Neven's back on our screens!
Neven Maguire explores the Basque country in the latest of Neven’s Food Trails series.
It screens tomorrow night (Thursday, September 29) at 7pm on RTÉ One television.
The ever popular chef visits the Basque Country and La Rioja, two regions in Northern Spain which are renowned for their cuisine. Neven has a particular affinity with this part of the country: as a young chef, he did a 'stage’ at Arzak, the famous restaurant in San Sebastian which has held three Michelin stars since 1989 – the only restaurant in Spain to have had three stars for nearly 40 years.
In this seven part series Neven visits Bilbao, San Sebastian and Bermeo in the Basque Country; and Haro in La Rioja.
Every part of the region has its own speciality: fish in Bermeo, where Neven sees mackerel being landed and visits a tuna canning plant, pinchos in San Sebastian (which has more Michelin star restaurants per square kilometre than any other place on earth), wine in Haro, cider in Altzaga and cheese in Segura.
Neven visits his old mentor, Sr Juan Mari Arzak, tours the Marques de Riscal winery, takes a balloon trip over La Rioja’s countryside, learns how to make pinchos (the Basque equivalent of tapas), watches sheep’s milk cheese being made by hand, and sees how two of Bilbao’s famous pastries are created.
Neven also enjoys a boat trip past the Guggenheim Museum, a football match at Athletico Bilbao, and visits the 'cemetery’ at the Cune bodega (winery) where penicillin grows over the bottles of wine to protect them.
Neven returns to Ireland to cook dishes inspired by his travels, in what promises to be his most exciting series yet.
The first stop on Neven’s Basque Country food trail is Bilbao. Here, he takes a look at the city’s incredible modern architecture, and of course its culinary delights. He calls in at the Manuel Angulo patisserie, where even the sweetest tooth can be satisfied. Neven also takes a trip to Zortziko, one of Blibao’s Michelin star restaurants and meets Chef Daniel Garcia who is renowned for his innovative approach to cooking.