Korostondo Jatetxea, traditional and exotic cuisine in Otxandio.

Korostondo, the picturesque and traditional restaurant on the Dima-Otxandio road.

After enjoying a cold winter morning in Oleta and Otxandio, we ventured to discover the charms of the Korostondo restaurant, a curious establishment, where traditional dishes such as beans and cutlet share the menu with exotic dishes such as python or antelope. The restaurant, located on the road linking the towns of Dima and Otxandio (BI-2543), is famous in much of Bizkaia for its menu of beans and steak, a menu that we wanted to put to the test.

Great personalities of our culture, such as Mikel Laboa or Benito Lertxundi, lead the playlist of this establishment, a small detail, with which the Korostondo Restaurant prints the Basque touch on this farmhouse of Otxandio. Pleasant music that fits perfectly with the design of everything that surrounds the restaurant.

In winter, when the cold weather hits our land hard, beans become one of the most demanded dishes in our restaurants. This is how we located the Korostondo Restaurant, to the smell of beans.

Establishment: On the Dima-Otxandio road, shortly before reaching the urban center of the latter town, a Coca-Cola sign points us to the Korostondo restaurant, a commercial sign that has nothing to do with the type of establishment we are in. We go inside, a warm, quiet space with dim lighting and Basque music with a wooden structure in which we visualize 3 different spaces: a small dining room behind the bar (50 diners), a much larger one in the lower part of the restaurant (250 diners) and the tables surrounding the bar (25 diners). All of them, decorated with elements related to our farmhouses and culture, a rustic decoration that makes it different from other establishments. During our stay we were impregnated with the traditional smells that smoke carries between dining rooms, a fact that annoyed some of the diners around us, nothing that a good washing machine can not solve. The only “but” we found was the distance between tables, very close together, a small detail that remains to be solved by those responsible for Korostondo.

Attention: Two young girls took care of our comfort, a quality service, to which we can attribute little or nothing, very pleasant.

Menu and menus: The Korostondo restaurant is known throughout Bizkaia for its traditional cuisine, but what many ignore, is that this Bizkaian restaurant keeps in its pantry exotic meats such as zebra, python, ostrich, gazelle or antelope, dishes, which have nothing to do with traditional Basque cuisine. If you feel like tasting these dishes and savoring exotic meats, Korostondo restaurant has a customized menu for you, the exotic meats menu. A menu for 2 people that includes ostrich, bison, kangaroo, camel, zebra, crocodile, python, dessert, coffee and drink for a price of 60 € per person.

In the menu of the day, present 7 days a week, we find traditional dishes such as beans at an approximate price of 13 € VAT included, tempting, a menu difficult to match, ask for it. Although the menu of the day is one of the best options, we opt for a trio that is always a winner, beans, chop and cheesecake, a classic combination of our gastronomy.

Location: 5 minutes from the center of Otxandio, next to the road that connects the town with the village of Dima.

An environment where nature takes center stage through the Urkiola Natural Park, an ideal place for lovers of active tourism, tranquility and rural environments.

Otxandio, Dima and Oleta, the towns surrounding the restaurant, offer very different and tempting plans that we recommend you to enjoy.

Menu: Red beans, steak and cheesecake, served with care and respecting perfectly the time between courses, this was our menu in Korostondo, classic, traditional.

Beans: The beans were presented to us together with the sacraments in a single container, in an earthenware casserole of considerable size. The beans did not have much accompaniment, only chorizo and bacon, both of good flavor. As for the quantity, it allows anyone who wishes to repeat the dish to do so. There is still room for improvement.

T-bone steak: Medium rare, rare, good flavor. At korostondo they present the chop on a small grill over coals, accompanied by a small bowl full of fried potatoes in the shape of a dice. Undoubtedly the star dish of the menu, very good cutlet.

Cheesecake: After a good plate of beans and steak, we ended our adventure in Korostondo with a more than adequate cheesecake.

Price: 30€ per diner, drink, coffee and VAT included. An even price for the dishes we enjoyed, correct.

An emblematic restaurant, which always has good food and we are always ready to enjoy. Our recommendation, chuleta, the dish to highlight. And you, what do you think?