We were in Madrid last May and loved the tapas at the San Miguel Market. It is a fun place and is very attractive with glass cases full of yummy tapas. Most were a euro or two each. Great place for lunch. There is a restaurant which the name translates to Museum of the Wine and the paella was excellent. I think it is on Santa Cruz--not far from Plaza Mayor at any rate. The ceiling is decorated with empty wine bottles.

I was really happy at Bocaito, where I still remember a a tapa of really marvelous thin, eggy crepe covered in a papery slices of smoked salmon.

For super meaty and near-primitive Basque oxen and cider, friends took us to Kupela and it lived up to its promise

http://www.restaurantekupela.com/

I really liked El Combarro for Galician seafood. I didn't think of it as stuffy but swank -- and pricey-pricey

I'm not sure if Spain is like Italy, but in Italy, I wouldn't eat lamb in January.

ekscrunchy,
Please refer to Maribel's Guide to Madrid. She has more than enough recommendations.

El Gran Barril - doesn't make my list for several reasons.

La Trainera - haven't tried it as yet

Orixe - Good Galician cuisine and the tapas aren't bad either.

Asador de Aranda - Okay, but too early for Spring lamb!

Asador Aranduero - another okay!

Asador Tierra Randa - gets a decent write-up on Chownhound!

You can try Restaurant Couzapin, a great Asturian Cider House/Restaurant in the Retiro District.

www.sidreriacouzapin.com/english/index.html

Hi Scrunchy. We liked Orixe alot but I would not say it was necessarily traditional. We went for lunch menu del dia upon arrival in Madrid last Oct. Be aware it had a modern feel to it both in decor and in some of ther dishes. At that time the menu del dia was about 15 e pp, for appetizer, entree, and desert plus included was a glass of wine (or bottled water). I do remember being very pleasantly surprised at the quality of the tapas on our visit a couple of years before. In any case it was a also not that busy during lunch, relaxing, and since we were so tired on day 1 the meal was not too heavy which was just right since we planned to turn in early. It was also a decent value.

Alkalde is on the list but have never been.

Coupazin sounds interesting though. I am intrigued are you going to be there during "white bean days? ".

I've never found Maribel's taste buds matched mine, and I felt she favored restaurants whose main appeal was traditional ambience over memorable food. Some people feel one should just stick to her recommendations, but I moved beyond them and was happier.

I never leave Madrid without having had the squid in its own ink and the famous cod at Casa Revuelta.
http://11870.com/pro/casa-revuelta

You should try the excellent salmorejo, a somewhat thicker variant of the tomato/vegetable soup gazpacho, in Según Emma just behind the newly reopened gourmet-oriented San Miguel food market. Lots of other goodies as well. http://11870.com/pro/segun-emma
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g187514-d1213695-r59082338-Segun_Emma-Madrid.html

Txirimiri in Calle del Humilladero, 6 gives you an idea of why the Basque kitchen is considered among the best in the world. In the midst of one of the best tapas/restaurant districts in town, in and around Calle Cava Baja in La Latina. Beef tederloin skewer with roasted peppers and caramelized onions, shrimp croquettes with curry and basil, Black lasagna with monkfish and prawns, duck confit cannelloni etc. etc.
http://www.txirimiri.es/ingles/Txirimiri.html
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g187514-d1023935-Reviews-Txirimiri-Madrid.html

Excellent dining at El Mentidero de la Villa:
http://www.mentiderodelavilla.es/
http://11870.com/pro/el-mentidero-la-villa

And you should have a plate of Jamón de Jabugo at the exclusive Mesón Cinco Jotas chain. Started in Jabugo in the Huelva province, the jamón capital of the world. A nice branch in Plaza Santa Ana, and also some great tapas such as Solomillo ibérico al Pedro Ximénez: http://www.mesoncincojotas.com/

Mil gracias everyone for the help.

Robert & Zeppole: It never even occurred to me that there was a season for lechazo--silly me! I did know that abbacchio is served in Rome in the spring but I did not carry that idea to Spain, I guess. Of course, spring lamb!

Just curious--where do they get the lamb, or what is the age of the lamb that they would be serving at the asadores in winter? Or do they not have lechazo on the menu?

Also, Robert, would you please tell me more about why you do not recommend El Gran Barril? I am asking this because it was recommended to me by a (foreign) person who lived in Madrid for a while...please give me the real scoop!

Couzapin looks great and I will add it to the list.

Kimhe: Thank you so much..I will now read all about the places you mentioned! The food pics of Mentidero de la Villa look scrumptious and we will definitely head for Meson Cinco Jotas for the bellota, and Txirimiri for many pinxtos!

Also I think there is a place famous for some type of sandwich of fried calamari (??)

Many, many thanks...

Ana: I am not sure about the white bean days but this sounds intriguing enough to pursue!

