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ing 3 INDEX Jose Luis Bilbao 5 Bilbao & Bizkaia 6 Bizcayans 11 Bilbao Zones 20 Architecture 25 Design 45 Fashion 51 Accommodation 61 Gastronomy haute cuisine 75 signature cuisine 83 market cuisine 91 eateries with charm 97 tastes of the world 105 “menu del día” set lunch menu 111 bar food 117 Museums 123 Galleries 129 Stages 135 Live Music 141 NightLive 147 Bars & Drinks Venues 153 Coffee´s 161 LGBT Scene 169 Beaches of Biscay 191 Escapes 197 Annual Events 205 Getting There & Around 207 Useful Information 216 4 5 The idea behind creating this guidebook is not just to promote Biscay and Bilbao among tourists throughout Europe, but also to create awareness among the citizens of the continent’s major cities about our way of life, and to reveal our wonderful city, a contemporary example of urban regeneration admired the world over. Bilbao is the capital of Biscay, one of the most developed communities in Europe, playing a central role in the prosperity and development of the Basque Country. Visitors will discover a Biscay immersed in nature and culture, architecture and art, a province that is open- minded and diverse, tolerant and respectful towards all different lifestyle choices. Biscay is modern and cosmopolitan but also welcoming and friendly, mindful of its past, whilst also passionate and decisive about the future. We invite you to set aside any stereotypes, allow yourself to be surprised, come and find out what we’re really like. We await you with open arms. Jose Luis Bilbao President of the Biscay Regional Council 6 BILBAO & BIZKAIA Since its origins Bilbao has been a and congress centres. The major city with a great industrial tradition. fashion labels can also be found However, at the end of the 20th in Bilbao -Carolina Herrera, century the iron and steel industry Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Loewe...-, fell into a deep crisis, forcing the alongside the proposals of the main city to rethink the basics of its European designers, with Basque economic development. This fashion playing a leading role uncertainty was captured in through brands such as Mercedes an article published in 1988 by de Miguel, Alicia Rueda, Ion journalist Juan Carlos Salaverri Fiz, Skunkfunk, Loreak Mendian in Ajoblanco magazine, a leading and Mirian Ocariz. Gastronomy cultural reference of the time, is another of the distinguishing entitled “Is Bilbao moving?” The features of Biscay and Bilbao, article closed with the question: “Is with many illustrious restaurants Bilbao moving or dying?”. Twenty serving contemporary cuisine and years later, we know the answer. also cosy local establishments The institutions of Biscay made offering up the finest of Basque a commitment to transformation, fare. Bilbao is a city that looks to making Bilbao an example of urban the future, its buildings reflecting its regeneration and a benchmark unstoppable transformation -some model for the rest of the world. designed by prestigious architects Bilbao has regained its dynamism such as Norman Foster, Cesar by becoming a city of services Pelli, Rafael Moneo, Santiago and embracing environmental and Calatrava, Frank O. Ghery, Zaha urban recovery. The old industrial Hadid and Arata Isozaki- but it is plots located along the banks of a city that never forgets where its the river have been transformed true heart resides: on the streets of into new and modern recreational its old quarter. spaces for residents and visitors to enjoy. This spectacular change However, Biscay is much more has transformed Bilbao into an than just Bilbao. Visitors who essential point of reference in come drawn by the lure of modern, the European panorama. The cosmopolitan Bilbao will also capital of Biscay is today, all discover Biscay, a privileged region over the world, synonymous with filled with natural landscapes dynamism and creation, a meeting and idyllic beaches. In less than place for all who are interested in half an hour, thanks to a modern architecture, design, gastronomy, public transport network, you can leisure pursuits and culture. visit enchanting coastal towns Nowadays, the Greater Bilbao or delve into rural Biscay and area offers broad-ranging its natural parks and marvellous proposals including film, theatre enclaves, with its green hills and and shows, an opera season, the hospitality of its inhabitants countless art galleries, world- keeping you company on your renowned museums, trade fairs travels. 