5/5 Luke M. 5 months ago on Google
This
is
a
phenomenal
restaurant
unlike
any
other.
Mikel
Peinador
greets
you
at
the
front
door
as
if
he
were
welcoming
you
into
his
home,
which
he
sort
of
is.
The
restaurant,
if
you
can
even
call
it
that,
is
an
expression
of
his
personal
style
and
taste,
including
artwork
by
the
chef
himself.
You
feel
comfortable
and
at
ease
in
Tast-ller
as
Mr.
Peinador
calmly
assembles
dishes
in
an
open
kitchen
with
equipment
you
would
find
at
home.
Just
one
four
burner
cooktop
and
one
oven.
It
is
a
revelation
when
you
realize
the
chef
is
the
only
person
there.
He
cooks
food
for
just
8
guests
per
night,
which
is
prepared
with
tremendous
creativity,
warmth,
and
care.
But
chef
Peinador
also
clears
your
plates,
pours
your
wine,
and
delivers
each
personally
crafted
dish.
And
he
can
also
be
seen
loading
a
dishwasher
in
the
back.
It
is
clear
that
Mr.
Peinador
has
a
serious
culinary
background,
and
elements
of
his
dishes
have
touches
of
modern
cuisine
(like
the
use
foams).
His
artistic
side
also
flourishes,
with
each
dish
presented
on
a
unique
and
beautiful
dish
with
special
utensils
to
match.
But
none
of
this
is
fussy
and
there
is
a
total
lack
of
pretentiousness.
Mr.
Peinador
just
likes
beautiful
things
and
its
fun
to
interact
with
his
creativity.
From
speaking
with
the
chef,
he
changes
the
menu
frequently
and
it
is
always
a
surprise
to
the
guests.
He
modifies
certain
elements
daily,
based
on
the
availability
and
freshness
of
what
he
can
find
in
the
market
in
the
morning.
Our
dishes
included,
as
best
as
I
can
recall:
White
asparagus
foam,
with
fruit
jelly
and
olive
oil
Scallop,
with
Basque
beans
and
a
bread
roll
with
butter
and
anchovie
Calamari,
with
squid
ink
and
coconut
Sea
Bass,
with
a
traditional
Basque
sauce
Meat
Balls,
with
mushroom
and
potato
cream
Beef
filet,
with
truffles
Cheesecake,
with
smoked
Basque
cheese
Chocolate
mouse
with
toffee,
salt
and
olive
oil
You
get
the
feeling
that
chef
Peinador
is
not
only
passionate
about
his
food,
but
also
invested
in
sharing
it
with
you
and
making
you
happy.
As
if
you
were
his
invited
guest.
We
enjoyed
speaking
to
him
and
felt
privileged
to
be
there.
I
would
hope
to
have
another
dinner
like
this
in
the
future.