THE RESTAURANT IS LOCATED IN THE MONTE IGUELDO OF THE CAPITAL OF GIPUZKOA
THIS OPENING MARKS THE RETURN OF THE LAVADO-MARTÍNEZ FAMILY TO THE CITY
Iñigo and his team begin a new chapter in their lives with the opening of Restaurant Itzuli in the Hotel Luze San Sebastián in Donostia. The hotel is in the place occupied for years by the emblematic former Nicol’s del Monte Igueldo and set in the elegance of the Belle Époque. This project connects Iñigo Lavado with his roots, as he was trained in France and French cuisine is a fundamental pillar of his cuisine.
Itzuli in Basque language means “to return”. Although the first thought is that this name is a tribute to Iñigo’s return to the city, which he left to move to Irun more than 20 years ago to run the Iñigo Lavado restaurant (closed a few weeks ago), the name is a tribute to his wife and partner, Arantxa Martínez. As Iñigo explains, “Arantxa is the granddaughter of Pilar, the founder of the legendary bar El Tamboril in the city. And she represents the third generation of a hospitality lineage. For years, she has been in the background because she has combined her duties in the restaurant with taking care of our children until they were old enough to choose their path. Freely, they have decided to follow in our steps. So Itzuli, in fact, represents her return to the hotel business and to the city”.
The couple left Donostia more than 20 years ago, and now they are back with the support of their children, who ensure the legacy of this family saga. Their oldest son, Julen, is the sommelier. In the short time he has been managing the restaurant’s front of the house and wine cellar, has already won the Gastro 2024 Talent Award promoted by El Diario Vasco, the Basque Culinary Center and Hostelería Gipuzkoa. The middle child, Iñigo, is studying gastronomy, focusing his training on management, and the youngest, María, is a passionate about cooking, where she is a great cook and is also studying culinary sciences. Both help their parents and brother in the restaurant when their studies allow them to do so, and they are both sure that, in the future, and when they are ready, they will join Itzuli full-time. At Itzuli the team is also family, and that group of young people, with Enrique, Mónica, David and Xabi, who 20 years ago set off for Irun with the couple to start a new chapter, has now returned to San Sebastián with them. For the Lavado-Martínez family, they are all indispensable pieces in this new chapter they are beginning.
Itzuli’s facilities.
Itzuli is a new family project that lands in San Sebastián with a gastronomic proposal designed to conquer both locals and visitors. Itzuli is history, roots, family, and truth. It is an invitation to recall the Belle Époque of San Sebastian, highlighting the value of the city, bringing us closer to our surroundings and offering a space for enjoyment that will host Iñigo Lavado’s “Cocina de emociones” (emotional cuisine).
The restaurant has a capacity for 35 diners. It also has several private dining rooms and an impressive terrace overlooking the sea where you can hold personalised and exclusive events.
One of the unique spaces in the restaurant will be the wine cellar, which extends from the lobby to the dining room, allowing guests to choose their wine as part of the experience.
The hotel’s architecture was designed by Jesús Ansa. The interior design has been designed by Iñaki Biurun, including Itzuli restaurant, the kitchen, and the wine cellar. The linen and tailoring have been designed by David García. The kitchen was installed by Javier Beraza of Frinoxtel.
Iñigo Lavado’s gastronomy at Itzuli.
Iñigo has been working on Itzuli’s gastronomic proposal for months now, taking care of every detail, scouring markets, getting to know local producers and polishing every detail so that everything is perfect.
In his gastronomic offer, there are two tasting menus with a personal stamp that represent perfectly his cuisine. Dishes with more traditional recipes, with seasonal products that express his territory and culture, but where he also shows us his more creative, more daring side and where there is room for more innovative formulas.
The menu “Cocina de emociones” (emotional cuisine), with which we can immerse ourselves in the signature cuisine of Iñigo, who trained with master chef Luis Irizar and worked alongside great chefs such as Martín Berasategui, Pedro Subijana, Ferran Adrià and Alain Ducasse, with whom he worked in Paris.
The figure of Luis Irizar has been very present in everything Iñigo has done so far. And of course, this will continue to be the case at Itzuli, where the second menu bears his name. The ‘Luis Irizar’ menu pays tribute to his master through a market cuisine inspired by traditional Basque recipes.
In addition to these two menus, there is an à la carte menu that allows diners to choose more freely.
