Martin Hotel - Basque Food Extraordinaire

When we told Julie Sheppard we we going to Winnemucca, she said we had to go to the Martin Hotel for the best Basque food ever.  I did not even know the Basques had settled in Nevada, but after consulting Dr. Google and reading about their journeys during the Gold Rush days, I knew we had to try it.

When we arrived at the hotel, it was not what I had expected.  For some reason, I was thinking it would be a large hotel with turrets and stone columns, but this is what we saw:

Not at all what we were anticipating, but we knew we were at the right place.  Upon entering, it was more like what I expected - a long bar in a room with wood floors and some decorative features on the wall.  The dining room was enclosed to the right, and although it was understated, we could tell we were in for something special.

The young ladies who served us were very casual - "Hi guys, how are you?  I will sit you here." She put down the menus on a table set for eight and walked away.  I did not know why we were at such a large table, but I figured that is the way they do things.  She was not gone for long.  Within a minute she returned with a basket of bread and a carafe of wine.  And that was just the beginning.

After taking our order (we decided upon lamb chops), she then seated three more people at our table. I said, "This is the 'make new friends' table," to which they responded, but I had no idea how true those words would be. (This will be documented in the next blog.)

Within a few minutes, the server brought out minestrone soup - the best I have ever had, by the way.  Everyone at the table shared the soup, but I could have made a meal just of the soup.  She cleared the table and then brought out a green salad with an Italian-style dressing to be eaten with pinto beans on top.  Outstanding!  Of course, I love pinto beans, and the dressing on the salad with the lettuce added an oomph that I did not expect.  Again, I could have made a meal out of that, too.

Once we had finished our salad, the dishes were cleared, and out came the sides:  garlic potatoes, green beans with bacon and other stuff, and a chicken, pepper and onion concoction that could have been the main dish for any meal.  I took small amounts of each, as I was seeing the handwriting on the wall.  There would be no room for lamb chops if I was not careful.  Once again, she took away the sides and brought out the lamb chops.  Thankfully we ordered one entree, because there were four lamb chops in one entree.  We would not have been able to finish the meal if we had both ordered lamb chops!  As it was, we had one left.  Oh, and French fried potatoes were served with it.  They were good, but I only had a few.  None of us had very many as we were all getting full.

And of course, then we had dessert.  Don's bread pudding came with the meal, but my flan was extra.  Both were spectacular!

I was very proud of myself that I did not roll out of the restaurant, but I could have.  If we are in Winnemucca again, I guarantee you I will be back.  Thanks, Julie, for the great recommendation.