Kokken — Restaurant in Bilbao

During our stay in Blibao, we dined here on a Thursday evening. We called quite last minute, but there was still room. Despite the fact that I was pregnant, the staff responded enthusiastically and said we were very welcome. We were first in line, so we could choose our own table. They also took the customized menu very well into account. It was nice not to have to think about or figure out what I was having for dinner. They always start with a 4-course menu, including one dessert. After the third course, they asked if we wanted the 7-course menu or dessert. We both chose the 7-course menu for €30.50. For the quality of the food, it was definitely excellent. A few drawbacks were the interior, which we didn't particularly like, the rapid pace of the plates, and the way the staff rushed around—it was truly unsettling. They were practically running around all evening. We finished 7 courses in 1.5 hours, despite having requested and received two 10-minute breaks, and by then we were already back outside... But culinarily, this was definitely a very...

We came for dinner just as they opened at 8.30pm. This is a concept restaurant where they design a surprise menu for you, and you can opt for the small (5 plates, €22), medium (7 plates, €28) or large (9 plates, €34) menu. The restaurant had some great background music playing giving a relaxed atmosphere and the decoration was bold but cosy. The waitress was very friendly and helpful and took our drinks order and asked us about any dietary requirements. Then the food arrived! We had cured tuna with an onion and olive puree, chicken and curry croquettes, squid with alioli and teriyaki, langoustine with sweetcorn cream and ham, pulled pork tacos, steak with a peach puree, and for dessert a coconut pannacotta with pinapple sauce and a passionfruit cream! Everything was delicious!!! And all that for €28! Note that drinks are not included in the price of the menu, however a nice glass of wine costs only €2.40 and a beer is €2.60. We left with full stomachs and got very good value for money, and the service was fantastic! This is a must...

An informal Michelin star-esque experience without breaking the bank!

The "special tasting menu" concept is pretty cool: have 4 mains and you can continue with 2 more, then 2 more or stop for dessert at these milestones. Your dietary preferences and allergies will be noted before starting this savoury journey. The array of dishes changes occasionally, so my experience may differ from yours.

I had 5 dishes - 2 surf, 2 turf and 1 dessert for less than 20 Euros. The seafood dishes (seared scallop with miso puree and togarashi as well as grilled squid in teriyaki sauce aioli) were stand-outs for me... Fresh, tasty and unique Asian flavour combinations. The chicken croquette and lamb kebab with couscous didn't resonate that well with my tastebuds. The dessert ended the meal really nicely, a textural harmony of a parfait, white chocolate ganache, banana mango puree and biscuit crumbs. Suffice to say that bowl was emptied in seconds!

Gutted that I wasn't able to try the 4 remaining dishes, so will book another table in the...