“I almost can’t believe it, but I’ve been going to Bar Pinotxo in Barcelona’s Boqueria market—and being served by the legendary Juanito Bayén—for almost 40 years. You can’t miss the garbanzos and blood sausage, followed by a sweet-crema-catalana-filled xuixo. A good croissant is a beautiful thing, but a xuixo is for the gods.”

“If you never had the chance to go to El Bulli, one of the best restaurants in history run by the one and only Ferran Adrià, then you NEED to go to Disfrutar. Its three chefs (Oriol Castro, Mateu Casañas, and Eduard Xatruch) were Ferran’s brains outside of his brain, and at Disfrutar they have kept the legacy alive and pushed it even further. I don’t want to tell you anything more…you just need to go!”

“To try the official dessert of Catalonia, there is only one place to go: Escribà, run by the fourth-generation pastry chef Christian Escribà. Crema catalana is creamy and sweet with a top that’s like the surface of a frozen lake, not made of ice but from crystallized burnt sugar…take your spoon and dive in.”

“If you want to learn the history of southern Spain, look no further than Casa Pepe. At this tapas bar, you will learn about the strong Moorish influence on the country, from the time that Spain was called Al-Andalus (the origin, of course, of Andalucía!). Try the alcachofas confitadas—artichokes fried in olive oil—and pinchos morunos, savory, delicious skewers of spiced lamb. And don’t forget the cold soups, like salmorejo, mazamorra, and the queen, gazpacho.”

“If you have never had a tortillita de camarones, if you have never even heard of a tortillita de camarones, can you say you are truly living? This is one of the most difficult, most amazing, most impressive tapas in existence, and Casa Balbino truly makes the best ones on earth. It’s time to live!”

“Right on the beach, they focus on serving the freshest tuna money can buy. Looking at the seafood on display is like looking at the window of a jewelry store. Here they have 15 different tuna dishes on the menu: smoked tuna belly, tuna sashimi, tuna tartare, tuna, tuna, tuna, tuna, tuna!”

“Nothing can prepare you for the history of a city like Madrid. This restaurant was built in 1642, as in almost 400 years ago! The oven in the center, which specializes in traditional Castillian roast lamb with crispy skin, smells so heavenly…trust me, you will want to jump into the fire and become one with the lamb.”

“If you can believe it, there is a sweets shop behind the walls of this monastery. The nuns there will take your order through a door—get the tea cookies, or the orange-flavored narajines, or the sherry-flavored mantecados de jerez (or whatever the nuns are baking that day). This is truly a taste of heaven! And don’t forget to bring cash—the nuns don’t take cards!”

“This is one of those amazing places that specializes in just a few things, and they do them absolutely perfectly. At Bar Santurce, you’ll find sardinas a la plancha—grilled sardines—and salty grilled Padrón peppers (be careful, 1 out of 10 are spicy!).”

“Forget what you think you know about paella (unless you have been learning from me!) when you walk into the door at Casa Carmela. This is truly the authentic, unbelievable paella that makes all other paellas say ‘I want to be you!’ The layer of rice is no more than two grains tall, and the bottom socarrat is perfectly crunchy. It’s not a surprise that they have been doing this for more than 100 years.”

“For a real Valencian experience, leave the city to visit the small town of Borbotó and try the sandwich known as esmorzaret, local speak for ‘small meal.’ You will be sitting next to the region’s farmers, eating sandwiches filled with local vegetables, eggs, meat—anything and everything can be put in your sandwich, right in front of your eyes. But just know that it’s only available in the morning from 9 a.m. until 12 p.m. This is Valencian brunch, people!”

“Did you know that Spaniards invented pizza before there was pizza? Maybe it’s hard to believe if you were raised by the ‘standard’ stories of the people of Italy, but once you have a traditional Valencian coca, you will see!”

“For a true taste of traditional Asturian sweets, you have to go to this pastry shop in Oviedo run by the fifth-generation Paloma de Blas. Carbayones, a beautiful, century-old invention of almonds, egg yolks, and sugar—then more egg yolks and sugar—are so deeply important to the people of Oviedo that they even call themselves Carbayones.”

“Almost everything that chef Xune Andrade serves at Monte is sourced from within an hour of the town of San Feliz, in the mountains 50 kilometers south of the sea. He forages his own mushrooms and chestnuts, serves local steaks from older cows (called vaca vieja—if you haven’t tried it, you need to!), and even adds local blue cheese to his cheesecake.”

“Cider is like a religion in Asturias, and Calle Gascona is where we all go to pray. It is lined with sidrerías, so pick one, like La Pumarada, order a few bottles of sidra, and start drinking! There are a few unique things about cider in Asturias: We pour the cider from way high up to aerate it, and drink a little bit at a time, then pour out whatever you don’t finish. It might take a few glasses to get the hang of it, but practice makes perfect!”

“It’s the first thing I think about when I go to a beach town: ice cream! And at this small shop, the owner, Ico Montelongo, only makes ice creams and sorbets using fruits that grow on the island of Lanzarote! I’m talking figs, watermelon, dragon fruit, blueberry, bananas…yes, it’s Spain, but it’s the tropical version. I’m telling you, there’s a reason they call this guy the King of Ice Cream!”

“When you’re sitting right next to the beach, smelling the ocean air and knowing that you’re on a volcanic island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, you can guess how good the seafood is going to be. Here at El Risco, you need to try two local seafood specialties: lapas, which are limpets or barnacles, look like a volcano, and taste like the ocean, and la morena, or fried moray eel, which is like nothing you’ve had before, the meat, fat, and skin all giving you a different flavor and texture.”

“One of the magical things about being on a volcanic island is that the soil is very, very rich—perfect for growing grapes. At El Grifo, Fermín Otamendi is the fifth-generation owner of a winery that has been making wine since 1775! When you go to the winery, you will see how the vines are grown to withstand the high winds and intense conditions of the island. And when you’re drinking the wines, you can almost taste the sea breeze in your glass….”