BASQUE COUNTRYSIDE - TOLOSA - CASA JULIÁN TOLOSA - 2

Sep 20

3 min read

CASA JULIAN

In 2026, we revisited Casa Julián Tolosa, this remarkable, easily overlooked little restaurant, now famous on TV, located in the Basque countryside town of Tolosa, which is 28 km inland from San Sebastián.

Tolosa is a town and municipality in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa, northern Spain. It sits in the Oria River valley, which runs through the town.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkDVhvUsF_E

When you arrive at the restaurant and step inside, you might initially feel like you’re in the wrong place. You’ll notice an area filled with fridges and crates, which might make you consider turning around and leaving. However, you’ll be warmly welcomed by the owner, Matías Gorrochategui, known as “El Jefe.”

You will then be seated in one of the two old-fashioned dining rooms that don’t look like they have changed much in over a century. The walls are covered with many dusty wine bottles.

Photo memorabilia, various relics from yesteryear,

everywhere you look.

Once seated, you can watch the steaks being grilled over hot coals. They generously coat them with coarse salt, which they scrape off before serving. This technique is one of the secrets to enhancing the steaks’ flavour without making them overly salty.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8jbPDgP-No

Cooking a thick slab of beef to just above rare takes about 15 to 20 minutes, and this is the only way to enjoy your steak at Casa Julián. The main dish on the menu is the ‘chuletón de buey’ for two, which comes from older dairy cows. Don’t even think about asking for it to be well done, or you might just find yourself on the grill!

We then ordered a bottle of @bodegaslahorra La Horra Corimbo 2015 and a bottle of @vinedosdelcontino Contino 2016, and selected our starters from the specials and standard menus.

We started with a Contino 2016.

We then opened the Bodegas La Horra Corimbo 2015.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/7f8f8e_0fab52a7acdf4106a7148a2a6c37f29f/720p/mp4/file.mp4

The meal began with Cogollos de Tudela con Aceite de oliva (tiny hearts of local lettuce similar to Romaine but stronger, doused in exquisite olive oil)

Steak tartare.

Asperges spéciales de Navarre (special asparagus from Navarre).

Porruak (slow-cooked leeks).

Guisante lágrima (the stunning, strictly seasonal, wonderful teardrop peas).

Kaneloiak (cannelloni with slow-cooked rib, béchamel and truffle).

Albondigak (a large meatball with an excellent roasted red pepper ice cream).

Our wine for the main course was a bottle of @vinedosybodegassierracantabria Viñedos de Páganos El Puntido El Puntido, DOC Rioja 2017. The excellent sommelier chose this wine to accompany the steak, and it was a great choice.

Finally, the steak arrived, and it was absolutely stunning. The chuletón de viejo, a bone-in rib steak, is expertly trimmed and carved into two pieces. It is one of the finest cuts of meat you can find anywhere in Spain, and it’s not to be missed, especially in this extraordinary atmosphere. Dining here feels like being at the medieval home of a friend who is also a top-class grillmaster with his own dairy farm.

The slow cooking melts the fat, making the meat extra tender and juicy.

You will also enjoy pimientos del piquillo asados, roasted red piquillo peppers that are flattened and arranged in a single layer in a ceramic dish. These peppers are roasted to order, served piping hot at the table, and are so delicious that they could be the main reason to visit, aside from the steak. It’s worth noting that the peppers are always served alongside the steak, not as a separate appetiser.

From the short dessert menu,

Etxeko gazta tarta (homemade cheesecake).

Flan (egg yolk pudding).

Pastel de chocolate (chocolate cake).

Tejas eta zigarroak Tolosatik (tiles and cigarettes from Tolosa, sweet local biscuits).

We finished with excellent carajillos (black coffee with a shot of brandy).

The food and service on this visit seemed better than on our previous visit. There seemed to be more staff and a slightly upgraded menu. Everyone was as friendly as we remembered, including el jefe, Matías Gorrochategui.

A previous visit.

Tolosa is a quaint little town with a river running through it and a few other decent restaurants. It makes for a nice, easy day trip from San Sebastián by car, train, or taxi.