329 --> 00:04:59.110 at least a little bit left in the bottom of the 00:04:59.110 --> 00:05:00.850 plate that you just really wanted to sop up with 00:05:00.850 --> 00:05:03.569 the crusty bread. It was a perfect accompaniment. 00:05:03.790 --> 00:05:07.470 Yeah, super nice. Jose and I went for two bottles 00:05:07.470 --> 00:05:09.990 of wine. We started with a white, and I read 00:05:09.990 --> 00:05:15.889 the white was Domaine Pierre Boisson. It was 00:05:15.889 --> 00:05:19.730 an interesting wine. We had it at the beginning 00:05:19.730 --> 00:05:23.149 and we realized it worked better on a not so 00:05:23.149 --> 00:05:25.550 cold temperature. Yeah, yeah. We had to regulate 00:05:25.550 --> 00:05:29.730 the temperature throughout the course. It's losing. 00:05:29.990 --> 00:05:33.089 Leave it outside for a bit. Put it in the ice 00:05:33.089 --> 00:05:36.490 again. Okay, and then came for me for sure one 00:05:36.490 --> 00:05:38.269 of the highlights. It had to be one of the highlights. 00:05:38.529 --> 00:05:42.990 The red prawns. Yes. Incredible. Amazing stuff. 00:05:43.310 --> 00:05:45.990 What you got is... didn't left there anything 00:05:45.990 --> 00:05:50.180 at the place where almost all of them There is, 00:05:50.180 --> 00:05:54.160 you know, almost all of them. Like the shell, 00:05:54.439 --> 00:05:56.920 everything, you know? I would suck all the teeth, 00:05:57.000 --> 00:05:58.959 every part, but you actually chew it and swallow 00:05:58.959 --> 00:06:01.160 it. Yeah, I started, you know, breaking off the 00:06:01.160 --> 00:06:03.819 head, sucking out, obviously the best part, you 00:06:03.819 --> 00:06:05.720 know, the head juices are incredible, but these 00:06:05.720 --> 00:06:07.319 are amazing. I'm never going to have prawns like 00:06:07.319 --> 00:06:09.180 these again in my life. I have to make it worth 00:06:09.180 --> 00:06:11.360 it. And so just eventually starting to eat the 00:06:11.360 --> 00:06:14.720 head and the face and the tails and the legs. 00:06:14.920 --> 00:06:18.209 And it's like... It's all great. It was totally 00:06:18.209 --> 00:06:21.689 worth it. Because you know the texture of the 00:06:21.689 --> 00:06:25.930 shell, instead of being chewy, it was actually 00:06:25.930 --> 00:06:31.649 crunchy. The part of the shell surrounding the 00:06:31.649 --> 00:06:34.110 head was I think the only quote -unquote inedible 00:06:34.110 --> 00:06:36.209 part. It was a little too tough. But everything 00:06:36.209 --> 00:06:39.050 else was just like glass and shattered right 00:06:39.050 --> 00:06:44.209 away. just this subtle lick of and kiss of smoke 00:06:44.209 --> 00:06:46.750 it just kept bringing you back for more absolutely 00:06:46.750 --> 00:06:49.569 yeah for me it was exactly that it was just like 00:06:49.569 --> 00:06:52.930 a thin line between being rare and cooked being 00:06:52.930 --> 00:06:55.329 grilled and smoked and not grilled and not smoked 00:06:55.329 --> 00:06:59.430 such a beautiful sweetness too right there that 00:06:59.430 --> 00:07:02.629 it was just smoked but everything very subtle 00:07:02.629 --> 00:07:05.449 and the produce was just incredible yeah definitely 00:07:05.449 --> 00:07:08.350 menu highlight yeah one of those yeah top three 00:07:08.350 --> 00:07:11.680 for sure Maybe top one. I don't know. Yeah. We 00:07:11.680 --> 00:07:14.100 got some more stuff to talk about. What came 00:07:14.100 --> 00:07:17.439 next? Sea urchin. So there was like a whole sea 00:07:17.439 --> 00:07:21.920 urchin, half, and the shell you use as a plate. 00:07:22.060 --> 00:07:25.339 And you had this cream of sea urchin with its 00:07:25.339 --> 00:07:28.699 own, like the flesh of the sea urchin creamed 00:07:28.699 --> 00:07:31.920 into the soup with the pieces of sea urchin. 00:07:32.060 --> 00:07:34.720 And then there was like a little oil in the middle, 00:07:34.740 --> 00:07:37.850 which was seaweed oil and fennel. and if you 00:07:37.850 --> 00:07:41.529 have some seaweed oil oh yeah absolutely incredible 00:07:41.529 --> 00:07:45.050 yeah like absolutely amazing you would get this 00:07:45.050 --> 00:07:48.610 whole sea flavor but not overly intense just 00:07:48.610 --> 00:07:52.089 like very not overly intense but i i one of the 00:07:52.089 --> 00:07:54.029 more decadent parts of the meal it's like it 00:07:54.029 --> 00:07:55.389 helped that you know the portion was so small 00:07:55.389 --> 00:07:58.509 but it's just very very rich and unctuous and 00:07:58.509 --> 00:08:03.170 umami and i i like you know pretty much this 00:08:03.170 --> 00:08:05.230 