9 best bars in San Sebastián, for excellent pintxos

Enoteca Masketa

Sherry, or Jerez in Spanish, is one of the world’s most underrated wines…and that’s what Carolina Schulze, owner and woman-behind-the-bar at Enoteca Masketa, makes sure every client understands by the time they leave. Her obsession with this oxidative fortified wine collides with her equal fixation on detail in this small bar on the very southeast edge of town, where you can find dozens of small-producer sherries, with up to 15 available at any given moment to taste by the glass. From hay-coloured manzanilla to nutty brown palo cortado, glasses pair with a curated menu of snacks with their own provenance: anchovies from Mutriku, mussels from Pontevedra, and Basque cheeses.

Address: Marino Tabuyo Kalea 13, San Sebastián
Website: instagram.com

Dry Bar

With a menu by one of Spain’s first mixologists, Javier de las Muelas, Dry Bar achieves that rarest of feats: a hotel bar that draws in both locals and guests in droves. At teatime, elegant regulars sink into spacious leather banquettes beneath lush velour curtains; by night, the mirrored tables reflect a livelier crowd of hotel guests buzzing over post-prandial drinks. The cocktails range from classic to visually stunning, all served in luxury glassware, from the delicate eponymous dry martini to the ornate tiki mug that holds a spiced mai tai. Signature creations incorporate local ingredients like Basque cider and pickled peppers. The service is as polished as the drinks themselves.

Address: Paseo República Argentina 4, San Sebastián
Website: marriott.com

Ensō

A world-class cocktail bar specialising in sake and Japanese ingredients replacing one of the city’s most legendary cocktail bars perfectly encapsulates San Sebastián’s shift into modernity. Ask any local about Dickens, and they’ll regale you with tall tales of late nights and gin-tonics. When mixologist Santiago Naula took it over to open Ensō, he left the wood bar polished over decades by thousands of elbows but restocked the shelves behind with an array of Japanese sakes, whiskies, and housemade cordials of Idiazabal cheese, Basque cider, and txakoli wine. The menu features classic cocktails and six house specialities, like the White Negroni Umeboshi, a delicate and complex take with umeboshi plums brined by Santiago for four months.

Address: Boulevard Zumardia 27, San Sebastián
Website: instagram.com

Arraun

Arraun stands as one of the pioneers in the city’s modern craft cocktail movement, making it one of the best bars in San Sebastián for years. Owner Mikel Ardanaz spent 15 years travelling the globe before settling down in the Old Town to create a regularly rotating menu of cocktails from this dark den, hidden away speakeasy-style. The menu is a compilation of drinkable works of art like the Funky Funghi, a drink where wild mushrooms are mixed with brandy, or a piquillo pepper-flavoured take on a negroni. During peak weekend hours, a queue forms, so arrive early and stake out a spot.