I did read Maribel's guide to Madrid and a couple of the places I asked about are listed there..


http://maribelsguides.com/mg_madrid-06-09.pdf

Bookmarking this one!

San Miguel Market is great fun..it was jammed at all times
when we were in Madrid in late April.
Most tapas bar on Cava Baja were hard to get into in the evenings. Casa Lucas is our favorite - small, hardly a place to sit down, good tapas and vino.

We dropped by Alkalde a couple of weeks ago. The prices have go up quite a bit since our first lunch there a few years back when we first discovered it. It's very popular with business types and those out for a day of shopping in the Salamanca district.

Regarding El Gran Barril, there's nothing wrong with it. It gets decent reviews, but just not not somewhere I'm interested in dining, maybe because it's a little too industrial.

Robert, thanks once again. I would much prefer a more cozy place for a seafood meal, so I will defer to you to recommend another place for seafood that it not too fancy or formal....judging from their website, El Gran Barrill does seem rather harsh and industrial in ambience...

Eks when I went Madrid a few years ago we used a fantastic outfit called adventurous appetites who did a great walking tapas tour think we went to 3 different places sampling local fare along the way!


We loved it and good value too considering we got a a bit of a city tour thrown in too.

Thanks, Smeagol! I am looking forward so much to this trip!

Here is one more possibility--Casa Rafa--any comments?


http://www.marisqueriarafa.com/galeriadefotos.asp

Never mind the link above--it is a different Casa Rafa! I cannot find a website for the one in Madrid..

Any opinions on this restaurant, El Pescador, which appears to have reopened after a renovation:


http://www.marisqueriaelpescador.net/el-pescador/

After 74 years I have given up being a foody, in search of the perfect meal and/or bottle. We had several delicious meals stopping by likely looking tapas places on Rambla Catalunya.

Sorry, I thought we were talking Barcelona.

Seafood in Madrid! There are a number of excellent options, and most are in comfortable settings. For dining on the upper end, there is Goizeko (www.goizekogaztelupe.com/) in the Hotel Wellington, great Basque cuisine. There is also La Broche (www.labroche.com/), but again on the expensive side.

For a good Navarran restaurant (excellent meats and fish), you can try La Manduca de Azagra, Calle Sagasta, 14.

For something a little different, but not always less expensive, we usually try to head to the area just east of Retiro Park. There are enough good restaurants between O'Donnell and Calle de Ibiza to keep us going for weeks, a different restaurant, wine bar or tapas bar every night. There are several on C/Menorca alone, including Barandales, which has a great lunch menu, and Neguri Etxea, very Basque. There are also a number of great Austrian restaurants/Sidrerias in the neighborhood, including Carlos Tartiere and their second restaurant, Couzapin, Casa Portal, on Ibiza, and La Hoja on Doctor Castelo.

I think you might enjoy El Pescador. Their prices seem reasonable, but we haven't tried it yet. Maybe on the next trip.

Robert: This is excellent information. Many thanks!

A: I do not consider myself a "foody" and I dislike that term and all of the attached connotations, but thank you for your input.

La Campana in Calle Botoneras, 6, on the corner of on one of the alleys leading off Plaza Mayor is famous for its cheap and tasty Bocadillo de Calamares/huge fried calamari sandwich. As madriléño as you get it.
http://11870.com/pro/la-campana

And you might want to consider Asturian Casa Mingo for the best grilled chicken and cider: http://www.casamingo.es/

Watch the video, and you're sold:
http://11870.com/pro/casa-mingo
http://11870.com/pro/casa-mingo/media/bc313f19

And if you want to change to an excellent Chinese meal in between, go to Rey de Tallarines: http://11870.com/pro/rey-tallarines

You're right - the video of Casa Mingo is persuasive! Yum.

Si, Senor! I love a great roast chicken and I like the atmosphere at Casa Mingo!

And yes, too, to the bocadillo de calamare at La Campana.

I hope we have time for the sights with all this eating I have planned!

But no Chinese food--too many other good places to try!

We had a fabulous lamb dinner at Posada de la Vida. I think when we go back next March we will have almuerzo there. I would imagine it's the same menu as for dinner? also, maybe not the type of lamb you're looking for? but we really enjoyed our experience there.

another vote for Casa Mingo. I ate there 30 years ago, didn't make it back when we were there in May so it's a MUST when we're there in March.

enjoy your trip! I am saving this thread as well

Speaking of bocadillo de calamari:


http://www.esmadrid.com/en/portal.do?IDM=435&NM=3&TR=C&IDR=1334

Thanks, Tobyo; here is the link....http://www.posadadelavilla.es/

Two more possibilities; at this rate I should have booked a hotel room for a month:


Taberna Laredo, calle Menorca, east of Retiro (is this a good area for tapas??)


http://www.dantxari.com/ Basque tavern; casual; looks good; mentioned in Maribel guide

Any comments on these??