could be said for every plate but just it was 00:08:05.230 --> 00:08:07.990 gone within a matter of 30 seconds uh yeah yeah 00:08:07.990 --> 00:08:12.850 three three spoons and that was it and then we 00:08:12.850 --> 00:08:16.750 went for the sea cucumber the sea cucumber that 00:08:16.750 --> 00:08:20.050 the one for me it was one of the highlights in 00:08:20.050 --> 00:08:22.730 my case i loved it yeah i remember you mentioned 00:08:22.730 --> 00:08:26.230 uh spell it yeah yeah yeah it was part of the 00:08:26.230 --> 00:08:28.149 experience of that dish actually smelling it 00:08:28.149 --> 00:08:31.910 first yeah yeah and when i smell it it brought 00:08:31.910 --> 00:08:35.470 me to uh sundae grill you know with friends yeah 00:08:35.470 --> 00:08:37.850 absolutely it really smelled like like grill 00:08:37.850 --> 00:08:40.690 and it was on top of peas and the peas were in 00:08:40.690 --> 00:08:44.990 its own juice kind of like like in a juice creep 00:08:44.990 --> 00:08:47.990 sauce around the the peas and it also had like 00:08:47.990 --> 00:08:51.970 a garlic flour if i'm not wrong yeah and super 00:08:51.970 --> 00:08:56.789 nice you have the sea flavors again a flesh that 00:08:56.789 --> 00:08:59.929 wasn't that hard you could easily cut And the 00:08:59.929 --> 00:09:05.149 texture. It was like between crunchy and chewy 00:09:05.149 --> 00:09:08.590 at the same time. Perfectly blending in with 00:09:08.590 --> 00:09:12.649 the peas in the bottom of the plate. Really well 00:09:12.649 --> 00:09:15.450 balanced. Amazing produce for sure. Ah, this 00:09:15.450 --> 00:09:18.509 little squid. The cuttlefish. Cuttlefish with 00:09:18.509 --> 00:09:23.100 this... With the Vizcaya sauce and the tirpeas? 00:09:23.200 --> 00:09:26.700 The tirpeas, exactly. And Vizcaina sauce. Vizcaina, 00:09:26.940 --> 00:09:30.019 oh. Yeah, which is one of the main Basque sauces. 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:32.840 Or if it was not a Vizcaina, it was like a Vizcainish 00:09:32.840 --> 00:09:37.440 kind of thing. Like a Basque ketchup. I'm sure 00:09:37.440 --> 00:09:40.820 they'll love to hear that. Vizcaina, the main 00:09:40.820 --> 00:09:42.600 ingredient is a pimiento choricero, which is 00:09:42.600 --> 00:09:46.139 kind of like a paprika they want to use for chorizos, 00:09:46.179 --> 00:09:51.799 like a powdered pepper. And you could feel this 00:09:51.799 --> 00:09:55.120 bitterness, this chorizo kind of like flavor 00:09:55.120 --> 00:09:58.759 in the peas that the season is just starting. 00:09:59.019 --> 00:10:03.600 And the squid, again, not cooked, not raw, not 00:10:03.600 --> 00:10:06.580 rare, but just in between. But grilled, not good, 00:10:06.759 --> 00:10:13.009 but just in between. Very delicate. an incredible 00:10:13.009 --> 00:10:15.370 experience just like seeing the magic that can 00:10:15.370 --> 00:10:18.009 be made from so few ingredients on having and 00:10:18.009 --> 00:10:20.529 watching it get elevated uh to you know the heights 00:10:20.529 --> 00:10:23.570 that chef was able to do then next we had the 00:10:23.570 --> 00:10:28.690 cocochas yeah you love them right all right i'm 00:10:28.690 --> 00:10:31.629 a sucker for cocochas uh but this one size which 00:10:31.629 --> 00:10:34.649 is very little for for a cococha you usually 00:10:34.649 --> 00:10:39.110 get them relatively larger And they were on top 00:10:39.110 --> 00:10:43.529 of a cracker that was made with wild bear garlic. 00:10:43.990 --> 00:10:47.830 Yeah. Which is like a leaf, garlic -ish leaf 00:10:47.830 --> 00:10:53.049 that you will find wild grown around here. And 00:10:53.049 --> 00:10:56.610 yeah, the best way to eat a cocoche is to get 00:10:56.610 --> 00:10:59.269 the whole thing in one bite. These were very 00:10:59.269 --> 00:11:03.690 little. That one was a texture contrast. You 00:11:03.690 --> 00:11:07.740 know, like the jelly. Yeah, from the cococha 00:11:07.740 --> 00:11:11.039 and the... And these were Rebosado style, right? 00:11:11.299 --> 00:11:15.899 Yes, yes, yes. Coated like an egg. Pretty much 00:11:15.899 --> 00:11:19.659 coated in an omelette, basically. And on top 00:11:19.659 --> 00:11:21.860 of this cracker. So it was like a one bite thing. 