Mikel Álvarez Menor is a reference in Pamplona with his roasted chestnuts stand in the Plaza de San Nicolás, an emblematic place in the old town, for 45 years.
“My desire, and this is what people tell me, is to always have the best chestnuts. I start every year in San Fermín Txikito and I am the last to leave at the end of April, with very good goods” , underlines the Mikel of Pamplona.
Celebrates 45 years of selling chestnuts with simplicity, human treatment and kindness as always. A lovely sentence to the mother and daughter, to the grandfather who passes by, and always a permanent smile to everyone who approaches him.
He knows the entire neighborhood and wants those who have stopped coming to San Nicolás and the old town to return to a privileged area of Pamplona: “Those who have left here and live in the neighborhoods, we encourage you to walk around our surroundings again. We are next to a 12th-13th century church, which is an architectural gem of the city.”
Mikel is a happy person in his work. In his position, he wrote a few sentences that define what chestnuts are for him: “The crackling of the shell and the pleasant aroma that chestnuts give off when roasted make us enjoy the most pleasant moments of life.”
With his vast experience, no one surpasses him in this sector: “I know the chestnuts, the varieties, the regions. I have everything covered well.” In addition, Mikel is very keen to highlight the quality of his chestnuts: “I have the healthiest, most beautiful and tastiest” he assures.
Regarding size, he emphasizes that one kilo of chestnuts is not the same as another, if their size is smaller: “I work with fatty, selected, extraordinary chestnuts and I also select them. I cut them one by one by hand to see if there are any bad ones and I remove them, as well as the small ones,” explains Mikel.
He says it clearly: “The chestnut It is the most natural product found on the market.. Nothing is added to it. It becomes mature. You can’t catch it with a net like the olive. You have to hold it by hand and that makes it more expensive. “The collection and preservation process must be carried out with the greatest care.”
Mikel points out that He also sells raw chestnuts in bags per kilo: “It’s the same chestnut that I roast and it has the same guarantee as the roasted ones.”
He starts selling chestnuts at five in the afternoon and It closes around nine thirty or ten in the evening. “On Saturday, I stay a little longer. It’s a product that people buy every day. If you don’t fail and you do it well, they come for them every day,” he says.
It’s a job that he loves “because at my age I understand a lot of things. The salary I earn is good for me. What rewards me most of all is the way I treat people on a personal level,” says Mikel.
“I am one more in the Plaza de San Nicolás and it is an activity where you collaborate with the city, always in a good attitude. Treat people and children well. “It’s the best thing I get out of this job.”
Mikel is happy with his chestnuts: “This makes me very happy. I appreciate it very much. I’m in my element and it’s my obligation to do very well with the genre that I propose,” says Mikel.
Concerning a possible replacement due to retirement in the position, he explains: “I don’t know. I don’t think so. I have no expectations. I talked about it with my son. My grandson tells me he wants to become a chestnut farmer. He loves it. Right now, I prefer my grandson to continue his education and career. “You must first train and have knowledge.”
Mikel Alvarez designed and manufactured sustainable and ecological chestnut packaging, which includes a container to store the peels and not throw them on the ground. The packaging has two envelopes, one for the fruit and another for the peel.
Another novelty of the San Nicolás chestnut tree is that customers can pay by card: “I installed the dataphone two years ago because the mothers who come with their children in their place generally don’t have any money with them. At the same time, I attracted a young audience and that’s is also great for older people,” he says.
This chestnut tree is also distinguished by He has been a top mountaineer for many years. In fact, he has climbed the so-called “seven summits”, which are the highest on the continents, including climbing Everest in 2001.
Now, at his age, the piston has slowed down: “I was a mountaineer. I am quite old and the economic situation is complicated for mountaineering, which is expensive. I climbed Everest when I was 41, and then I climbed other peaks until I was 50 or 52. I stopped, but I continue to exercise,” concludes Mikel.
