Donostia | Marylebone Tapas Bar
The sun has got his hat on.
Hip-hip-hip… about freaking time.
Over recent weeks – while that fat ball of fire’s been stalling, and while you’ve been drowning in torrential rain and rueing the day that you abandoned your inspired plan to open an illegal cocktail shack on a hidden stretch of Maldivian beach – others have been living out their summer dreams.
They’re someplace warm, in a place where the beer flows like wine and where beautiful people instinctively flock like the salmon of Capistrano. A little place called “Donostia”.
Also known as San Sebastian, it’s the jewel in Basque country’s crown: sparkling waters and stunning beaches enveloped by plush, rolling hills.
Also, home to some of the world’s best tapas.
Unable to get the sun and beaches through customs, two restaurateurs have done the next best thing by bringing an authentic taste of Basque cuisine to London, in the form of new Marylebone hot-spot Donostia.
Having ironically poached a well-seasoned chef (Tomasz Baranski) from Barrafina and placed him centre stage in an open kitchen, Donostia quite literally revolves around his talent: a fact to which the pintxo appetisers; the cod cheeks in Pil-Pil sauce; the Tolosa-style crispy beef tongue and the milk-fed lamb all greedily attest.
Authenticity extends to the drinks list too: alongside the carefully sourced wine list is the local Basque cider specialty, which requires an unusual pouring method (from above head height) in order to increase “aeration”.
Wear something splash-proof.
NOTE: Donostia is open for dinner daily, plus lunch Tues-Sat. You can find out more, and book a table, HERE.
Donostia | 10 Seymour Place, Marylebone, London W1H 7ND
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