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The ‘DonOstia’ Café-Restó-Bar is located in Godoy Cruz, minutes away from the capital of the province of Mendoza.  It is run by Mikel Tena Goicoechea from Zarautz, and provides a varied menu whose star dish, without a doubt, is seafood.  “Our specialty is squid…they say that they are the best in Mendoza,” Goicoechea jokes. 

Godoy Cruz, Argentina.   Since it opened at the end of 2015, the Restó ‘DonOstia’ has been going strong, with a clientele that comes mainly from the good comments that are circulating word of mouth. Mikel Tena Goicoechea, restaurant owner, told EuskalKultura.com that they "were very well-received from the very first day.”  "Here in Mendoza there aren’t many places to eat seafood….and this has become our main attraction.  The people that come recommend us, and there are always people who come because they heard from somebody else that the food is good, abundant, and affordable, and above all includes attention that makes you feel at home". “The best of all is that we offer another plus: we diffuse the Basque culture and teach them some Basque phrases, that the people are slowly learning,” he says.

Born in Zarautz, meters from the ocean, Mikel learned the secrets of Basque cooking at home.  “I have cooked since I was a child along with my parents.  Later, when I was older, I opened my own restaurant in Zarautz, where Silvia went one day to ask for a job as a waitress.  She is my wife today and that is how we fell in love;  later we married, and then we had Gina, our first daughter.  When Gina was almost two we decided to leave for Argentina, to Mendoza, where my wife is from.  That is why we can say that we have this special touch at DonOstia, a Basque and homemade touch,” Mikel says.

To strengthen the Basque presence, the cook from Gipuzkoa keeps in touch with the Basque community in Mendoza, especially with the Denak Bat Basque Club, where, for example, he cooked with club members at the Aberri Eguna celebration. “We also keep meeting more Basques that appear at our house after we have been recommended to them.  It is really gratifying to meet Basque descendants and immigrant Basques that come and tell their stories.”

Specialties of the House

The most popular item on the menu are  txibiak or rabas (squid) – “They are already famous and I’ve hear that they are the best in Mendoza,” Mikel says smiling, but there are also grilled prawns, with garlic and scrambled eggs: tortillas and paella.  There are also Argentinean dishes, like milaneseas, empanadas and locro.  “It is a Basque-Argentine restaurant and so we always are ready to expand the menu,” the chef explains.

About the name of the restaurant, there is also a nice story about this play on words.  “The name of the restaurant was chosen because it means Donostia as a Basque landscape.  On the other hand, my niece is a publicist and she was in charge of creating the duality in the name, I am Don Ostia (Mr. Ostia)… because I say ostia so much when I talk!”

The ‘DonOstia’ restaurant is on Juan de Garay Street, 146 in Godoy Cruz, Mendoza. You can find them on Facebook here: ‘DonOstia’.