In the southern part of the province of Gipuzkoa you’ll find Idiazabal, a town surrounded by the Aralar and Urbia Mountains. Alongside the town’s historical quarter, shepherds’ monument, and cheese museum, its gastronomy is one of its main attractions. This is the birthplace of the famous Idiazabal cheese. Do you want to know what places for eating in Idiazabal offer this delicacy?
Eating in Idiazabal will be a treat for your taste buds. The town’s name is invariably associated with one of the Basque Country’s most popular products: Idiazabal cheese. The cheese is made by hand in the cheese shops of the Basque Country and Navarre using unpasteurized whole milk from the latxa sheep, a breed native to the region. The cheese is allowed to age for 2-6 months and then smoked to give it its color and distinctive flavor. You can learn more about it at the town’s cheese museum. The first Sunday of every May since 1998, Idiazabal becomes the cheese capital with a festival showcasing the eponymous product. The rest of the year, Idiazabal is a town that represents the traditional cuisine of Gipuzkoa with specialties like grilled meat, fish from the northern coast, bean stews, and traditional embutidos (cured sausages).
To put the finishing touch on eating in Idiazabal, try some home-style pastries like the classic mamiya, based on milk curd of sheep’s milk. Finally, we recommend trying a glass of handcrafted cider or Txakoli de Getaria, the province’s most popular white wine, to accompany whatever you find yourself eating in Idiazabal.
There are a few tapas bars where you can eat in Idiazabal. Although there aren’t a ton of options, we’ll recommend three of them.
Pilarrenea, located in a lovely historical home on Calle Mayor, is a simple establishment with personality where they make traditional dishes of Basque cuisine in addition to other options like raciones, pinchos, and sandwiches. All of their food is high-quality and reasonably priced.
Taberna Odei offers a wide selection of coffee drinks, beverages, and cold pinchos, among other things.
Finally, Batzoki is a pinchos bar known for its calamari, which has the reputation of being the best calamari in Idiazabal.
Although there aren’t many restaurants in Idiazabal, the town is home to a handful of good establishments.
The restaurant of the Alai hotel is one place to keep in mind when it’s time to eat in Idiazabal, due to the quality of their finished product as well as their use of locally-sourced ingredients.
The rest of our recommendations are restaurants found in nearby towns. In Olaberria there’s a restaurant in the Zezilionea hotel, an establishment with a mountainous decor where they serve classic Basque cuisine made with quality ingredients.
The restaurant Mujika in Mutiloa is another fine option where a wide-ranging menu meets a top-notch natural environment.
Another good establishment in the area is the grill Urkiola, located in Beasain. This classic restaurant specializes in barbecue as well as other recipes from the Basque cookbook.
The selection of restaurants in Idiazabal is supplemented by the offerings of nearby towns like Segura, Ormaiztegi, and Zerain.
