Tapas in San Sebastián

If the dozen or so hours of "travel in Spain" television shows I've watched are any indication, one of the tapas capitals of Spain is San Sebastián. There's one particular district where every bar you glance into has fifteen or twenty different tapas to choose from, all laid out on the bar. The quality is really high, just like the prices. Just the previous week, I had been at a tapas festival in Santander, and I'd noted that 2.50€ for a tapa and drink was a little expensive. Well, in San Sebastián, all three tapas we tried were at least 4€ each (with drink). Pricy! Feast your eyes on these lovely tapas.

This is what a typical tapas bar looks like. It's not a good food for mysophobes.

Hake pudding.

The old standby: Spanish ham in a small baguette. This is the most common food you'll find on bars all across Spain.

Stuffed peppers (probably stuffed with fish), breaded and fried. Those are bacon-wrapped sausages in the background.

I'm a sucker for goat cheese, especially when it's sandwiched between some Spanish ham and peppers.

Mushroom omelet on bread.

Mmmmm... Hot peppers.

I wish I had a wall in my house like that.

Potato rounds, fresh foie gras, and sauteed mushrooms. Most places don't have labels, but the ones that do are very nice, especially since you don't have to go around examining each one.

We really liked this place dubbed The Shish Kebab Cathedral.

Here, all the tapas were raw, and you had to wait for them to be grilled. It made them all the better. I had this one: shrimp, banana, ham, sun-dried tomato with a parsley vinaigrette. Okay, so I ordered it because of the banana...which was quite a tasty combination.

More shish kebabs. Calm down, my anglophile readers. It does say "rape bacon", but rape is Spanish for monkfish.

Goat cheese, smoked salmon and peppers. Who else is getting hungry?

Squid kebabs.

Left: eggplant stuffed with crab meat, right: eggplant, ham, peppers, and cheese.

Quail eggs are so cute, and just the right size for tapas!

Our grilled brochettes. Mmmm!!

Who's up for a tapa-hunting trip to San Sebastián?