Martin Berasategui Restaurant

I knew that I had to eat somewhere special during my time in San Sebastian since it has three of the top 50 restaurants in the world according to the S. Pellegrino World's 50 Best Restaurants 2011.

I arrived at 1 pm to an empty restaurant and sat at a table with this view.  The restaurant soon filled up but I enjoyed watching it transition to a full dining room.

The waiter pointed out that I could see the farm where the egg I was eating came from.

I opted for the 12 course tasting menu.  Although I ate alone, I was fully occupied by the food, the staff, the view and my thoughts.  I did not realize until far into the meal that photos are encouraged.

The Best of Martin Berasategui's Cuisine Tasting Menu

Mille-Feuille of Smoked Eel, Foie-Gras, Spring Onions and the Green Apple
Savage Salmon and Seaweed with Liquid Cucumber and Spring Onion with Red Fruits and Radish
Squid Soup, Creamy Squid Ink Ravioli Served with Squid Crouton
Oyster with Cucumber, Sour Fruit, Kafir and Coconut
Little Pearls of Raw Fennel, Risotto and Emulsion
Corrotxategi Egg Resting on a Liquid Salad of Red Tubers and Dewlap Carpaccio
Warm Vegetable Hearts Salad with Seafood, Cream of Lettuce and Iodized Juice

Curdled of Seaweeds with a Translucent Consomme' of Carabineer
Roast Red Mullet with Crystals of Edible Scales, Tail and Marine Salad with Sesame and Nuts
Grilled Sirloin "Luismi" over a bed of Swiss Chard Chlorophyll and Cheese Bonbon

Cold Essence of Basil with Lime Sherbet, Juniper Ice Shavings and Raw Almond

Chocolate and Acacia Honey with Unsweetened Irish Coffee

The meal was finished with this gorgeous sculpture with truffles, gelato and a drink.

I asked my server if the Chef was in the kitchen and was told no.  Later I was surprised with the Chef standing behind me.  Neither of us spoke each others language but I smiled a lot.  The server took this picture and it's been mentioned that he looks like a giant next to me.

The server also took me on a tour of the kitchen which was incredible.  I was told there were 50 people in the kitchen preparing food for 30 people in the restaurant. The food was delicious and looked like art.  The restaurant was calm and perfect.  The experience was such an introduction to high end Basque cuisine.