Two meals in Basque Country: a delicious study in contrast

A famous pinxtos bar in San Sebastian.

The small autonomous region of Basque Country that stretches across the border of southern France and northern Spain is one of the best places to eat in the world. Nestled between the rugged slopes of the Pyrenees and the Bay of Biscay on the Atlantic, its stunning and varied geography affords plentiful, first-rate ingredients — fish, famous meats like Bayonne ham, red Espelette peppers…