00:11:22.100 --> 00:11:25.659 You get this very gelatinous fish feeling of 00:11:25.659 --> 00:11:28.299 the white fish of the cococha. Do you know the 00:11:28.299 --> 00:11:32.220 fish? It was a hake. It was hake. It was hake, 00:11:32.299 --> 00:11:35.360 so yeah, I... I only started eating Colcochas 00:11:35.360 --> 00:11:37.080 only a few months ago when I moved to San Sebastian, 00:11:37.299 --> 00:11:39.799 and it's one of the highlights of Basque cuisine 00:11:39.799 --> 00:11:45.440 for me. If you like texture, that thick gelatinous, 00:11:45.440 --> 00:11:49.460 really sticky mouthfeel, this is about as incredible 00:11:49.460 --> 00:11:51.200 as you can get for that. That's pretty much one 00:11:51.200 --> 00:11:53.240 of the distinctive features of Basque cuisine 00:11:53.240 --> 00:11:57.259 in Slovenia. That stickiness. Yeah. What came 00:11:57.259 --> 00:11:59.759 next? Ah, then we have the caviar. We ordered 00:11:59.759 --> 00:12:03.460 an extra caviar. that was also like absolutely 00:12:03.460 --> 00:12:07.080 decadent yeah that was a highlight it was made 00:12:07.080 --> 00:12:11.200 with it had like an emulsion of uh uh iberian 00:12:11.200 --> 00:12:16.179 pork fat on the base and then the caviar is like 00:12:16.179 --> 00:12:19.899 smoked on top and it was it had a side of goat 00:12:19.899 --> 00:12:25.799 milk butter that was definitely insane oh i love 00:12:25.799 --> 00:12:29.620 i eat a lot of goat cheese it's like normal chips 00:12:30.269 --> 00:12:33.990 cheese slices but the goat ones so I'm pretty 00:12:33.990 --> 00:12:38.230 familiar with that strong flavor of goat dairy 00:12:38.230 --> 00:12:42.350 and this was the high quality butter version 00:12:42.350 --> 00:12:47.250 of it where with the Iberian ham and the caviar 00:12:47.250 --> 00:12:50.110 it was just over the top and barrel for me this 00:12:50.110 --> 00:12:52.309 was one of the highlights for sure yeah yeah 00:12:52.309 --> 00:12:56.419 then we have the perre chicos kind of egg yolk 00:12:56.419 --> 00:13:01.200 scrambled no yeah kind of sort of like i would 00:13:01.200 --> 00:13:03.600 say the reference was scrambled eggs with mushrooms 00:13:03.600 --> 00:13:08.460 but it wasn't a very high -end refined version 00:13:08.460 --> 00:13:11.539 which was pretty much like an egg yolk emulsion 00:13:11.539 --> 00:13:15.419 it is almost rare mushrooms on top yeah so you 00:13:15.419 --> 00:13:18.100 you could you could feel it reminded me of eating 00:13:18.100 --> 00:13:22.320 raw champignons but With all the notes that you 00:13:22.320 --> 00:13:25.100 get from a wild moth. Yeah, which are more complex. 00:13:25.480 --> 00:13:28.460 That to me, you know, I combined a bit of the 00:13:28.460 --> 00:13:34.980 goat milk, butter with bread. And I put a bit 00:13:34.980 --> 00:13:38.799 of those like scrambled eggs. And it was totally 00:13:38.799 --> 00:13:41.899 like a breakfast bite. When we say scrambled 00:13:41.899 --> 00:13:44.059 eggs, it was probably more like consistency of 00:13:44.059 --> 00:13:46.440 like a hollandaise. Yeah, like a hollandaise. 00:13:46.460 --> 00:13:49.850 Something similar. It was just like that. maybe 00:13:49.850 --> 00:13:53.070 like the memory that it took me to. Absolutely, 00:13:53.149 --> 00:13:54.870 yeah. You know, because of that like breakfast 00:13:54.870 --> 00:13:56.769 kind of feeling. And this was like... It was 00:13:56.769 --> 00:13:59.070 definitely more of like a Holland -esque texture. 00:13:59.129 --> 00:14:01.750 This was like more of a homey comfort, like not 00:14:01.750 --> 00:14:05.190 super complex in terms of technique, but like 00:14:05.190 --> 00:14:08.090 a good textural contrast to break things up, 00:14:08.129 --> 00:14:10.029 especially a lot of big seafood flavors and kind 00:14:10.029 --> 00:14:13.269 of coming into, you know, break up the monotony, 00:14:13.330 --> 00:14:16.409 but just change the flow of the course for a 00:14:16.409 --> 00:14:19.919 little bit. the next course was like again mushrooms 00:14:19.919 --> 00:14:23.860 we have the the they're called marzuelos in spanish 00:14:23.860 --> 00:14:27.059 and english is march mushrooms because it's very 00:14:27.059 --> 00:14:29.159 fitting considering we're coming to the end of 00:14:29.159 --> 00:14:32.200 the mart end of march and truffles so you have 00:14:32.200 --> 00:14:36.000 this broth thick broth where you would get like 00:14:36.000 --> 00:14:40.279 not not like this overly powerful truffle but 00:14:40.279 --> 00:14:44.000 like Very earthy, very deep, like, brown flavor. 00:14:44.139 --> 00:14:47.139 Mid -level aromatic, not the most aromatic you 00:14:47.139 --> 00:14:50.620 will find, but very delicious. Then this mushroom, 00:14:50.720 --> 00:14:53.919 which were way more complex and aromatic than 00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:55.639 the previous one, probably the tall truffles 00:14:55.639 --> 00:14:58.220 also help on that. And the smoky notes of the 00:14:58.220 --> 00:15:01.720 broth. Yeah. And I would... The broth was a habit. 