Steaks sizzled on hot plates, filling the small room with crackling sounds like small fireworks.

When one bottle of wine is emptied, another freshly opened one appears.
Plates of food around with so many different flavours... 

Literally meaning ‘cosy corner’, a txoko (pronounced "chock-oh") is a private gastronomic society 

native to northern Spain, where people regularly gather together to enjoy cooking, eating and drinking.

 

​Not only do they provide people with the opportunity to experiment with food, learn and connect with others, but they allow people to do so without feeling watched or judged. 

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These societies exist purely for the members’ own enjoyment, and that after all is what cooking,  eating and drinking should be all about.​