My Favourite
Places: Food
People often ask me for my favourite places in
Madrid. As a non-student who has lived
here for a while, it is sometimes difficult to decide where to take friends and
family on their 4th, 5th and 10th visit when
the novelty of 100 Montaditos and Vips has worn off. I also have the advantage of not being on a
student loan so sometimes I can splash out.
Please find here a list of all my favourite
places. These are in no way inclusive of all the great variety of cuisine you
can find in my adopted capital, but they offer a good place to start! I have
only included places I have been to, feel free to let me know of more!
They are in a range of prices and menus are
available online.
Los Timbales,Calle
de Alcalá, 227, Metro Las Ventas
Because of the restaurant´s handy location of
200 yards from the bullring, the speciality is Rabo de Toro. They are
rightly proud of it. Every time I have
been to this restaurant, at least one person has ordered this dish and it has
always been incredible. The meat is always tender and the sauce is thick, rich
and delicious. It makes for perfect dipping of the bread,
chips or vegetables that accompany.
If you don´t fancy this or are more of a fish
eater there is a wide variety of other dishes, none of which have ever
disappointed. My personal favourite is
the Fritura de Pescado starter which
was enough for 2 people and Pulpo a la
Gallega. I am not really a dessert
person but my sweet toothed companions always tell me that they are
delicious. Or, at least the appreciative
noises they make signify this!
As in most places in Spain the coffee deserves
a mention and even the house wine is reasonably priced and tastes pretty good.
My only complaint is that when I have been in a
large group (and I am not sure if this was pre-ordered or a set thing) we were
given large platters of meat and cheese as a starter. If this had been left up to me I would have
asked for more of a variety so myself and my guests could try different things,
so this is worth checking.
La Casa de
Asturias, Calle de Argumosa, 4, Metro Lavapies
I have been to a variety of Asturian
restaurants in Madrid but for some reason this one is my favourite. I have been here only twice, once for my birthday with English friends, and once with Spanish friends, one of whom is
from the region.
The
reason I like this place is that amoungst all the hustle and bustle of tapas
bars and curry restaurants in Lavapies (which I love, don´t get me wrong) is a
small slice of the North. I have an
affinity for Asturians and Asturias. One of the first friends I made when I
moved here is from Gijon, the capital of the province and she introduced me to
the delights of the Northern Cuisine, which is vastly different to that of their
Southern cousins.
I
lived with an Asturian during my second year here and it is a miracle she stayed
so slim, when you consider the portion sizes and the sheer deliciousness of the
regional dishes.
My
favourite things, which I recommend could feed a hungry table of Asturians
easily, is the Churrasco; flamegrilled
pieces of steak over a bed of crispy chips and Pimientas Padrones, along with some Patatas Cabrales (Cabrales, is the local cheese, it is very strong
and blue, so if you prefer your cheese slightly milder, stick to Bravas or Alioli) and, if you are feeling very hungry, go for a Cachopo. A local speciality of two
pieces of steak, with ham and cheese sandwiched between and then breaded and
fried (yes, you read all that correctly). This is also served with chips and
padron peppers.
Also
worth a mention are the smaller, tapas sized dishes. The Chorizo en Sidra and Croquetas
de la Abuela both made us lick our lips with glee. Also on the menu is a generous portion of Fabada Asturiana, which is a bean stew with various pieces of meat
– this is a meal in itself so proceed with caution!
This
should all be washed down with a bottle of Natural Sidra. The fermenting, pouring and drinking method
is slightly different. It is poured from
a great height in small quantities and drunk like a shot. It is lethal, but delicious and I recommend
trying it. For 6 euros a bottle, you can´t go wrong.
Sumo, Calle Fuencarral 116, Metro Bilbao
The best sushi I have tried in Madrid. Introduced to me by my housemate who is as
obsessed by sushi as me. We go at least
twice a month.
You can order up to 3 times, 5 dishes per
person each time, for a set price. There are almost 100 dishes included in the
menu, plus about 30 extras for a small charge, plus desserts.
Unfortunately the drinks are a little on the
expensive side but the food definitely makes up for it. If you think that 5 dishes of sushi 3 times
is not enough, I dare you to try. I can
eat a mountain of sushi and I have been with some big burly men who can eat one
and a half massive pizzas in one sitting and we have still never got past the 2nd
round. The quality is fantastic and fresh and the service has been excellent
each time as well.
There is not much more I can say about this
place – just to try it!
Cervecería Köln,
Calle Orense, 24, Metro Santiago
Bernabeu
I work very near to this Cerveceria but I found
it by accident. A friend also lives
nearby and we were looking for somewhere quick to have lunch because a) He had
no food in his fridge and b) I had to go back to work so didn’t have much
time.
I
cannot believe I am saying this but, considering we live in Spain, I ate the
best croquetas I have ever had in this GermanCervecería. And I eat a LOT of croquetas!
The
service is typically ´Spanish´ and the location not particularly glamorous but
the food more than made up for it, and the rainy night I spent drinking fairly
decent wine under a heater on the terrace and eating a lot of food (Sepia a la plancha, Calamares a la plancha,
Patatas Bravas and Huevos Rotos) and
still only spent 20 euros definitely sticks out as one of my favourite evenings
in Madrid.
La Parrilla de
Maria, Gran Via, 72, Metro Plaza España
Sometimes you just fancy a great piece of
grilled meat. I met with an Ecuadorian friend and after a healthy liquid
refreshment (at the Juicy bar in Alonso Martinez, its great, but a little on
the pricey side) we were craving a healthy but filling lunch. She suggested this restaurant.
You
smell the BBQ before you even get inside.
The food tastes as good as it smells.
The menu del dia was €12.50 for a choice of chorizo, morcilla or empanada
to start then ribs or a piece of chicken with a roast potato, chips or salad
for main. Dessert or Coffee, Bread and a drink is also included. We sat at the bar and I have to comment that
all the staff worked ridiculously hard, the chef didn’t stop for a second,
neither did the bartender. They were all
really friendly and efficient.
There
is also an a la carte option, this is
slightly pricier, but, from the meat I saw being cooked on the grill it looked
of the best quality. I would definitely recommend this place, or any of the others dotted around Madrid for a special occasion.
Zhou Yulong – Parking Garage, Metro Plaza
España
Nope, you didn’t read that wrong, there is indeed a restaurant in a
parking garage. Arguable the best
Chinese food in Madrid. The queues are
always long but it is worth it. If you
decide not to wait to sit inside the tiny restaurant, then the take away
service is quick and efficient. My recommendation would be to order take away
then sit upstairs on the plaza or do the short walk to the ´Templo de Debod´ and watch the sunset
from here. They have a variety of
familiar Chinese dishes and a few that were not so familiar; chicken feet,
anyone?
I
recommend the Sweet Potato Noodles and Gyoza dumplings. Everything else I have
seen and tried have also been very good.
The one downside of this restaurant, just for a
balanced review, is the service. Do not,
I repeat, Do Not expect high quality service.
The service in some places has taken me a bit of getting used to, but
this place takes the biscuit. They all
work very hard but expect nothing and you won´t be
disappointed!
***
There are many other places in Madrid which I love so much I have decided I will do separate posts for these weird and wonderful discoveries.
For now......Que Aproveche!
