Café Iruña

Café Iruña is a historic café on the Plaza del Castillo in Pamplona, occupying the ground floor of a landmark building. It is best known for its links to the San Fermín festival and to the American writer Ernest Hemingway.

History

The café opened in 1888, on the eve of the San Fermín festivities, in the lower part of a building erected by the Crédito Navarro bank. Contemporary chronicles describe it as a meeting place for locals and visitors. It is also said to have been the first building in the city to use iron in its floor structures and, possibly, the first shop in Pamplona with electric lighting.

The building was designed by the architect Maximiano Hijón from La Rioja and remodelled between 1932 and 1934 by Víctor Eusa. The upper floor houses the Nuevo Casino Principal de Pamplona. A themed space known as El Rincón de Hemingway displays period photographs and is dominated by a life-size sculpture of the writer by José Javier Doncel.

Culture

Café Iruña is part of Pamplona's social life, especially during the San Fermín festival, when its terrace fills with people. The interior keeps a decor typical of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and it remains a place for outdoor food and drink. Its emblematic character has also made it a frequent location for films and documentaries, such as the 1957 film Fiesta. Between 1983 and 1989 it awarded a literary prize for short novels in Spanish and Basque.