Amelia by Paulo Airaudo

Amazing 2 Michelin fine dining experience,very relaxed atmosphere and cool music.Tasting menu with Japanese influence mostly based on fish and shellfish,perfectly crafted by Chef Paulo Airaudo,who was in the kitchen during whole dinner time. Every single course cooked to perfection,presented and explained by chefs.Expensive,but worth it 100 percent.

Unbelievable experience with superior food, wine and atmosphere. Watching Paulo directing and teaching chefs and even carving pigeon himself were a cherry on top of the outstanding dinner. Star Wars references were particularly appreciated by me and fellow nerds. May the food be with you!

Absolutely amazing food, on point wine pairing. Quite interesting location (in the basement), but with cool interior design and focus on the open kitchen.
However, I’d deduct 0.5 Stars for the service:
The first main was served while still eating the previous course.
Had to proactively ask for the drinks menu after already finishing the 2nd amuse-bouche.
They couldn’t remember that we handed them an umbrella when leaving.
Everywhere else - fine. But when paying >800€ for 2 People … come on!

Amilia
The only 2 ⭐in San Sebastián. The restaurant has an open space where kitchen and dining room where guests enjoy their meal while watching the work of Chef Paulo Airaudo (born in Argentina to Italian immigrants and has worked in many well-known places such as Arzak, The Fat Duck, and Magnolia in Italy) and his team. The tasting menu has seasonal, top-quality ingredients. The menu features
international cuisine and uses seasonal and sustainable ingredients with focus on seafood. The outcome is delicious dining experience.

Every dish in this seafood-forward restaurant was delicious! The one dish I could do without was the cream pasta. It was a rich plate that didn't quite fit in with the rest of the light, summery menu.

While I enjoyed myself thoroughly, I was somewhat confused by the overall direction of the meal. I felt like I was at a Japanese omakase, with random dishes peppered in, to give it the guise of a regular fine-dining tasting menu.

I think what I'm saying is that I wanted the meal to either go full out with the Japanese influence, or innovate more with the sashimi dishes, like what he did with the delicious combination of wagyu and squid in the kushiyaki.

1. Squid
2. Salmon
3. Ebi
4. Bonito
5. Tuna
6. Ricciola/Tomato
7. King Crab/Iberic Pork/Truffle
8. The Bread
9. Lobster/Pumpkin
10. Pigeon/Onion/Maitake
11. Talleggio
12. Caviar/Banana/Rum
13. The Flan
14. Apple/Salted Caramel
15. Lemon Tart; Turron; White Chocolate/Kefir Lime; Pistacchio

Awesome seafood based tasting menu with wine pairing based on local and unique ingredients from around the world. Each dish and wine were properly explained on why the ingredients were chosen which enhance the experience! You will definitely feel full towards the end of the course.

This is an amazing resturant. Loved the trendy feel. Great music. The food was delicious and the ambiance is unique for a Michelin star restaurant. The Star War’s theme was a cool touch. We didn’t get to order, everything was picked by the chef, who came to talk to us at the end of the meal. We will definitely be back.

It sincerely was a magical night! The food was beyond amazing, and the service was warm and inviting. So happy we made this a destination on our journey to this lovely region! Look forward to dining in Miami soon! Many thanks to all the staff and chefs for a wonderful evening we will never forget!

My first Michelin Star restaurant, and it didn't disappoint. In fact, it was the finest dining experience in my life! Maybe it was the excitement of escaping Covid isolation, or taking the first vacation in over a year, or possibly it was experiencing San Sebastien for the first time. Frankly, I think it was simply that Chef Paola's tasting menu of fresh seafood, locally grown vegetables, and wine and beer pairings was the most exquisite eating experience I've ever had, period! Since my visit in July of 2021, I understand that Chef Paolo earned his second Michelin Star. Bravo Chef! And cheers to each of your hardworking sous- chefs and staff members who made the dining experience first class. Vamos, vamos, Argentina!

Truly an excellent Michelin star experience. Meal was about 3.5 hours long with 14 courses. Everything is made with extremely good attention to detail, flavor balance, and quality ingredients. Some of the highlights included the tuna with bonito gelatin and caviar, the pigeon, the lobster with Iberian pork consumee, and the vanilla ice cream with a banana mole sauce. The experience and service were both above and beyond expectations. While the meal was expensive, it was worth every penny and I would happily pay it again.