7 Biscay is a province of the Basque Country. It covers 2,217 square kilome- tres and has 1,136,852 inhabitants. Two official languages are spoken in Biscay: Basque, the local language of the Bas- que Country itself and Spanish, the offi- cial language of the Spanish state. The capital city of Biscay is Bilbao, founded in 1300 by Don Diego López de Haro, Lord of Biscay. Biscay is the economic, social and cultural driving force of the Basque Country. INFORMATION: www.bizkaia.net www.bilbao.net 8 9 “Of all the places I would like to work, the first is Bilbao. I would love to do another building there “. Frank Gehry 10 11 BISCAYANS Four native Biscayans give us a few good reasons to visit Biscay and Bilbao. 12 13 ALEX DE LA IGLESIA Bilbao, 1965. Film director. www.alexdelaiglesia.com. President of the Spanish Film Academy since 2009, Alex de la Iglesia is, alongside Pedro Almodóvar and Alejandro Amenábar, the main reference for Spanish cinema worldwide. Films such as “The day of the Beast”, “Dance with the Devil” and “Common Wealth” have an enthusiastic following throughout Europe, Japan and the US. Rolling Stone magazine published an article entitled “Alex and Bilbao”, a highly personal view of the filmmaker on his city. Here are some of his recommendations: To Alex “Bilbao is indefinable, like the universe itself. Having said that, how can one tackle the hardest task that one can be asked to undertake? I mean, how can I talk about the capital of the world without overlooking someone? How can I describe the beauty that is hidden in the brownish grey tones of the River?” The article is entirely focused on the city’s gastronomy and its bars. If you want to “eat for real”, Alex suggests “Rimbombin, on Hurtado Amezaga. It’s got the best seafood and most attentive waiting staff I know, and Gure Kide, on Estraunza”. One of his passions are the local lamb kebabs, known as ‘pinchos morunos’: “I would start by saying that in Bilbao you just can’t miss the ‘pinchos morunos’. That’s right: char-grilled lamb, cumin and cayenne pepper: a tasty morsel unknown to the rest of the peninsula. The original birthplace of the ‘pincho’, the place where the Arabs copied them from, is Iturribide Street, in the Old Quarter, at Melilla y Fez. The ‘pinchos’ there are a life necessity. Prepared by the same team of professionals, you can also stuff yourself with ‘pincho’ kebabs at the Iruña, located in Jardines de Albia, which is somewhat like Madrid’s famous Café Gijón (only better)”. His other passion are ‘rabas’ (squid rings fried in batter), referred to in Spain as ‘calamares’. In Alex’s opinion ‘rabas’ are “another local product that we cannot overlook. There is an age-old controversy confronting the classic Artajo, on Ledesma, with the magnificent Gure Toki, in Plaza Nueva, and the unforgettable Serantes, on Alameda Urquijo. I shall dispense with odious comparisons: at all of these temples of culinary wisdom we can delight our stomachs with the best calamari on the planet, battered to perfection. And what do you think of the “felipadas” served up at the Alameda, beside the Alhóndiga? Or the “triangulos” at the Eme?”. To immerse oneself in Bilbao’s nightlife, Alex recommends “the legendary Muga run by proprietor Juancar, beside Unamuno Square, and Katu and Gure Txoko, on Barrenkale, and also on that same street, Txomin Barullo, where they have private room where you can have a bloody great dinner (beg your pardon)”. To top off the night, Alex recommends the “brilliant Umore Ona (heavy stuff). They still play the Rolling Stones there”. And, if you’re looking for a happy ending?: “After the hard battle, the night’s survivors end up in the legendary La Tortilla, in front of City Hall. What a pleasure to see the sunrise from behind a plate of mussels! When you leave the bar, you cross the bridge over the river and the impure air fills your lungs. The odd time I slip and fall into the river, but who cares? I’m from Bilbao”. 14 15 MIRIAM OCARIZ (Bilbao, 1968). Fashion designer. www.miriamocariz.com Miriam Ocariz set up her firm in 1998 and in 2002 won the L’Oreal Paris Award for best young designer collection. Since 2009 she has been distributing her designs all over the world. Her collection was selected to inaugurate Madrid’s Cibeles Fashion Week 2010. For Miriam, “Bilbao is a perfect place to spend a weekend or long weekend. It’s just the right size to be able to stroll around leisurely, no rushing, no stress”. She recommends seeking accommodation at “the modern hotels dotted throughout the newly developed urban districts or the intimate hotels and charming apartments in the Old Quarter”. For eating out, she reckons that in “el botxo”, as Bilbao is often referred to locally, “anywhere is good. Traditional restaurants thrive in Bilbao, as do the most contemporary culinary names”. For a drink, Miriam suggests “following the footsteps of the local pub-crawlers, around the streets of the Old Quarter, where a nice glass of red wine or the local white “txakoli” always goes down well”. The Old Quarter is also one of her favourite places to for “pintxos” (tapas), though not the only one.