The Calle Menorca area east of Retiro is said to be excellent.

And Dantxari looks like a classical/traditional Basque restaurant with a small Madrid touch, and it gets top reviews from Spanish customers. http://11870.com/pro/dantxari

The Basque kitchen is just fabulous, arguably the finest in Spain. Dantxari would not be one of those highly inventive Basque gourmet palaces, but seems to serve excellent dishes from "always". Some of the best meals I've had in my life have been in places like this.

I would have started out with either jamón de bellota, pimientos de piquillo con centollo, Alubias de Tolosa or Sopa de Pescados y Mariscos (if they serve it as you often get it in San Sebastián, you'll be in heaven). You can't go wrong from here, but the bacalao al pil-pil or the signature dish Solomillo Dantxari would be high on my list. The stews are also said to be excellent. They even seem to take the desserts, which often can be quite simple, very seriously. Arroz con leche is a personal favourite.

Try the Basque, slightly sparkling and very dry white wine txakolí with the food, and be sure to round off the meal with a cold Pacharán/Patxaran.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patxaran
http://articles.sfgate.com/2007-08-03/wine/17258937_1_unusual-wines-sommeliers-getariako-txakolina

Seems as if you could make use of more than four nights in Madrid... Enjoy!

I also recommend Posada de La villa. Very nice setting and yummy roasted lamb, their specialty.

Hi Exscrunchy!! I don't know if I'm too late...I haven't seen this post until now...
I'm afraid I won't be able to help you with the most typical restaurants (I don't know many of them). But I'll give you my opinion qabout the restaurants listed above and PLEASE ask me anything you want...
of the ones mentioned
- La trainera offers great seafood, it's been 3 years since i last visited it, but I dont think it will have changed,...
- Mentidero de la villa is one of my favorite restaurants, small, great food and great service (my favorite dish there is steak tartare but everything is good!)
- Goizeko (there are 2 in madrid, one in comandante zorita and the other by the wellington hotel (which is near the prado)) the sea food there is great! expensive but great! it's my dad´s favorite to have a good fish
- Meson 5 jotas (there are many) and the jamon there is good, but if you also want to have more tapas, i would suggest "Jose Luis" which is a classic (there you can have tapas and also ordenary meals) there are several all over madrid. http://www.joseluis.es/
I'll add some of my favorite places:
- If you want to try tortillas (omelettes) prepared in different ways try "tortillas de gabino" http://www.lastortillasdegabino.com/
- If you want to try Galizian food but no so marisqueria but elaborated try "La Penela" there are 2 locations one in velazquez, the other one in Infanta mercedes near Plaza Castilla
- it will be a little offhanded this time for you, it's near the Bernabeu, but check the website and keep it in mind for your next trip "El quenco de Pepa" it's one of my favorite unknown gems in Madrid http://www.quenco.com/
- For a slurge and nice meal not on the "bionic" side, for me the number one upper end restaurant in Madrid is Zalacain http://www.restaurantezalacain.com/menu.swf

sorry again for the delay! please ask me anything you want!!!!ant tell me more about you, age, who you travel with, etc. so I can suggest more places!

And if you look for a nice area full of bars and restaurants, you can try the gay Chueca district and the Malasaña district, one following the other in the very center of Madrid. Just walk by and you´ll see a lot of nice taverns and restaurants, a mixture of modern and old styles. The bar El Palentino (Calle El Pez?) was there the Communist Party in Spain was founded, and still keeps the essence...

Thank you, thank you, all of you who are so helpful and patient and have given me so many great tips so far!

Carlota: Not too late--we will be thre in January!

I am having big internet problems in my house and have to use computer now in the library--I will return, you can be certain, with more questions once I get this problem fixed!

I forgot to add that you MUST try the cocido, in My opinión the best is served at Lhardy!!

How to get a tapa for free:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g187514-i126-k4027576-How_to_get_a_tapa_for_free-Madrid.html

...or go to Nerja where delicious tapas, free to choose, are included with the drinks in most places.
http://www.nerjatoday.com/barsandrestaurants/

One of these days I will get to Nerja!

Carlota: I am embarrassed to say that I have never tried cocido. (But yesterday I cooked judios de tolosa (translated here as "Prince Beans') in my kitchen. I made a bean/sausage stew with two types of beans--cannellini from the local store, and the Spanish tolosa beans. Well, let me tell you--the Spanish beans were so far superior to the white ones! Very creamy and delicious. So I will put dried beans on my shopping list for Madrid. I hope to go to a large food market to shop, in addition to visiting t he food area of El Corte Ingles.

Which would be the best food market for me to visit on a Monday-Wednesday?



