TASTE OF SPAIN
Below is a selection of the meals that define this journey—restaurants we’ve chosen not for flash, but for soul, precision, and the way food brings people together after long days on the bike.
”There is always something beyond the horizon” -
José Andrés
Dining in Spain: A Different Tempo
Spain doesn’t do early dinners. It doesn’t rush. And it has absolutely no interest in the schedule you showed up with. Dinner starts at eight—sometimes nine—and just keeps going. This isn’t something to muscle through. It’s something to sink into. The game isn’t endurance, it’s rhythm. Arrive calm. Arrive fed. Arrive curious. Leave the table satisfied, not wrecked. Do it right and tomorrow’s ride feels lighter, not heavier.
Lunch does the heavy lifting here. It’s the anchor. Dinner is the long drift—lighter, slower, built for conversation. Treat it like a slow burn, not a main event, and the night stays friendly. Somewhere in the late afternoon, take a small feed. A tortilla. Yogurt and fruit. A bocadillo. Something simple. Just enough to take the edge off so you don’t show up ordering like it’s your last meal.
Hydration starts the second the ride ends. Long dinners, warm air, and wine stack up fast if you’re already behind. Get ahead early and the next morning rewards you. Wine is part of the story—of course it is—but don’t let it write the ending. Match it with water and you’ll sleep better, recover faster, and actually want to ride.
Ordering isn’t a competition. It’s communal. Share plates. Trust the kitchen. Let the food come at its own pace. You don’t need to conquer the menu—we’re doing this again tomorrow. When the plates clear, that espresso isn’t about caffeine. It’s punctuation. A clean full stop. Go decaf if you need to, but don’t skip it.
And then there’s the quiet cheat code: a short siesta after the ride. Twenty, thirty minutes. That’s it. Skip it and dinner feels late. Take it and the night suddenly makes sense. Spain runs on tempo, not clocks. Once you stop fighting that rhythm, the late nights stop feeling late—and start feeling exactly right.
Kabo - Pamplona
This husband-and-wife–run kitchen takes its name from the Maasai word Kabo, meaning butterfly—a quiet philosophy reflected in both their cooking and a simple line above the pass about chasing big dreams. For our evening, the restaurant opens exclusively for us, creating a private, intimate setting around a single tasting menu: modern, restrained, and deeply rooted in Navarra, built around the seasons, nearby gardens, and small local producers. Highlights include the Cebollita de la Mejana, a humble local onion treated with precision, and Transformation, a tableside dessert that subtly mirrors metamorphosis. Thoughtful wine pairings complete a meal that feels confident, grounded, and unmistakably of place. restaurantekabo.com
Bodegon Alejandro - San Sebastian
Tucked into the old stone arteries of San Sebastián’s Parte Vieja, Bodegón Alejandro is Basque cooking stripped to its essence — confident, precise, and unapologetically rooted in tradition. No theatrics, no noise — just deep flavor, sharp technique, and plates that speak quietly but hit hard. After a long day on the bike above the Cantabrian, this is where you land: low light, proper wine, serious food, and a table full of stories. It’s not just dinner — it’s the reason this city sits at the center of the culinary world. bodegonalejandro.com
Narru - San Sebastian
Set just across from the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, Narru is built on a simple idea—let the product lead. This is one Michelin-starred cooking rooted in market tradition, elevated through precision and quiet confidence. There’s a more relaxed front space for tapas, and a refined dining room beyond, where the menu sharpens into something more focused—à la carte or tasting, both driven by seasonality and intent. Nothing forced, nothing overworked—just Basque cuisine, done properly, with a subtle edge. narru.es
Los Parajes — Laguardia
Set within stone walls in the heart of Laguardia, Los Parajes is warm, intimate, and unhurried. The cooking is rooted in Rioja—seasonal ingredients, honest flavors, and thoughtful technique—paired with a deep, well-chosen local wine list. In the 16th-century cellar below, guests can enjoy a menu of small bites designed specifically to accompany the winery’s wines. Calm, intuitive service lets the evening unfold naturally. This is a dinner that lingers, long after the table clears.
