What’s truer than truth? And what could be truer than the very fact that the food we eat every day is one of the greatest gifts (and most basic of all needs) known to man? Just like the air we breathe and the love around us, we may oftentimes take food—and its meaning in our lives—shamefully for granted.

Fellow avid Gastronauts, I am here to tell you of a town where eating—whether out or at home—is an art form. 

This is where preparing for a meal can be just as—if not more—titillating than actually eating it. Here, preparation takes time, but not because of hours spent toiling in the kitchen. It might be the hours and steps and sometimes miles taken in gathering all the goods you need, OR the time you gladly lose yourself to the glory of shopping at Les Halles. This tented food “hall” can make any foodie, any hungry being, titter with excitement and flock to each stand like a child at an amusement arcade. Oh and the child in you won’t want to leave. 

Here, you’ll behold an overwhelming selection of cheeses and charcuteries, foothills of steamy bread and glistening pastries, raw milk and fresh butter, the fleshiest of fruits and brightest of heirloom vegetables, prepared delicacies like fishcake, truffled deviled eggs and everything only dreams are made of… I don’t need to use the word “curated” because everything here IS, and nothing is NOT. With a food market so refined in its products, the struggle to reach Gastronomy’s “haute” altitudes is obliterated.

Typically, cooking at home can be a rat race each monotonous day, with 3 meals for a family of 1, 2, or who knows how many! We’re left to our own devices in the kitchen, faced with weights and measures, timings and temperatures, perilous stove flames, foreboding blades, and sputtering, blazing oil… dabs of this and that, and then, foothills of dishes, pans, and cookware to clean and organize—all in the name of pleasing and healthy sustenance, IF we’re successful, that is. I’ve thrown out poorly prepared dinners many a time. But if you are blessed to have such a food fantasyland as Les Halles in your life, the kitchen becomes a playground. The product inspires. The product is everything. Plus, some products are ready-made!

But Les Halles has no fish market. No place to buy the flour and the almond milk and the various other stuff required for cooking goals. Luckily, finding all the rest means walking, wandering and discovering. Perhaps you’ll stumble upon the Carlier Traiteur where the most intricate fish delicacies are prepared to go. The discovery process is the whole point. It makes the anticipation of eating intentional and meaningful, like the actual playing being more amusing than winning raffle tickets or the prize.

And dining out is just as thrilling here in this Basque jewel and the quaint villages surrounding it. It’s a short distance from gastronomic destinations like San Sebastián and Saint-Jean-de-Luz (hint, hint). Whether fine or casual, dining here is always inspiring. You might stumble upon a mountainside restaurant where hikers stop for a quick meal, only to discover its Michelin-quality cuisine disguised by humble paper tablemats, the owner’s dog lounging around, and a woodsy ambience with rustic views. And when the bill arrives, you’ll spend only a mere 15-30 euros per person.

Walk down any of this town’s main streets, and free-drifting Basque aromas will tease your nostrils. At casual Le Bar Jean, for instance, wine always comes before anything, even chatter with the waitor or owner. And here, it’s cheap, but good—a sort of lubricant, if you will, to bolster your joie for the good life. The waiters’ll bring seemingly simple, familiar dishes: a plain salad or shrimp in sputtering oil with chili pepper and garlic. But these are no ordinary dishes. No, these are the kind you eat with voluptuous concentration. As everything from their texture, flavor, and extravagant aromas to the bustle and energy of the ‘locale’ overwhelm your senses. 

I intend no more suffering upon you. I shall finally put your anxiousness at ease. This greatest gastonautical place on earth is none other than Biarritz.

I’ve been coming to Biarritz for 13 years and the photos below, from my 2023 summer visit, are of (some of) my most cherished-ever spots and those I’ll never tire of.

Reminiscing now, I realize it was never actually just about the fishcakes or the 1001 cheeses or Miremont’s buttery walnut cookies. It was the indelible fragrance it left etched in my memory that made way for new ways. Of preparing and creating and enjoying one of the greatest gifts known to man.