San Sebastian, summer of 2012. After three weeks on the Camino De Santiago, eating mediocre food but drinking fairly decent wine, I was ready to level the field. I headed to Spain's culinary capital, San Sebastian, otherwise, known as Donostia, for a reunion with my partner, Andres and indulgent meal after meal.
I could go on about my trip and list the amazing meals we had but that wouldn't be a slice of my life. Instead it would be a piece of cake. There was no doubt that we had wonderful, delectable meal after meal. Having said that, the special thing about this story is that the culinary experience I most remember from that full on foodie, reunion sex-filled gluttonous weekend, was actually an unexpected star.
I believe it was the second night I was there and Andres had a plan. This was a rare and wondrous occasion that he did the planning and I embraced it. We meandered down the cobbled streets and ended up at a place called La Cuchara de San Telmo. It was later so the place wasn't jam packed like sardines but I let Andres gargantuan physique take over the ordering. "Dos vino tintos y una oreja." Andres shouted across the bar.
"Did you just order an ear?" I asked.
"It's one of the best things they have, trust me." He said, his vino in one hand, jolly faced.
"What kind of ear is it?" I asked. I was okay with the ear of something. It wasn't the weirdest thing I've eaten before.
"You'll see." He replied with a twinkle in his eye.
One by one, plate by plate came out. One of which was so buttery, soft, with a soft squid like texture. It was more or less caramelized in flavor and we devoured it within seconds. I took a swish of my wine. "Where's the ear?" I asked curiously.
"That was it. Pig's ear." He replied and dashed away to order more wine. 'Really?' I thought.
It wasn't that I expected the ear to be bad. What had shocked me was the beautiful, silky, softy, buttery texture of this dish. I can still taste it today.
I'm not gonna lie. We went back the next evening for another "oreja." And my mouth is watering as I write this.
#TWTblog #Sliceoflife #SOL18 #isklproud
I could go on about my trip and list the amazing meals we had but that wouldn't be a slice of my life. Instead it would be a piece of cake. There was no doubt that we had wonderful, delectable meal after meal. Having said that, the special thing about this story is that the culinary experience I most remember from that full on foodie, reunion sex-filled gluttonous weekend, was actually an unexpected star.
I believe it was the second night I was there and Andres had a plan. This was a rare and wondrous occasion that he did the planning and I embraced it. We meandered down the cobbled streets and ended up at a place called La Cuchara de San Telmo. It was later so the place wasn't jam packed like sardines but I let Andres gargantuan physique take over the ordering. "Dos vino tintos y una oreja." Andres shouted across the bar.
"Did you just order an ear?" I asked.
"It's one of the best things they have, trust me." He said, his vino in one hand, jolly faced.
"What kind of ear is it?" I asked. I was okay with the ear of something. It wasn't the weirdest thing I've eaten before.
"You'll see." He replied with a twinkle in his eye.
One by one, plate by plate came out. One of which was so buttery, soft, with a soft squid like texture. It was more or less caramelized in flavor and we devoured it within seconds. I took a swish of my wine. "Where's the ear?" I asked curiously.
"That was it. Pig's ear." He replied and dashed away to order more wine. 'Really?' I thought.
It wasn't that I expected the ear to be bad. What had shocked me was the beautiful, silky, softy, buttery texture of this dish. I can still taste it today.I'm not gonna lie. We went back the next evening for another "oreja." And my mouth is watering as I write this.
#TWTblog #Sliceoflife #SOL18 #isklproud
Oh my! You are so much braver than me!! I am just going to have to trust you on this one. :) I enjoyed seeing and "tasting" Spain through your post!
ReplyDeleteHow could I resist the title? Having eaten my own way across Spain years and many unusual but spectacular platas. Sorry to have missed oreja.
ReplyDelete