El Choko de Remigio
Brothers Juan and Luis Salcedo build their cuisine around the vegetables of La Ribera, grown by their own hands in the fertile soils of La Mejana. Sun, water, and the cierzo wind shape everything that reaches the plate, with menus evolving in natural cycles—Ice, Splendor, and Veraison—rather than fixed seasons. This is vegetable-forward cooking taken seriously: precise, inventive, and deeply rooted in Navarre. Traditional technique meets constant experimentation, turning stems, shoots, and overlooked parts of the plant into dishes of surprising depth. Supported by a thoughtful, local-focused wine list, El Choko is a quiet, confident tribute to the land—and proof that vegetables can lead the conversation. remigio.com/gastronomia
RESTAURANTE MAITE
Set in the pulse of the old town, just steps from the Caesaraugusta Theatre Museum, Maite is a reset—quiet, controlled, and focused. The cooking stays rooted in Aragón, but with a modern edge—seasonal product, precise execution, and a clear sense of intent. Two tasting menus lead the experience, built around local ingredients and thoughtful presentation. Nothing overdone. Just refined, contemporary Aragón—done properly. guide.michelin.com
Parador de Lleida Restaurant
Set inside a 17th-century convent and former church in the historic heart of Lleida, this Parador is all stone, arches, and quiet gravity. The main dining room—once sacred space—now hosts long, deliberate meals rooted in Catalan tradition, built around local produce, regional specialties, and time-honored recipes. Snails, cured meats, cassoles, orchard fruit, Les Garrigues olive oil, and Segre DO wines anchor a menu that values restraint, craft, and place over flash. True to the Paradores ethos, this is dining that preserves history, supports local communities, and turns a sense of place into something you can sit inside and taste. paradores.es/es/gastronomia
Restaurant Crostó - Igualada
In Igualada, Crostó doesn’t play by one rulebook. Yes, there’s fire and Mediterranean backbone — but then the sushi lands, clean and precise, and shifts the rhythm entirely. This is Catalonia meeting Japan without confusion. Tight cuts of fish, balanced rice, sharp knife work — no gimmicks, just control.
It’s a cool pivot after days deep in Spanish terrain: sea and land, grill and raw, Rioja and sake on the same table. Crosto pulls it off because it doesn’t try to fuse — it simply respects both traditions and executes. Unexpected, confident, and exactly the kind of place that keeps the week interesting.
Bages964 Restaurant
At the hotel, we’ll begin with a 5:00 pm wine tasting, overlooking the vineyards of the Pla de Bages with Montserrat rising in the distance.
At Bages964 Restaurant, chef Alex Portales cooks straight from the land—local, organic ingredients shaped by Catalan tradition and modern technique. The Wine Bar invites you to linger, whether by the central fireplace or on the terrace, glass in hand, as the landscape does the rest. ollerdelmas.com
Restaurant Les Clarisses
Set within the quiet walls of Les Clarisses, this is Catalan cooking grounded in place—Osona on the plate, interpreted with a modern hand. Local ingredients lead, drawn from the surrounding region, with a kitchen that respects tradition but isn’t bound by it.
The experience is built around a tasting menu or seasonal offering—clean, intentional, and quietly refined. No excess, no noise. Just product, craft, and a setting layered with history. lesclarisses.com/restaurant
Restaurant Las Dunas
Tonight, after a long day, we step off the road and reset. At the Van der Valk Hotel Barcarola, the pace softens—time to settle in, enjoy the pool, and prepare for departure tomorrow.
Dinner is taken poolside, shaped by the spirit of Restaurant Las Dunas—a true expression of the Costa Brava. The kitchen leans into the sea: paellas, fideuás, and rice dishes at the center, built from fresh, local ingredients and the rhythms of the coast. Wines are drawn from the Mediterranean, chosen to match the simplicity and depth of the plates, followed by a quiet finish—something sweet, house-made, with the sound of the water never far away.
Easy, grounded, and exactly what’s needed to close the day.