00:15:01.720 --> 00:15:04.480 I would drink... Like a glass of that broth. 00:15:04.580 --> 00:15:07.639 I think I'd bathe in that broth. Listen, come 00:15:07.639 --> 00:15:09.679 out of the bath smelling like that. Today's going 00:15:09.679 --> 00:15:12.179 to be a good day. And a generous amount of truffle 00:15:12.179 --> 00:15:16.759 shake. Amazing. Also one of the... There are 00:15:16.759 --> 00:15:20.460 way too many highlights by this point. When the 00:15:20.460 --> 00:15:24.279 caviar was taking over, a spoon is missing because 00:15:24.279 --> 00:15:26.980 there were this pair of spoons that are used 00:15:26.980 --> 00:15:30.289 to eat caviar. Who has it? There were six moons 00:15:30.289 --> 00:15:34.110 and there are only five coming back. We never 00:15:34.110 --> 00:15:36.409 found out. We never found out. We'll never know. 00:15:37.590 --> 00:15:41.710 What do you have next? ULAs, maybe yields. Yeah, 00:15:41.809 --> 00:15:45.169 it was actually my first time trying them. It's 00:15:45.169 --> 00:15:49.129 my second time. I had them once in eBay. I mean, 00:15:49.149 --> 00:15:52.409 you've had them millions of times, the fake version. 00:15:52.610 --> 00:15:55.460 Yeah, because that's become like a... i don't 00:15:55.460 --> 00:15:58.700 know like a traditional food for every basque 00:15:58.700 --> 00:16:03.500 uh fridge you know like the imitation imitation 00:16:03.500 --> 00:16:07.100 imitation of the of the angulas which which are 00:16:07.100 --> 00:16:09.240 called gulas actually and they are it they are 00:16:09.240 --> 00:16:14.179 usually served in the tamborada day you throw 00:16:14.179 --> 00:16:17.419 them just with some garlic and parsley to the 00:16:17.419 --> 00:16:19.940 pan with olive oil and that's it two minutes 00:16:19.940 --> 00:16:23.720 stir frying man but these were definitely like 00:16:23.720 --> 00:16:28.149 uh A cut above. Like texture, experience. Yeah, 00:16:28.230 --> 00:16:30.909 you can also feel like the deep, meaty flavor 00:16:30.909 --> 00:16:34.809 or feel. Yeah. But on the baby version. Yeah, 00:16:34.809 --> 00:16:38.649 yeah, yeah. It was pretty nice to feel like the 00:16:38.649 --> 00:16:42.850 really small structure of the spines. Like when 00:16:42.850 --> 00:16:47.190 you eat like sardines or anchovies. Anchovies, 00:16:47.190 --> 00:16:51.649 yep. You kind of feel the inside, but at a smaller 00:16:51.649 --> 00:16:54.879 scale, you know? And that was definitely, for 00:16:54.879 --> 00:16:59.259 me, a texture experience. Most of it. Also, we 00:16:59.259 --> 00:17:03.200 all agree that this was the highest smokiness 00:17:03.200 --> 00:17:07.619 point in the earth by that point. Everything 00:17:07.619 --> 00:17:10.319 else was pretty light and subtle. This was like... 00:17:10.539 --> 00:17:12.619 Here you have it. Get some smoke. I think it 00:17:12.619 --> 00:17:14.500 also helped the way that it was served in the 00:17:14.500 --> 00:17:16.680 bowl. They had a small cloche on it. So when 00:17:16.680 --> 00:17:18.779 you open it, the smoke immediately builds out 00:17:18.779 --> 00:17:21.420 and hits you in the face. It was like one of 00:17:21.420 --> 00:17:24.339 the more, if not the most intense smoky flavors 00:17:24.339 --> 00:17:26.720 throughout the entire dinner. And then we got 00:17:26.720 --> 00:17:29.259 them to the main courses. The first one was the 00:17:29.259 --> 00:17:33.460 fish, which was a grilled sea bream in the style 00:17:33.460 --> 00:17:39.009 of the Basque coast where you emulsify. the oil 00:17:39.009 --> 00:17:40.730 with the cullitance of the fish and then bring 00:17:40.730 --> 00:17:43.890 it back as a sauce and I've had this kind of 00:17:43.890 --> 00:17:47.250 fish I mean on the past country episode we had 00:17:47.250 --> 00:17:49.490 like at least three different versions of it 00:17:49.490 --> 00:17:52.470 but this is for sure the best one I've ever had 00:17:52.470 --> 00:17:54.869 I think this is better than the ones I've had 00:17:54.869 --> 00:17:59.410 at El Cano which is the grilled fish place par 00:17:59.410 --> 00:18:04.150 excellence and in this case I would say again 00:18:04.779 --> 00:18:08.839 finesse, subtleness, everything was just lighter 00:18:08.839 --> 00:18:12.180 than usual. These kind of grilled fishes are 00:18:12.180 --> 00:18:17.319 topped up with a sour vinaigrette or something 00:18:17.319 --> 00:18:21.339 that usually is... kind