The Basque burnt cheesecake is a crustless cheesecake baked at very high heat in a parchment-lined tin until the top caramelises black, the centre still soft and jiggly, with a creamy lemon-sharp interior and a slightly bitter caramelised crust.

Santiago Rivera invented the tarta de queso vasca at La Vina on Calle 31 de Agosto in 1990, while finishing his culinary training. The recipe blasts a 2-kilogram batter of full-fat cream cheese, sugar, eggs, cream and a small amount of flour in a 220C oven for 50 minutes until the top blackens and the centre remains soft. The dish stayed local until 2019, when the New York Times named it flavour of the year and the recipe travelled to cafes from Tokyo to New York under the name Basque burnt cheesecake or San Sebastian cheesecake. La Vina alone produces over 100 cakes daily; Otaegui in the Old Town and Geltoki in Amara now also sell wedges of their own versions.

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