Very special experience: 5 star food, service, and overall hospitality. We enjoyed the seasonal tasting menu and 10 wines pairing. All dishes and wine pairings were superb. The standout for us was the staff at the restaurant who made our experience an unforgettable one, from the kitchen tour to the chef recommendations of restaurants in our next destination, to the server’s local recommendations of things to do in the area, and finally, calling a cab for us an hour after we’d departed dinner and couldn’t find one in the area. Extra bonus: Paulo greeted us in the kitchen tour and after the dinner to ensure we enjoyed our time. Highly recommend this restaurant for a relaxed, hospitable, and 5 star food experience!

Amazing. This is my 3rd Michelin star restaurant and one of my most favorite dining experiences. The staff was friendly and explained each dish in detail. The drink pairing was spot on and the food, out of this world. A must visit when in San Sebastian.

Amazing. Amazing food, tastes and sights. If you can sit at the bar and watch the chefs work you will be even more enthralled. It might be a little expensive but for the experience you get its worth every penny. Great tunes being played all night too....

A meal you will never forget....

What a phenomenal experience. I feel blessed that all the other starred restaurants in San Sebastián was close because I might have missed this glorious meal. Chef Paulo whips up just the right amount of creative food without being pretentious, everything was perfectly and ingeniously paired (caviar with rum ice cream!?), with flavour always at the centre of the creation. Such tasting usually dips in taste from dish to dish but this was great from opening snacks to the petit fours. Maybe the lamb was a little too adventurously raw for me but that’s it.

Heavily seafood based menu which is exactly what you want in a coastal Spanish city.

Worth every cent

The entrance can easily be missed, but the place is actually called Villa Favorita and has an entrance on both the beach side and the road side. Hands down the best restaurant experience I've ever had. Every single dish and detail done to perfection. It's hard to decribe in a review, but you will not be disappointed. There are no meaningless "fillers" between dishes - here they leave you wanting more of EVERYTHING. Even the white bread and butter is to die for! Portions are good, not leaving you too full to walk afterwards :P
A few things I want to highlight:
Stylish interior, but not too fancy - you won't feel underdressed if you show up without a blazer. It's an intimate dining area by the bar, where you can see how they prepare all the food. There's also a few tables for groups of people.
You are always taken care of, but it never feels intrusive.
Even the music is perfect - this isn't some meaningless background jazz, no, every song makes you want to either sing along, go watch that particular movie or play that game that the current song reminds you of! Speaking of games, the chef in charge is obviously a gamer, and has taken some inspiration from that into his workplace, from interior, to music, and even the food! A whiskey flavoured jello shaped as Darth Vader, you say? Of course! Or Super Mario characters on the beer can? Sure. Donkey Kong letting you into the kitchen? Naturally =)
They accomodated my nut allergy without a problem. Just let them know in advance when you're booking.
A minor detail: We decided to go for the "short" wine pairing, which is 5 drinks/wines afaik, but we ended getting served the full "Amelia" package which is 8 drinks. This was a pleasant mistake, as the servings were not too large (as they tend to be in some restaurants), and the drinks were sooo good. Sure, there's a price difference, but it's not a big deal. Finishing off the meals they took us to the terrace outside, where we got liqeurs and petit fours in the sunset, with a view of the beach.
What a night. What a meal. I'm coming back to San Sebastian just for this.

Incredible experience. We asked aperitive were served on the terrace to enjoy the sea view. Meals were incredible, advices about wines were great and accurate. Service was helpful and perfectly described the different courses we had. I can't find something which bothered me. The three Michelin stars should be a formality to get, as Paulo Airaudo is far from other two Michelin restaurants I tried lately.

Without a doubt, the best meal and dining experience I’ve ever had. Every dish seemed to get more delicious. The pasta with truffles, pigeon, and ice cream with caviar were favorites. The chefs added to the experience as well. You could feel their excitement about the dish as they presented it. If you ever find yourself in San Sebastián, Amelia is a must.

The best meal I’ve ever had. Inviting, friendly, warm, and most importantly, delicious. Every bite imaginative and inspired. I would definitely come back if I am ever in San Sebastián again. My 8 year old daughter loved it too (but she is a very adventurous eater for a kid).

Superb degustation, thoughtful, creative, delicious. Significant effort from the chefs, sourcing local high quality produce, with Basque, Italian and Argentinian influences. Attentive service, fine wine.

Exceptional food. The fusion between Japanese and Spanish /Italian influences is extraordinary. The pace by which each course is served is perfect. Service personnel and the chef are extremely friendly and personable, never pompous or stuffy. Wine pairing is good but could be better. We weren't fond of the IPA beer. I have experienced many Michelin star restaurants. This place deserves a second star in my opinion.