Nothing too special with the pinxtos but they tasted pretty good
La vina esanche
Not sure if they are related to the la vina in San Sebastián. My sit down dinner was delicious also ordered a braised pork cheek not pictured. The pinxtos were just ok. Cheesecake was nothing like the one I ordered at la vina in San Sebastián it was a mini cheesecake and not runny.
We also stopped by bar bilbao in bilbaos old quarter. A brilliant atmosphere and some very good pinxtos the best we had in Bilbao unfortunately no pictures.
Another great recommendation by @Maribel! You’re batting 1.0000! This seems like a local hangout with a great view of the city. Another spot that you have to call for a reservation.
It seems that when the weather is nice that families sit outside on the picnic table and drink wine. However we went when it was a little drizzly and overcast and sat inside. However there were quite a few families braving it outside. Seems like the go to family Asador of Bilbao since we saw a lot of families cab it there.
Their slight twist is that you can finish your steak however you want with a grill of coals at your table we ordered 2kgs of Galician beef! This really helps with the bones on the sides of the chuleta. The home made morcillia was delightfully porcine with a nice crisp. The service was also delightful as the waiters and hosts were very friendly.
You’re absolutely right. Txakolí Simón is indeed the go-to asador for families, and we were introduced to it by our Bilbao friends who took us there with their 2 children. Great experience of getting up to the hills high above the city.
Strategy for La Cuchara de San Telmo: Arrive for a very late lunch, but while the kitchen is still open, 3:30 or so (if your stomach can handle it). I have often found it quite empty at that time, maybe luck, but I’d certainly try again when I am there. The bartender/server also has more time to discuss wine and food choices (with some language difficulties for sure, but always very friendly). I have ordered and enjoyed the white Tempranillo (a version I hadn’t even known existed) that I first tasted there, years ago now.
Yes, going late, at 3:30 could work as well, or before 4 on Saturdays/Sundays when it closes a half hour later.
I don’t know how it would work during the high season, as San Sebastián has become increasingly crowded, having a huge tourist boom, in the past few summer, but it´s worth giving it a try.
For cheesecake lovers in Madrid, another on those yearly lists is that of ÁLEX CORDOBÉS, that can be purchased at Calle Velázquez 60 in the Salamanca district.
One of my favorites is the cheesecake of FISMULER (in Madrid & Barcelona), which can also be purchased at any of the PASTELERÍAS MALLORCA.
A great first meal that was walking distance from our hotel. They claim to be the second oldest restaurant in Madrid serving hearty fair that seems to be slightly less typical than what you find at most restaurants. A great change up from tapas/pinxtos. Very homey/home cooked style vibes but with some added flair.
Highlights were all the stewed dishes including the stewed goat and the Madrid style tripe. Really wished we got the rice dish instead of the meatballs. That was probably the weakest choice but still delicious.
Service was excellent with some great wine to boot.
The “oldest” restaurant in the world. I’m not sure how verifiable that claim is but it sure has some history. Charming dining room and professional/old school wait staff. Packed to the brim with tourists like myself but sometimes you just gotta do the tourist thing.
They were nice enough to seat us even though I accidentally booked our reservation for the wrong day. Since it’s so popular be sure to book early as there were no available dinner times and only lunch times at first opening.
They’re supposedly known for their cochinillo and their roast lamb but I didn’t see a single order of lamb so with only two of us we opted for the pig instead of going half and half.
I asked for the ribs/belly since that’s the juiciest, but I also made the mistake of ordering the head thinking it would be juicy like an adult pigs head.
If you don’t ask they will give you whatever part the table next to me got an order that was super dry since they gave them what looked to be the loin extending to the hind quarter.
Ribs were amazing parts of the head were also delicious but the skin was not crispy on the head which was unfortunate. Seems to be a simple rub of just salt. It went really well with beer.
Wowwwww another recommendation by @Maribel and no surprise another hit. Originally we were going to do an old style tapas crawl in cava Baja but after hearing mixed things we decided to head towards the quieter retiro district. So glad we did!
Highlights were the foie w mango, the puff pastry with partridge and the freebie small fried shrimp . I didn’t know they were Michelin rated but michelin or not their food is outstanding. Wish I had more stomach room to try more items. But everything was delicious and also their portion sizes are so large. We were originally going to go to three restaurants but we ate so much we had to cut it short.
Reservations are a must! It was very very busy on Tuesday.
Second stop on our Tuesday crawl. We made the mistake of sitting outside. I thought by 10 it would be cool but it was still hovers around 90f outside.
More of a classic spot with classic but refined dishes with an emphasis on seafood.
We had very enjoyable croquettes, ensalada rusa, and clams. Too stuffed to really explore further. Friendly staff and great drinks. Again reservations are a must.
For anyone thinking about doing a tapas crawl I would recommend a retiro neighborhood crawl instead. It’s a much quieter local neighborhood and it has a lot of restaurants that are close of high culinary caliber in short distance to each other. We wanted to check out Rafa, catapa, and monte but had no space!
Although we skipped checking out cava baja and doing tapas on that street. We were in the neighborhood for lunch and stopped by the esteemed Juana loca for a quick lunch. Sounding like a broken record but shoutout to @Maribel again lol.
One of our most favorite meals in Madrid. Inventive with quality execution. Best tortilla I had on the trip with carmelized onions and such custardy eggs. The bread thrown on the bottom seems like a laughable joke but at least it does soak up some of the eggs.
The risotto (not pictured) was cooked perfectly and had an amazing aroma of truffles.
I was quite skeptical of ordering the tuna milanesa ikura bikini with kimchi mayo but it was a chef special and the server recommended it. My skepticism turned into joy after just one bite. This is what fusion should taste like, a melding of Spanish/Japanese flavors, I couldn’t stop eating it. My 2 year old can’t generally take spicy flavors but it tasted so good she ate almost half. I could’ve ordered another tbh.
Reservations are hard to come by but if you show up early you can grab a seat at the bar or if you wait 1.5 hrs after opening you might be able to grab a table rather quickly. Dinner was booked solid for the week and I heard multiple diners coming in trying to plead for a reservation that evening or the next day. The manager said your best bet for a table at night was to show up right at opening and maybe they could squeeze ppl in.
@Hungryhungryhippos,
Yes, yes, yes! Doing a moveable feast in the food-rich Retiro district for me is so much more rewarding than a tapas crawl on the Cava Baja. These days the quieter Retiro district has the best concentration of great gastro-tabernas.
You hit two of my favorites and next time, do try one of the others: La Catapa, Rafa, Laredo, Marcano, Salino or Castelados.
And anyone contemplating a lunch or dinner here----please make reservations!
These places get jam packed on weekends and now Thursday night is the new Friday.
Yes I got that tip from you! Even on Tuesday both monteria and Castelados were packed and reservations were needed at both. At Castelados they were turning many parties away. I was thinking in my mind when do these madrilenos work lol.
Last meal of the trip. Super touristy, like zero locals but it’s walking distance from our hotel and it still turned out to be a very solid meal. Sometimes you just gotta be a tourist!
The host gave us weird vibes about our baby and didn’t have a high chair but after getting us seated and speaking to the server we got a much better reception.
Paella was well done nothing exceptional but the traditional with seafood and the arroz negra both were well cooked and flavorful. I had to ask them to cook with soccoratt and they went back to the kitchen to ensure for a longer cooking time as I noticed that another tables had zero. I suspect that some diners might think their rice is over cooked if it comes out crusty.
Ours had some soccoratt but I would’ve preferred more so I’m thankful that I at least got some.
Reasonable pricing and a pleasant atmosphere I wouldn’t go out of my way to eat here but still a very good meal.