of punchy but in this 00:18:21.339 --> 00:18:24.839 case it was just like right on the point of sour 00:18:24.839 --> 00:18:27.380 yeah not punchy at all very just and that was 00:18:27.380 --> 00:18:30.319 very very nice very nice you also felt like the 00:18:30.319 --> 00:18:33.599 gelatin of the fish at the same time and how 00:18:33.599 --> 00:18:37.079 was the eye eating experience oh yeah so you 00:18:37.079 --> 00:18:40.279 know i i said this earlier when the abyss uh 00:18:40.279 --> 00:18:42.240 stare when you stare at the abyss the abyss stares 00:18:42.240 --> 00:18:44.839 back and then i decided to eat said abyss that 00:18:44.839 --> 00:18:48.359 i was you know it was an experience comfort movie 00:18:48.359 --> 00:18:51.220 no i felt like i was living my own movie but 00:18:51.220 --> 00:18:54.339 it was again very like if we're talking about 00:18:54.339 --> 00:18:56.140 sticky and gelatinous it was hard to get more 00:18:56.140 --> 00:18:58.839 so than that you know worth the experience won't 00:18:58.839 --> 00:19:01.019 be trying again anytime soon it helped that the 00:19:01.019 --> 00:19:03.420 re like the rest of the fish was absolutely fantastic 00:19:03.420 --> 00:19:06.859 you know i yeah guy i can't imagine i can't remember 00:19:06.859 --> 00:19:08.539 a better fish dish that i've had in the last 00:19:08.539 --> 00:19:10.740 few years i think it's a better grilled fish 00:19:10.740 --> 00:19:14.420 i've ever had and the meat was just flaky and 00:19:14.420 --> 00:19:17.140 just loose and just cooked almost not cooked. 00:19:17.259 --> 00:19:20.619 You know, like super, super nice. And then we 00:19:20.619 --> 00:19:23.900 had like this bridge between fish main course 00:19:23.900 --> 00:19:27.559 and to meat main course, which was, they call 00:19:27.559 --> 00:19:31.339 it chorizo tartar. That was one of the highlights 00:19:31.339 --> 00:19:37.299 as well. That was surprisingly up there in terms 00:19:37.299 --> 00:19:40.589 of everything. We had, you know, I think... Between 00:19:40.589 --> 00:19:43.269 the desserts and like the add -ons, the angoulas 00:19:43.269 --> 00:19:45.089 and the caviar, I think it was maybe like 16 00:19:45.089 --> 00:19:47.609 courses or 16, 17 courses or something like that 00:19:47.609 --> 00:19:50.309 on top of everything. And this was like by far 00:19:50.309 --> 00:19:52.309 one of the standouts. And how would you describe 00:19:52.309 --> 00:19:55.289 it? I mean, I know we're beating a dead horse 00:19:55.289 --> 00:19:57.650 here, but smoky is like the first thing. But 00:19:57.650 --> 00:20:00.369 just everything you like, all the flavor you 00:20:00.369 --> 00:20:03.009 love about chorizo, so unctuous and fatty and 00:20:03.009 --> 00:20:07.400 a little sweet. It's incredible. kind of like 00:20:07.400 --> 00:20:09.660 a sandwich between two crackers and the crackers 00:20:09.660 --> 00:20:12.359 were like talos yeah it was like a tallow yeah 00:20:12.359 --> 00:20:16.440 to put it in a very simple way it's like like 00:20:16.440 --> 00:20:20.720 a basque taco yeah like a basket tortilla yeah 00:20:20.720 --> 00:20:25.480 corn tortilla and it probably it was something 00:20:25.480 --> 00:20:29.299 adapted from mexican tortillas into century -old 00:20:29.299 --> 00:20:32.579 basque cultures uh which is something traditional 00:20:32.579 --> 00:20:35.460 here and you have this tortilla this tacos made 00:20:35.460 --> 00:20:37.619 with this the past tortillas that are called 00:20:37.619 --> 00:20:40.220 talos which is different from from a mexican 00:20:40.220 --> 00:20:42.420 tortilla it's its own thing and you eat it with 00:20:42.420 --> 00:20:45.880 chistorra which is like a like a grilled chorizo 00:20:45.880 --> 00:20:48.079 and in this case you add something very similar 00:20:48.079 --> 00:20:51.180 between these two crackers and the tartar in 00:20:51.180 --> 00:20:53.900 the middle with the highest quality chorizo you're 00:20:53.900 --> 00:20:56.140 good it's definitely super super nice you know 00:20:56.140 --> 00:20:59.079 it's not often i eat raw pork but this is you 00:20:59.079 --> 00:21:02.579 know really like i changed a lot of uh We don't 00:21:02.579 --> 00:21:04.519 really eat raw pork at all in the U .S. If you 00:21:04.519 --> 00:21:06.599 see tartare, it's steak tartare, and that's it. 00:21:06.900 --> 00:21:08.960 And I think more people should be eating pork 00:21:08.960 --> 00:21:11.160 tartare, provided it's safe and it's of the highest 00:21:11.160 --> 00:21:14.539 quality, but incredible. Yeah, yeah. I'm not 00:21:14.539 --> 00:21:17.259 even sure if this was rare. I was wondering the 00:21:17.259 --> 00:21:21.200 same. I'm not sure. I feel this was at least 00:21:21.200 --> 00:21:23.960 cured. Yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah, at least. But I 00:21:23.960 --> 00:21:25.920 don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I wondered 00:21:25.920 --> 00:21:28.099 the same. I wondered exactly the same. We should 00:21:28.099 --> 00:21:29.119 have asked the chef while we had the chance. 