The Camino de Santiago, also known as the Way of St James, is a complex network of pilgrimage routes that lead to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, where the remains of the apostle St James the Elder are believed to be buried. The Camino is hugely popular, with nearly 450,000 pilgrims making their way towards Santiago in 2023 alone. Today, the route hosts not only religious pilgrims, but also a mix of thru-hikers (those hiking an established long-distance trail end-to-end continuously) and tourists.
It’s easy to eat and drink well along the Camino; especially if walking along the original Camino Francés, or the French Way, the most famous of the Camino de Santiago routes, which starts in the town of St-Jean-Pied-de-Port in France’s far southwest and passes through some of northern Spain’s most coveted food-and-wine regions. From the pintxo paradise of Pamplona to Rioja wine country, through meat-loving León to journey’s end in Galicia, following the path of the Camino offers an immersion in the gastronomic culture and hospitality of northern Spain.
People have different motivations for walking the Camino Francés, from spiritual fulfilment to the physical challenge of a roughly 780km hike. But they all have one thing in common: from the minute they step into a café for breakfast to when they sit down to a communal evening meal, they will be nourished by the wonderful food and drink of northern Spain.
Pamplona
Four days or so into the Camino, pilgrims arrive in Pamplona, the capital of Navarra. The city is famous for the running of the bulls, popularised by Ernest Hemingway in The Sun Also Rises but there’s a lot more to Pamplona than bulls.
Historically a Basque-speaking province, Navarra is steeped in the pintxo culture that’s ubiquitous in this northern corner of Spain. Not to be confused with tapas, pintxos (from the Spanish word pinchar, ‘to puncture’) traditionally come on a small slice of bread with a toothpick through the middle to hold all of the ingredients in place. Navarra is home to some of Spain’s best produce, and it’s common to see fire roasted Piquillo peppers, mushrooms and white asparagus perched atop slices of bread, not to mention everything from shrimp and fried eggs to spicy local txistorra sausages. Hungry pilgrims should make their way to Pamplona’s main square, the Plaza del Castillo, where Hemingway fans can sit down at one of the writer’s favourite spots, Café Iruña, for coffee and people-watching.
The pintxo party gets started in the evenings, around 8-10pm, when the Spanish gather for a (literal) moveable feast as they hop from bar to bar. From Plaza del Castillo, start the pintxo crawl at Bar Gaucho, renowned for its gourmet pintxos, such as truffled egg and foie gras. Another must-visit is Baserriberri, where the modern menu features quirkily named pintxos such as the Singapore Tiger and #SuperhotDogKreativo. Wash these tasty treats down with a glass of Garnacha from Navarra, or perhaps a wine from nearby Rioja.
Those with time on their hands should pay a visit to the Gothic Catedral Metropolitana de Santa Maria de la Real or the Museo de Navarra, which features art and artifacts that date all the way back to the Roman occupation of Navarra and before (with an entry fee of only €2).
Café Iruña, Pamplona. Credit: Jorge Tutor / Alamy Stock Photo
Logroño
Another four days’ walk or so along the Camino takes you through Rioja, Spain’s most famous wine region. Though best known for its barrel aged red wines, the region also makes rosé and white wines from grapes such as Viura and Malvasía.
In the capital city, Logroño, head to the iconic Calle Laurel area, where more than 80 bars are packed into roughly 300m of narrow streets. A stop at Bar Angel is obligatory for its champis: three grilled mushrooms on a skewer placed onto a slice of bread, topped with a prawn and then smothered in garlic butter.
You can usually get a €1 glass of wine…
Source : https://www.decanter.com/magazine/the-camino-de-santiago-a-food-wine-guide-550641/
