Galería de Arte de la Anchoa

Discover the history and process of anchovy production at Santoña’s first anchovy art gallery, featuring exhibits, tastings, and a café.

Planning your visit

Santona on the Cantabrian coast produces what are widely considered the finest anchovies in the world, and the industry there was founded by Italians — Sicilian salters arrived in the late nineteenth century, brought the salting and filleting techniques, and stayed. The Cantabrian anchovy, caught in spring, cured in salt for months and then filleted by hand, bears almost no relation to the product sold in tins elsewhere.

This gallery covers that process: the fishing, the salting in barrels under weight, the long maturation, and the hand filleting that remains stubbornly manual because no machine does it well. Displays cover the tools, the history and the families who built the business.

Tastings are integral, and they are the argument — the difference between an industrial anchovy and a properly cured Santona fillet is not subtle.

The town sits on a natural harbour beneath Monte Buciero, with the Berria beach nearby.

Bookable options include guided factory and museum tours with tasting. Current availability is listed below.