Restaurants in Bilbao
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Café Iruña
Moorish style and a century of gossip are the defining characteristics of this grande old dame. It’s the perfect place to indulge in a bit of people watching and, while you’re at it, you might as well also indulge in a meal or, in the evening, some pinchos morunos (spicy kebabs with bread; €2.20).
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Restaurante Guggenheim
El Goog’s modernist, chic restaurant and cafe are under the direction of superchef Josean Martínez Alija. Needless to say, the nueva cocina vasca (Basque nouvelle cuisine) is breathtaking and the ever-changing menu includes such mouth waterers as Iberian pork meatballs with carrot juice and curry. Even the olives are vintage classics: all come from 1000-year-old olive trees! Reservations are essential in the evening, but at lunch it operates on a first-come, first-served basis from 1.30pm.
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Larruzz Bilbao
Set on the banks of the Nervión, this incredibly popular restaurant (book ahead) has a polished business exterior, but a stone-cottage country interior. Its real speciality is paella, but it also serves various meaty Mediterranean dishes. The attached cafe can fill those unlucky enough not to get a table with various tasty pintxos. It currently seems to be trading under two names.
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El Arandia de Julen
An exemplar of modern Basque cuisine, Arandia has retained the best traditions in its creative dishes. There's a special Wednesday menú of traditional red beans with a lip-smacking mix of pork chorizo (red sausage), morcilla (black pudding) and more, plus a delicious hake course. Excellent Riojas add lustre.
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Casa Victor Montes
Part bar, part shop, part restaurant, total work of art, the Victor Montes is quite touristy but locals also appreciate its over-the-top decoration, its good food and the 1000 or so bottles of wine lined up behind the bar. If you’re stopping by for a full meal, book in advance and savour the house special, bacalao (dried cod).
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Rio-Oja
An institution that shouldn’t be missed. It specialises in light Basque seafood and heavy inland fare, but to most foreigners the sheep brains or squid floating in pools of its own ink are the makings of a culinary adventure story they’ll be recounting for years. Don’t worry, though: it really does taste much better than it sounds.
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El Perro Chico
Long established and still with its feet firmly in the kitchen in spite of visits from Frank Gehry, and a supporting cast of hungry celebs, this popular restaurant dishes up the very best in Basque cuisine, treating signature dishes, such as hake in béchamel sauce, with due awe and emotion. Reservations are essential.
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Café Boulevard
A Bilbao institution since 1871, disaster struck around a year ago when it closed down. Now it’s back in business with exactly the same dusty art-deco interior and old-fashioned service that we’d come to know and love. Bring a work of highbrow literature, sip a strong black coffee and enjoy the classiest cafe in town.
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Ristorante Passerela
Forget about sloppy pizzas, because this immensely popular hideaway is a real-deal Italian restaurant. As in Rome, you order a plate of pasta first and then one of meat or fish served on its own. Most of the pasta and all of the bread is freshly made. It's ideal for a filling lunch, but turn up early or book ahead.
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Abaroa
This intimate and brightly furnished restaurant is a big name with locals. It specialises in hearty countryside fare, but with a twist of today. The result is that black pudding and a bowl of beans have never been so well presented or tasted so good. There is a second, equally good branch on Plaza del Museo.
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Mina Restaurante
Offering unexpected sophistication and fine dining in an otherwise fairly grimy neighbourhood, this riverside, and appropriately fish-based, restaurant has recently been making waves in the Bilbao culinary world, with some critics citing it as the future numero uno of Basque cooking.
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Restaurante Vegetariano
Full of beans, this little place is one of the Basque Country’s all-too-rare vegetarian restaurants. It has crispy fresh salads, imaginative quiches and lots of bean-based meals. There’s an excellent noticeboard covering everything and anything alternative taking place in the city.
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Xukeia
One of the more character-infused places in the old town, it has something of the look of a small-town French bistro overlaid with raucous Spanish soul. The drool-inducing pintxos have won awards and at only €1 to €1.50 a go are cheaper than elsewhere.
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Victor
A long-established Bilbao favourite with a popular restaurant where you can enjoy the great Basque signature dish of bacalao al pil pil (salt cod with garlic); but it's in the main bar where you'll find classic pintxos.
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Sasibil
Sasibil gets a more middle-aged clientele than some of its louder neighbours and, possibly because of this, instead of rock videos blaring on the TV you'll find informative films on the crafting of its superb pintxos.
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FrescCo
You can cram your plate with salad and then scoop up soup, pasta and pizza as well as tasty desserts at this seductive budget venue. It's usually packed; pitch in around 4pm for some space.
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Gregorio Martin
For more delicate delicatessen-ware don't miss this terrific food shop with mountains of salt cod, chorizos, hams, preserves and discerning wines, all at reasonable prices.
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Ghandi
In an ocean of Basqueness it's nice to find an island of spice. One of the few curry houses in the Basque region, Ghandi has all your favourites, like rogan josh and chicken tikka.
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La Deliciosa
This quietly understated restaurant at the heart of the Casco Viejo has clean, modern lines and reasonable prices that still deliver a fairly classy eating experience.
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Artajo
Very Bilbao in its ambience; you won't feel like a tourist if you're after its famous tigres (mussels dressed in a spicy tomato and anchovy sauce).
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El Globo
This is a popular bar with a terrific range of pintxos modernos, including favourites such as txangurro gratinado (spider crab.
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Los Candiles
Los Candiles is a narrow, low-key little bar, with some subtle pintxos filled with the taste of the sea.
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Café-Bar Bilbao
This place has cool blue southern tile work and warm northern atmosphere.
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