"Tapa"
is a spanish way to call all the foods you can eat in a bar, can be peanuts, can be ham, can
be watever thing you eat with a drink. In basque area we never have used this
word, we have diferent foods with the driks and many pintxos (prickles), small
foods you can take in your hand and eat easily in one or two bites, ham,
peanuts or peackles... are not pintxos, we call to them food or simply "I
want peanut portion"...we never ever use that word " I want a tapa of
peanuts or tortilla tapa .
Basque cooking enjoys a reputation for being one of the best cuisines in the world.
This statement is corroborated by everyone who visits
this region and eats at a bar, restaurant, steakhouse or cider farm - the food
is very good in the Basque Country.
Traditional cooking based on the quality of its
products and their simple
preparation, with roots in public tradition and in which
seafood plays a special part, although we should not forget our tasty meats and
local products such as beans, cheese and junket. These and other products
complete the extensive repertoire of our traditional gastronomy.
Speaking of the Basque gastronomy, it would be
impossible not to mention the Popular
Gastronomic Societies, which can be found all over the region.
These masculine redoubts represent a unique phenomenon and maintain the
attachment to local culinary traditions very much alive. Without them, it would
be difficult to explain the deep-rooted popularity of Basque cuisine. In these
Societies, men cook for their friends and relatives, making gastronomy the
basis for their social relations.
Another of the curiosities of Basque cooking are the "pinchos" or
"tapas", small portions served in most bars and
restaurants and which represent another opportunity to try the delicacies of
our cuisine. The Basque Country offers a wide range of restaurants,
steakhouses, seafood restaurants, cider farms, etc., for all tastes and
pockets.