00:21:30.109 --> 00:21:33.089 Maybe Tartaro only referred to the chopping. 00:21:33.170 --> 00:21:35.250 To the chopping of the meat, yeah. But I don't 00:21:35.250 --> 00:21:40.650 know. We'll have to ask. And then we had the 00:21:40.650 --> 00:21:44.650 main course and one of the icons of Echavarri, 00:21:44.710 --> 00:21:48.390 which is the chuleta, the chop. It's a bone and 00:21:48.390 --> 00:21:51.410 sirloin, which is the magical thing about this, 00:21:51.490 --> 00:21:54.930 it's rare but warm. But wait, wait, it was a 00:21:54.930 --> 00:22:02.470 blonde? Galician, got a cow, 10 years old. Her 00:22:02.470 --> 00:22:09.150 name was Marlin Monroe. And 36 days of dry aging. 00:22:09.450 --> 00:22:13.430 Yeah. And it looked almost like a tomahawk, you 00:22:13.430 --> 00:22:15.990 know? Yeah. It looked like that, yeah. Some more 00:22:15.990 --> 00:22:21.899 long rib, bone, and a lot of incredible. Super 00:22:21.899 --> 00:22:25.940 darkly charred though. Right in the middle. Only 00:22:25.940 --> 00:22:28.880 salt. We went to a point we thought that the 00:22:28.880 --> 00:22:33.220 salt was a ginomoto on top of that. I literally 00:22:33.220 --> 00:22:35.779 cannot remember a better steak I've ever had. 00:22:35.880 --> 00:22:38.839 I think by far it just blows everything else 00:22:38.839 --> 00:22:41.200 out of the water. I agree, I agree. I would say 00:22:41.200 --> 00:22:45.160 maybe it's my, yeah, it's probably my top steak 00:22:45.160 --> 00:22:48.759 ever. One of the highlights for me for sure was 00:22:48.759 --> 00:22:53.740 eating from the bone. Yeah. Yeah, like Basque 00:22:53.740 --> 00:22:56.220 style. Basque proper style. I feel like Fred 00:22:56.220 --> 00:22:58.440 Flintstones eating a dinosaur bone. It's just... 00:22:58.440 --> 00:23:03.079 And then we enter the realm of the streets. First, 00:23:03.500 --> 00:23:09.160 smoked sheep milk ice cream and beetroots. That's 00:23:09.160 --> 00:23:13.579 the name. So you feel the smokiness and this... 00:23:13.579 --> 00:23:17.279 It felt like a smoked cheese, but very subtle. 00:23:17.740 --> 00:23:20.480 and then the beetroot i think it was rare for 00:23:20.480 --> 00:23:24.480 sure right like a high quality raw yeah earthy 00:23:24.480 --> 00:23:27.539 very earthy reduced or you also like this square 00:23:27.539 --> 00:23:30.099 notes it was a perfect combination between like 00:23:30.099 --> 00:23:36.859 the oily fatty rich mouth feel of the cream of 00:23:36.859 --> 00:23:39.619 the of the dairy but at the same time like with 00:23:39.619 --> 00:23:43.779 a refreshing feeling from the cold beetroot juice 00:23:43.779 --> 00:23:47.579 and that combination like in every bite It was 00:23:47.579 --> 00:23:50.799 amazing. The execution of the ice cream for me, 00:23:50.859 --> 00:23:54.460 it was perfect. Hot crystals, it's creamy, stable, 00:23:55.000 --> 00:23:59.339 super nice. You know that when it's one of the 00:23:59.339 --> 00:24:01.119 best desserts you've ever had, and it's quite 00:24:01.119 --> 00:24:04.579 literally only two or three ingredients. Two 00:24:04.579 --> 00:24:07.079 elements. Two elements. You have just this beautiful, 00:24:07.220 --> 00:24:11.200 incredibly simple smoked milk ice cream, and 00:24:11.200 --> 00:24:16.539 raw beetroot juice. It's incredible. Just the 00:24:16.539 --> 00:24:19.220 simplicity and the execution was phenomenal. 00:24:19.519 --> 00:24:21.539 I remember from the first time I went to Chavarri, 00:24:21.640 --> 00:24:26.240 they explained that they reduce the milk in the, 00:24:26.339 --> 00:24:29.460 like in the, where they burn the, where they 00:24:29.460 --> 00:24:33.059 make the brasas. The grills. The grills, yeah. 00:24:33.279 --> 00:24:36.440 And they reduce it, they evaporate the water 00:24:36.440 --> 00:24:40.980 until the fat percentage of the milk is like 00:24:40.980 --> 00:24:44.299 high enough to make an ice cream. So it's like 00:24:44.299 --> 00:24:48.200 a slow process. Yeah, I guess it's only that 00:24:48.200 --> 00:24:50.539 melt with some kind of stabilizer. Yeah, and 