The restaurant will be open for lunch service every day of the week. Reservations can be made from today on their website at www.restauranteitzuli.com.
The Luze San Sebastian Hotel.
Luze Boutique San Sebastian, part of the Luze Group, opens its doors as a tribute to the Belle Époque, that golden era that forever marked the character and aesthetics of San Sebastian. Inspired by the elegance of the old palaces of the city, this boutique hotel is born from the very roots of the city, reinterpreting its history with a contemporary and sophisticated approach.
At Luze Boutique, past, and present merge in perfect harmony to offer each guest a unique experience: a journey through time wrapped in the comforts of the 21st century. Elegance here is not just a matter of style, but a way of understanding life, of savouring every moment with authenticity and detail.
It has 42 rooms between the two buildings, delicately reflecting the splendour of bygone times. All are exterior, bright and carefully designed to offer a sophisticated and welcoming stay. The decoration, inspired by the Belle Époque, revives timeless luxury with details thought out down to the last millimetre.
Surrounding the hotel are 6,000 square metres of Parisian-inspired gardens, bucolic natural spaces that invite you to take a leisurely stroll and let yourself be carried away by a serene and classic beauty. As a perfect complement, the infinity pool overlooking the Bay of Biscay visually merges with the horizon, offering unparalleled views of the open sea and a sense of discreet, enveloping luxury.
The Spa & Wellness area, the ideal place to treat yourself to some relaxation time, is conceived as a haven of peace, where body and mind find balance through care and disconnection.
Luze Boutique San Sebastian is not just a hotel. It is an invitation to rediscover the city through the prism of elegance, comfort, and history. A new way of experiencing San Sebastián, with a light of its own.
The Luze Group also has other hotels, such as the Luze El Toro and El Villa in Navarra and the Luze Castellana in Madrid.
The gastronomy of Luze San Sebastian by Iñigo Lavado
In addition to Itzuli, Iñigo Lavado is responsible for the entire gastronomic management of the hotel. Aiming to become a meeting point for the city, the hotel will also offer guest-oriented breakfasts and dinners with a menu based on charcoal-grilled dishes and a comfort food cuisine with quality products and traditional recipes.
One of the great attractions of staying at Luze is the breakfast, which, in the words of Iñigo “is designed and thought out to awaken all the senses. With fresh and local ingredients, the dishes are prepared with care and dedication, turning the first moment of the day into a true gastronomic experience”.
The hotel also has a bar, an intimate corner where you can chat or simply enjoy a break in a sophisticated and welcoming atmosphere, with a friendly and attentive service that completes the overall experience of the hotel.
Hotel Luze San Sebastian, new meeting point for cycling enthusiasts
The Hotel Luze San Sebastián not only aims to become a gastronomic and hospitality reference in the city, but also a destination for the cycling community, both local and visiting. This approach is not casual, as Iñigo Lavado, the soul of the project, is also passionate about cycling, a hobby he inherited from his father, who was a cyclist. This personal connection with the world of cycling has been the key to integrating this sporting philosophy into the heart of the hotel.
The idea is clear: to pay tribute to this passion and offer a unique experience that combines sport, landscape and gastronomic culture. Luze is a place where cyclists feel at home, where they can share routes, rest, take care of their body and mind and delight their palate. A place where sport, gastronomy, and lifestyle go hand in hand in an environment designed to enjoy San Sebastian and Gipuzkoa on two wheels.
The hotel will have practical services designed for cycling enthusiasts, but beyond this, activities will be set up to generate value and showcase the territory through the mobility provided by the bicycle. Charming routes that connect with the environment, visits to local producers, stops at wineries or cider houses… To create experiences with a taste of coast and mountains, territory and culture. A tribute to sport, to the land and to those who cycle through it, with curiosity and passion, uniting the primary sector and gastronomy to build experiences that benefit everyone, that last and endure over time.
After a few weeks in which the team is working indoors, from the 1st of May, Iñigo Lavado’s cuisine can be enjoyed on Monte Igueldo. There, in Itzuli, the whole family is waiting for us with clear ideas: “We are very excited about this project. We want this place, which we have so lovingly created together with the Luze Group, to become part of the everyday life of the people of San Sebastian, the scene of unforgettable moments for both locals and visitors. We desire to join forces and work tirelessly to ensure that Donosti and Guipuzkoa continue to be a benchmark in gastronomy and style and quality”.