I had the one w spider crab cream but the Gilda was out. I did have the individual tortilla at Bodega Donostirria Gros. They recommended the Indurain but I was too full. I’ll go back for that or the Completo tomorrow and the Gilda as the “original” place you mention is supposedly closed tomorrow. I saw it on the Pintxos app you recommended
Is the menu at Antonio Boulevard exactly the same as that in Bar Antonio? Will head there for pintxos
Sorry, I didn’t check the opening days of Casa Vallés.
Yes, the Induráin is another of Bodega Donostiarra’s specialties.
Did you like the pintxo with spider crab cream at Txpetxa?
I can’t tell you if the menu at Antonio Boulevard is the same as the mothership, but probably not exactly.
Menu wasn’t the same at Antonio blvd. seems to cater entirely to the tourist set.
That’s what I feared. The Old Quarter has been tourist overwhelmed.
To be fair, they have many of the specialties like the tortilla, ravioli w martini sauce, crispy oxtail.
They have the arrow meloso but w clams instead of red prawns.
The crowd was mostly tourists though. But that is pretty much the case for most pintxos joints that are on everyone’s bucket list.
Casa Urola ran out of the Urola pretty early the night I was there.
La Vina does a rip roaring trade in the cheesecakes right up till closing.
@mikey8811
You asked about Casa Amadeo…and I haven’t visited, but today’s El Mundo gastro section has this article about it-
https://www.elmundo.es/metropoli/2023/09/21/650ad59de4d4d84f658b457b.html
Thanks. Just got into Madrid
Cocktail week starts Monday, September 25 (we had cocktails at LOVO on Echegaray on Monday because Viva Madrid was closed and Salmón Guru couldn’t take us because of a staff shortage). There’s also a new cocktail place on Echegaray called Mauz Madrid that I haven’t tried.
If you’re into craft cocktails, Calle Echegaray in Letras is the place to go.
Salmón Gurú (no rezzies) and Viva Madrid are owned by barman Diego Cabrera.
The Hotel Tapas Tour that’s going on now ends this Sunday.
Great article. Gracias
Speaking of the best tortilla in Spain-
The annual tortilla competition was held during the Alicante Gastronómica gastronomy conference and this year’s winner-------Cañadío of Santander (tortilla WITH onion),
The other competitors were from A Coruña, Betanzos (the land of the runny tortilla), Vitoria, Madrid (Taberna Pedraza & La Falda), Logroño (Tizona), Bilbao (Bar Sorginsola), San Sebastián (Bar Antonio), plus others I haven’t visited.
Back to Madrid, everyone,
The annual tapas & street music event, TAPAPIÉS starts today, Oct. 19, in the multicultural Lavapiés quarter of Old Madrid. On the two consecutive weekends of this gastro festival, along with many, many bars offering a multicultural tapa and a beer for 3 euros, there will be live music and theatrical performances as well. This event goes on until Oct. 29.
To join in, we have lunch reservations at TATEMA, at Argumosa 11, whose menu was created by a former second-in-command of Sacha, It’s very original, moderately priced and vegetarian friendly (Maribona, the ABC gastro critic, likes it.)
First we plan to go to our favorite wine bar, LA CANÍBAL, at Argumosa 28 for their special tapa, a nigiri de papada ibérica.
I’m in the early stages of planning my trip back to Madrid and also Malaga, next fall. This looks like fun!
Why Málaga? I’m curious, since I didn’t bother with Málaga when I spent 3 weeks in the south of Spain a long time ago .
Why not?! It looks lovely and I might use it as my base for some day trippin’
I agree with Málaga, PedroPero,
It´s a lovely city filled with excellent small museums, including a fine Archaeological Museum and a very interesting Automobile-Costume museum, Picasso Museum, Russian Museum, Carmen Thyssen Museum, a branch of the Centro Pompidou,
a great and lively Atarazanas market, a Roman theater, an Arab fortress Alcazaba, a beautiful palm tree lined promenade, and its center city core is very largely pedestrianized. And one can take a train to Fuengirola for dining at Los Marinos José or a bus to Marbella for dining at Back, etc.
Recommended Málaga city dining,
Cávala, La Cosmopolita for sit-down, La Cosmo for tapas at the bar or on the outdoor terrace, for Michelin-starred by the same chef, Dani Carnero, his Kaleja, the lovely courtyard restaurant inside the Hotel Palacio Solecio, Balausta, supervised by José Carlos García,
Beluga for rice dishes (run by a couple from Alicante), Refectorium Catedral for seafood dishes, Anyway Wine for charcuterie and wines, Araboka for small plates and an excellent selection of Andalusian wines, etc.
Thanks so much Maribel!!
@Maribel or others any recommendation for one dinner in Madrid on a Thursday? I’m looking for something fun but not like a stiff tasting menu. Good food good drinks and good energy. Thinking about Juana loca or la monteria type vibes.
Does tresde fit the bill? Any other recommendations would be appreciated!
La Montería is always fun but crowded! All the gastro spots in the Retiro district draw a very loyal, repeat clientele, mostly locals, food lovers in the know, and few tourists.
They’re all very good, but just know that Thursday is the new Friday, so go early, when they open, around 8 pm. By 9 they will be packed to the rafters.
We dine there often and these are our favorites:
La Monte and La Montería (same owners)
La Castela and Castelados (ditto)
La Catapa
Arzábal (later on in the evening it turns “nightclubby”, lots of fun but packed and noisy)
Taberna Laredo
Taberna Marcano
Here is a very good list of the best neo-tabernas by Spain’s leading gastro critic:
I’ve hit them all except for #9, #22 and #25.
Would you recommend grazing at a couple or just choosing one for the evening? Do they all have bar seating to have a drink and some tapas?
You could try grazing at a couple, but the problem is that they get so crowded, so quickly.
While you might find space at the bar at the first place, by the time you get to the next, there may be no seats at all.
It’s become increasingly hard to do a “moveable feast” at these neo-tabernas in the Retiro, as they’re all so darn popular.
For example, we arrive at La Catapa at 8:30 (ours is the high top table at the window) and soon afterwards all the seats at the bar will have been taken. This is especially true now that it has made the number one spot on Maribona’s list for several years in a row.
On another night, we arrived at La Castela at 8 pm (where the queen took Michelle) but found that all the high tables around the bar had already been reserved! So we had tapas and wine standing at the bar.
Castelados, its sibling, has high top tables in its bar area both around the bar and tables for 2 at the bar itself, and they get reserved in advance.
If you just drop in without a reservation, you’ll probably have to stand at either end of the bar.
On a Thursday night it’s best these days just to choose one, reserving in advance, and try several different small plates.
