the central role played by food in the lives of Spaniards quickly became apparent.

 

Lunches and dinners often spanned two to three hours, multiple bottles of wine and multiple courses, usually starting as soon as you sat down with a huge hunk of freshly baked bread.
JAX FAX started the journey along the Camino de Santiago in the city of Burgos at the restaurant Puerta Real with a meal of pork loin with potatoes and seasoned green bell peppers and wine—with at least a few additional courses plus a dessert of cheese with honey and nuts.

 

In Galicia, visits to places like Arqueixal showcased traditional cheese making and dairy production, while the women-led cooperative MilhUlloa highlighted the use of native herbs in teas and artisanal goods. The region’s viticultural heritage was experienced along the Bierzo Wine Route, where wineries such as Palacio de Canedo offer not only tastings but a visual immersion in vineyard-draped landscapes.

 

Together, these experiences reflect a cuisine defined by locality, seasonality, and tradition—one that invites travelers to slow down, savor each bite, and connect more deeply with the country’s many cultural rhythms.

 

The cuisine of Castilla y León & Galicia is just one part of an expansive, multifaceted culinary story. To get the full picture of Spanish gastronomy, JAX FAX got input from two people immersed in the Spanish culinary experience: Chef Daniel Chavez-Bello, who along with his wife, Alexandra Oliveros, owns Babette Miami, and Marvin V. Acuna, an enthusiast of Spanish culinary culture and a TEDx producer and organizer, who served as a speaking and talk architecture coach to Chef Aitor Zabala, chef-owner of Somni in West Hollywood, California.

 

The culinary experience and preferences of these two men span the regions of Spain.

 

 

Catalonia, Basque Country and Beyond
“My cuisine is inspired by different regions in Spain but mostly by Catalonia and Basque Country,” says Chef Chavez-Bello. “My focus is on ingredients and techniques from Spain, France and also Japan where I worked as well. I also am about to start operations in Mallorca. I designed the culinary concept for the Hotel Finca Banyols where I will open a fine dining restaurant Tafona 1475, focused on Mediterranean cuisine.”

 

Chef Chavez-Bello says he is especially interested in healthful ingredients: “High-quality ingredients and respect for nature, always caring for how food impacts in our body. Pure and clean, seasonal ingredients are the focus, with no additives,” is how he describes the core of his philosophy of what is most important to him as a chef. He says that across Spain travelers will find restaurants that reflect a similar perspective to his own. He encourages travelers to eat in the marketplaces. “Spain has one of the richest gastronomies. Trying the best of Spain means trying a lot of cultures and regions,” says Chef Chavez-Bello. “One thing that always helps is I eat in the markets, where you’ll find fresh and seasonal products and learn how different regions interpret the same ingredients.”
Spanish restaurants that share Chef Chavez-Bello’s culinary values are opening across the country. “There are many new places in Madrid, Barcelona, and all over the country. Some of our restaurants are the highest rated in some of the most important lists and guides,” he says. “I think it’s started years ago with Arzak and the new Basque cuisine and then in my generation with el Bullí. Now there are many excellent restaurants all over the country.”

 

Wherever you dine in Spain, Chef Chavez-Bello says that happiness is at the heart of the experience. “In Spain to eat means joy. Everything is celebrated at the table or by eating tapas or pinchos at the bar or at the market,” he emphasizes. “We eat late, we drink wine, we go to the market to get fresh food after. We don’t have huge fridges and we love to cook.”

 

 

Cuisine Rooted in History and Place
Like Chef Chavez-Bello, Acuna loves the cuisine of Catalonia and Basque Country but also has an affinity for the culinary experiences of Andalusia and Galicia. “Each has a distinct logic of flavor and identity that I find compelling for different reasons,” says Acuna. “In the Basque Country, I especially admire Arzak in San Sebastián and Elkano in Getaria. In Catalonia, El Celler de Can Roca in Girona and Disfrutar in Barcelona stand out. In Andalusia, I’m drawn to Aponiente in El Puerto de Santa María and Noor in Córdoba. In Galicia, Culler de Pau in O Grove is a remarkable expression of the region.”

 

Acuna says he loves that the food in each of these restaurants informs a visitor of the region’s current identity and past: “What I admire about these restaurants is not simply technical excellence. It is that each of them feels rooted in a place, a history, and a point of view.”

 

The Basque Country, particularly around San Sebastián and the coastal areas of the Basque Country more broadly, offers a cuisine shaped by both the sea and the mountains, he says. “There is great precision there, but also deep respect for product. The grill culture, the seafood, and the pintxos tradition all reflect that sensibility. Late spring and early autumn are especially good times to visit.”
Catalonia offers something different: a cuisine that is Mediterranean, historically layered, and unusually inventive. “It is one of the places where tradition and experimentation seem to speak fluently to one another. Late spring and early fall are ideal here as well,” says Acuna.

 

Andalusia carries Atlantic and Mediterranean influence, but also the imprint of Moorish history. “Olive oil, exceptional seafood, jamón ibérico, gazpacho, salmorejo, and one of the strongest tapas traditions in Spain all live here. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, particularly because the weather is more forgiving,” Acuna explains.

 

Galicia is defined by Atlantic seafood, empanadas, octopus, and a kind of product reverence that feels almost elemental, says Acuna: “It is one of the great places in Spain to be reminded that extraordinary cuisine often begins with extraordinary ingredients. Late spring through early autumn is excellent.”

 

Acuna says that across Spain he has a great love for the country’s tomatoes. “At their best, they remind you how extraordinary simple food can be: sweet, acidic, sun-driven, and expressive enough to carry a dish almost by themselves.”

 

 

Think of Spain as Many Different Cuisines
With the regions across Spain offering such diverse cuisines, Acuna says that he recommends that visitors think of Spanish gastronomy as more than just one kind of offering. “Spain rewards travelers who move region by region and eat accordingly, he says. “I would recommend combining one or two destination meals with a great deal of everyday eating: markets, tapas or pintxos crawls, wine tastings, olive oil tastings, seafood lunches near the water, and meals built around what is best that day. The traveler who really tastes Spain is usually the one who slows down, overbooks less, and leaves room for serendipity.”

 

Acuna says you can taste the many facets of the country with simple fare. No need to seek out the most exclusive restaurants. “A pintxos crawl in San Sebastián, a morning at La Boqueria in Barcelona, or a long seafood lunch in Galicia can tell you as much about Spain as any celebrated tasting menu.”

 

Acuna says he would think of dining in Spain as many culinary worlds within one country. “‘Spanish gastronomy’ is really a collection of highly distinct culinary worlds held inside one country. The mistake many travelers make is assuming Spain can be tasted in one city or one style of dining. It cannot,” he says. “To understand it, you have to feel the differences between Basque precision, Catalan inventiveness, Andalusian generosity, and Galician product reverence. Spain is one of the rare places where haute cuisine, bar culture, rural traditions, seafood markets, wine routes, and deeply local everyday eating all still speak to one another.”

 

 

For more information about tourism to Spain please visit: www.tourspain.es/en