Morcilla
The best Spanish food you can find outside San Sebastián is in…wait for it…Pittsburgh. Morcilla is a love letter from chef Justin Severino (of the outstanding restaurant Cure, a past Top 50 nominee). It celebrates the pintxos-eating, cider-drinking, fiercely independent Basque region of northern Spain. Here the gin and tonics are poured with house-made tonic and garnished with juniper berries and citrus, and the menu of small plates is as vast and ambitious as it is precisely executed. The thinly sliced spicy chorizo is cleverly topped with funky Cabrales blue cheese and vanilla syrup, resulting in what tastes like a very special form of meat candy. The classic egg tortilla, a dish by which all Spanish restaurants should be judged, is firm but still creamy on the inside and—bonus!—wrapped in jamón. The crispiest patatas bravas, eggshell-level delicate croquetas (filled with, for example, braised pig's feet and cheeks), three varieties of actually delicious sangria—all this at a 24-foot-long standing bar with hams hanging above? The only thing missing is that thick Basque accent.
PRO TIP: Order a foamy glass of Trabanco cider, dispensed from a two-foot-tall custom tap shaped like an arm.
THE DETAILS: Opens at 4 p.m. on weekends for afternoon snacking and drinking. Closed Tuesdays.