00:24:50.539 --> 00:24:54.759 that's it. Yeah, that's insane. We saw the ovens 00:24:54.759 --> 00:24:57.380 in the kitchen. Those are the ovens where they 00:24:57.380 --> 00:25:02.079 actually reduce the ice. Just reduce on a charcoal 00:25:02.079 --> 00:25:04.920 grill. Yes, exactly. Yeah, that's amazing. That 00:25:04.920 --> 00:25:08.099 is incredible. I remember also Kevin and Phil 00:25:08.099 --> 00:25:11.859 talking about this dessert. It's my top one. 00:25:11.940 --> 00:25:15.660 My top one, like, restaurant dessert ever. And 00:25:15.660 --> 00:25:17.880 I mean, Kevin, for example, he's a chef at Noma, 00:25:17.980 --> 00:25:21.579 and he has tried all kinds of things all over 00:25:21.579 --> 00:25:24.019 the world. He says the same thing. You know, 00:25:24.059 --> 00:25:26.980 it's crazy. And for me, what is impressive is 00:25:26.980 --> 00:25:30.299 how do you come up with something like this? 00:25:30.460 --> 00:25:34.220 Yeah, man. I don't know. Let's say you make an 00:25:34.220 --> 00:25:36.680 ice cream and just put beetroot, broad beetroot 00:25:36.680 --> 00:25:39.940 juice. You know? Yeah, yeah, yeah. It has to 00:25:39.940 --> 00:25:42.119 be, like, a very strange way to get there, you 00:25:42.119 --> 00:25:44.279 know? Like, a very specific way to get there. 00:25:44.380 --> 00:25:46.700 It's like this and the Chuleter, like, these 00:25:46.700 --> 00:25:48.859 are his flagships, what he's been doing for years, 00:25:49.099 --> 00:25:50.880 because he knows they work. So he had to figure 00:25:50.880 --> 00:25:52.960 this out early on, that this is just, like, an 00:25:52.960 --> 00:25:56.180 incredible combination, and it's worked very, 00:25:56.240 --> 00:25:58.039 very well for him. No, and I guess it's also 00:25:58.039 --> 00:26:02.480 years of perfectioning, fine -tuning until it 00:26:02.480 --> 00:26:04.940 gets there. I don't think it was like that at 00:26:04.940 --> 00:26:06.759 the beginning. I think it's something that evolved. 00:26:07.979 --> 00:26:11.420 across the years then we had the second dessert 00:26:11.420 --> 00:26:14.559 which was the white chocolate and dark chocolate 00:26:14.559 --> 00:26:19.720 souffle for me this I felt like watching cartoons 00:26:19.720 --> 00:26:24.500 on television on a like childhood memories it 00:26:24.500 --> 00:26:29.099 really felt like childhood sweets yeah to me 00:26:29.099 --> 00:26:32.319 it was like a pretty amazing texture contrast 00:26:32.319 --> 00:26:37.109 as well because the top of the of the of the 00:26:37.109 --> 00:26:41.210 dessert was like very foamy like airy uh white 00:26:41.210 --> 00:26:45.150 chocolate mousse or foam i would say and on on 00:26:45.150 --> 00:26:47.509 the the bottom was a bit more like like a bit 00:26:47.509 --> 00:26:51.329 thicker dense more dense you could feel the contrast 00:26:51.329 --> 00:26:56.029 in your mouth and i think for classic souffle 00:26:56.029 --> 00:26:59.329 standards for a french standard this would be 00:26:59.329 --> 00:27:02.339 rare It would be too rare. Right? Like a French 00:27:02.339 --> 00:27:05.720 would say, oh, you can't do that. Because you 00:27:05.720 --> 00:27:07.900 would break it and it would fall apart and you 00:27:07.900 --> 00:27:10.460 would have soles all over, like a liquid, and 00:27:10.460 --> 00:27:12.940 then you could mix it. But that's the fun thing 00:27:12.940 --> 00:27:16.859 about it. Also, the best part is the liquid part. 00:27:17.559 --> 00:27:18.960 There's something to be said, like, whereas we 00:27:18.960 --> 00:27:20.960 were talking about, like, the incredible balance 00:27:20.960 --> 00:27:22.920 of the last dessert, the ice cream and the beetroot, 00:27:23.039 --> 00:27:26.440 this was, like, for me, a real masterclass in, 00:27:26.460 --> 00:27:30.180 like, desserts can be only sweet. I like, it 00:27:30.180 --> 00:27:32.460 was almost verging on too sweet, but it's like, 00:27:32.519 --> 00:27:34.500 there was enough contrast between like the bitterness 00:27:34.500 --> 00:27:37.099 of the dark chocolate and the really like eggy 00:27:37.099 --> 00:27:39.700 but intense sweetness of the outer souffle. It 00:27:39.700 --> 00:27:41.960 was just like, primarily it's just sweet and 00:27:41.960 --> 00:27:44.180 you don't get, there's like, there's only, I 00:27:44.180 --> 00:27:45.660 wouldn't say as much nuance to the first dessert, 00:27:45.740 --> 00:27:49.140 but no less delicious. Then we had two desserts 00:27:49.140 --> 00:27:53.339 at the same time. The first one was a pear tartlet. 