Taberna Bask

good quality, good value cooking

Today’s horoscope for tapas fiends? One simple prediction, with a future feast in mind: anyone who has already sampled the authentic Basque cuisine at Bar Bask will succumb to the charms of its little sister, Taberna Bask. Serial entrepreneurs Sam D’Huyvetter and Nina De Cuyper (The Dudes) have put their psychic powers to the test, delivering a second masterstroke (and this time with a no-reservations policy) in a corner building on the outskirts of Ghent, which goes big on the industrial interiors (timeworn wood, wrought iron, polished concrete). On the shared plates, chef Florian Duyck – who works in close collaboration with Sam and Jorgen Michels (Bar Bask) – offers a (very) proper introduction to the Basque Country, Flemish-style: a selection of chacuterie made with their very own pigs raised in France; grilled pimientos de Padrón; flash-fried txistorra sausage; lardo or chanterelle beignets sprinkled with shaved button mushrooms; as well as mussels in ‘nduja sauce for a spicy kick; and cappelletti stuffed with guinea fowl and carrot brunoise; all mopped up with some perfect homemade sourdough bread and focaccia, which prove that they’ve got a firm grasp on the basics… The future is Bask! · Anita Kane