Barrenetxe

When we arrived in San Sebastian our landlord told us that Barrenetxe had the best café in town. He told us that Spaniards eat sweet pastry for breakfast along with café con leche or espresso or chocolate.
Barrenetxe was right around the corner and very crowded with locals. The café con leche was 1.45 E!!! Say what? It was so delicious, in fact the best café con leche I’ve ever had. We also tried a pastry that smelled like cinnamon and apple (I don’t know the name) and it was simply heaven. During the week we tried other pastries, one that I liked the best was the croissant au chocolate. The chocolate is the creamiest, thickest elixir you will ever taste! We revisited Barrentxe every day of the seven days in San Sebastian!!!
We are going to miss our little café!

We passed by Barrenetxe every day on our way to the Parta Vieja in San Sebastian and the delicious scent of freshly baked bread and the warm lights shining through the windows lured us in one morning. After that, it was a stop we made daily during the rest of our time in the city.
This bustling bakery has been around since 1699, producing the most mouthwatering bread, pastries, and sweets for all the enjoy. Their specialties are regional pastries, one of which is unique to their bakery called the Txintxorro, a delicious moist muffin topped with a caramelized nougat-​y almond crust. My husband preferred their Donostiarras pequeños, small cakes soaked through with a lemony/​maraschino-​syrup then topped with a sugary glaze. We also had a croissant and some donuts filled with custard, all of which were wonderful.
There aren’t a whole lot of savory options but one they do offer is a Pan con Tomate. This is typically a piece of rustic bread drizzled with olive oil and rubbed with a piece of tomato. This is one the simplest things to eat but possibly one of the most delicious as well. The unique thing about the one they offer at Barrenetxe is that the bread isn’t rubbed with a tomato but you are given a glass of tomato purée to spoon on top of your bread and drizzle on the olive oil yourself. I enjoyed everything I tasted at Barrenetxe but I’d have to say the Pan con Tomate was my favorite.
The staff is friendly and will answer any and all questions as well as give good recommendations. A must stop if you are in San Sebastian, Barrenetxe will be sure to put a smile on your face.