00:27:54.059 --> 00:27:56.779 This was basically puff pastry with slices of 00:27:56.779 --> 00:28:02.119 pear. And yeah, very classy, very crunchy. You 00:28:02.119 --> 00:28:05.400 would get like pieces of puff pastry. Those are 00:28:05.400 --> 00:28:10.279 nice puff pastry. And fine slices of pear. I 00:28:10.279 --> 00:28:13.539 mean, like a classic. But particularly a highlight, 00:28:13.700 --> 00:28:16.599 but like a very nice one for me. It was a great 00:28:16.599 --> 00:28:19.420 way to finish up our meal. But we still have 00:28:19.420 --> 00:28:20.960 one more dessert to talk about. The other one 00:28:20.960 --> 00:28:24.019 was, for me, that was one of the highlights. 00:28:24.220 --> 00:28:28.230 The cheese flan. Yeah. We were talking earlier 00:28:28.230 --> 00:28:31.789 about Basque cheesecake. I've always described 00:28:31.789 --> 00:28:34.369 Basque cheesecake in terms of formula as a cream 00:28:34.369 --> 00:28:38.289 cheese flan, baked. Because in terms of formula, 00:28:38.369 --> 00:28:41.029 it's pretty much that. But in this case, where 00:28:41.029 --> 00:28:43.970 there was no kind of flour, which you will find 00:28:43.970 --> 00:28:47.069 in Basque cheesecake. I love that it was warm. 00:28:47.369 --> 00:28:49.950 I read that you mentioned that you like that 00:28:49.950 --> 00:28:53.549 warm feeling of a cheesecake. So this was like 00:28:53.549 --> 00:28:57.789 a warm cheese flan. and yeah it was like creamy 00:28:57.789 --> 00:29:02.269 cheesy i mean it had everything and then and 00:29:02.269 --> 00:29:05.369 nothing no no sauce no garnish no no it was just 00:29:05.369 --> 00:29:09.410 that yeah it had it had like a caramel base but 00:29:09.410 --> 00:29:12.190 it was very like very subtle all all the desserts 00:29:12.190 --> 00:29:14.230 and our entire meal but i'd say especially the 00:29:14.230 --> 00:29:17.009 desserts were just so very simple so few elements 00:29:17.009 --> 00:29:20.029 like not a lot of garnish not a lot of like primping 00:29:20.029 --> 00:29:22.009 and preening and tweezer work and it's like i 00:29:22.009 --> 00:29:24.119 think that that's just like message that we can 00:29:24.119 --> 00:29:26.160 say about the entire meal it's like everything 00:29:26.160 --> 00:29:30.720 was done so simply well yeah i also have to say 00:29:30.720 --> 00:29:34.259 that like the the environment the the space It 00:29:34.259 --> 00:29:37.279 really felt like being at someone's home. Especially 00:29:37.279 --> 00:29:39.279 because we had a private room for ourselves. 00:29:39.460 --> 00:29:42.400 Yeah. But I mean, also when we went to the terrace 00:29:42.400 --> 00:29:44.900 to have coffee at the end, it felt, you know, 00:29:44.960 --> 00:29:47.660 like visiting someone's home and, you know. Yeah, 00:29:47.660 --> 00:29:49.980 and the landscape and the surroundings, man. 00:29:50.059 --> 00:29:53.859 You would see the cows on the mountain there. 00:29:54.339 --> 00:29:56.799 And like, even as we're sitting down, we're at 00:29:56.799 --> 00:29:59.420 this long wooden table, you know, like... Yes, 00:29:59.440 --> 00:30:01.480 they're white tablecloths, but not, like, pristine 00:30:01.480 --> 00:30:03.160 white that have been ironed, like, three times 00:30:03.160 --> 00:30:05.180 a day. But, like, you know, the things that you'll 00:30:05.180 --> 00:30:07.299 see at your grandma's house that she lays out 00:30:07.299 --> 00:30:10.240 for you. You can almost see... I feel like you 00:30:10.240 --> 00:30:11.640 almost see, like, scratches on the table. But 00:30:11.640 --> 00:30:14.779 to see, like, books lining the shelves around 00:30:14.779 --> 00:30:16.400 you, you really do feel like that someone's welcomed 00:30:16.400 --> 00:30:18.880 you into your home. Yeah, like, that's something 00:30:18.880 --> 00:30:22.220 I like very much, that it was not overly formal. 00:30:22.619 --> 00:30:25.960 Right? Like, also the treatment of the service. 00:30:27.400 --> 00:30:29.720 It was like being at someone's house at some 00:30:29.720 --> 00:30:31.839 point. They would tell us, you don't do that. 00:30:31.940 --> 00:30:35.559 Or turn your knife on the other way around. Or 00:30:35.559 --> 00:30:44.039 who stole my spoon? That's it for this week's 00:30:44.039 --> 00:30:46.779 episode of Potluck Food Talks. If you like what 00:30:46.779 --> 00:30:49.059 we're doing, make sure to subscribe to the podcast 00:30:49.059 --> 00:30:52.039 so you never miss an episode. You can also find 00:30:52.039 --> 00:30:54.839 us on Instagram and TikTok as Potluck Food Talks. 00:30:54.960 --> 00:30:56.579 The show airs every Monday.