Back to restaurants, I need to choose a place for the first dinner on Sunday. My question is:
How late can one walk into a restaurant at lunchtime? I mean, what is the latest lunch reservation a restaurant will normally accept?


What is your opinion of Posada de la Villa, mentioned above? And if January is a poor time for lechazo, does that mean that restaurants will not be serving lamb in January or that they will be serving older, and therefore not as tasty, lamb?

I also found this place, not far from the hotel--what do you think?

http://www.asadoraranduero.es/

You would normally not sit down for lunch much after 3pm.

Mercado de San Miguel is fun, although more gastro-oriented small bars with all kinds of specialities than a regular food-market. But you get excellent fresh fish and seafood here as well as the best jamón, sausages, cheese etc.

The real deal Mercado de la Cebada, in the end of C/ Cava Baja at Plaza Cebada, used to be excellent, but things have come to a sort of a standstill as a remodeling project awaits investors. You should nevertheless stop by.

Many thanks! Perhaps I can book a table at 3pm and then have that as my meal for the day of arrival, since we will go to sleep early on that day.

What about Mercado de la Paz in Salamanca? I probably will have time only for San Miguel and one more market....so want to choose wisely!

I will be back with more questions as I refine the plans..

Haven't been to Mercado de la Paz, but looks like an excellent choice: http://www.marketmanila.com/archives/mercado-de-la-paz-calle-ayala-madrid

Having a late lunch is quite common on weekends, and is a great idea for your first day in Spain. It's what we usually do on the first day after a long overnight flight. Then it's time for a few hours of sleep before getting back up and heading out in the early evening hours for a walk around the city to clear your head, indulge in a few tapas and wine, and then it's back to bed around mid-night. We find it's an easy way to adjust to the time change and we always feel fairly normal the next morning.

As far as how late you can make your reservations will depend on the restaurant. We usually make reservations for 2:30, as most restaurants close their doors at 4:00, but you will be allowed to stay well past that time.

The Mercado de la Paz is one of our must stops when in Madrid. La Boulette has some of the best prices on packages of great jamón.

Wow, Mercado San Miguel looks great - sort of like the Ferry Building in San Francisco (which I love). And what a great website that Market Manila is!

Wow! And despite what the blogger wrote on the Mercado de la Paz page, the prices for items like the Bomba rice are far less than they are in the US..our local store carries Calasparra Bomba rice for $14.95 per kilo!

And good olives are usually about $8 per pound, not per kilo!

Robert that is a great idea and one that I will follow. I am thinking Casa Rafa for that first meal since they are open Sunday, too; closed Monday. Any thoughts? (I cannot see their actual hours on this site...)


http://www.buenpaladar.com/restaurantes-madrid/esp/carta-menu/comer-cenar.php?madrid=617_MARISQUER%CDA-RAFA_0

The Mercado San Miguel is very interesting, and a popular neighborhood destination. When we stopped by last month, on a Sunday afternoon, you could barely move it was so packed. It may have been a combination of the weather (bright blue skies) and the weekend, but I felt like I was a sardine in a can.

According to El Mondo (www.elmundo.es/metropoli/restaurantes/fichas/31/305_ficha.html), Casa Rafa opens for lunch at 1:30 and closes at 3:45.

Gracias, Robert!

Casa Rafa should be a great place for our first meal in Madrid--we arrive from JFK early on a Sunday morning, so will plan on a big lunch that day.

How far in advance do I need to book a reservation for Sunday lunch? (I will ask the hotel to do this for me)

Dear ekscrunchy,
Please, try cocido in Lhardy.
http://www.lhardy.com/lhardy_eng/lhardy.htm

Oh Scrunchy you posts always make me sooo hungry!! What a wealth of information here too.

Goodness, I will never get to the Prado with all the eating I have to do in Madrid! I know that I need to sample cocido so will try to go for lunch at Lhardy!

Question: Carabineros are red shrimp, correct?

Are these the shrimp in this photo?

Or are these camarones de la ria?



http://11870.com/pro/casa-rafa/media/d12bccf0

It seems "gambas" (prawn in the UK? / shrimp in the States?)

Think those would be camarones, looks very much like our Norwegian shrimps. Carabineros are much bigger.

IMHO, the words camarón/camarones mean TINY prawns IN MADRID, gamba roja is red shrimp from the Mediterranean sea, bogavante is clawed lobster?, cigales are Norwegian lobster or crawfish? Carabineros are large red prawn?
Too complicated!
Best order the whole "mariscada".

No, not too complicated! I will take notes! There is nothing worse than having to pester the waiter to translate the entire menu.


In the US we usually refer to those (in the photo above) as shrimp. Most, but not all, of the shrimp we get here are the farmed ones from South America and I usually stay away from those. We have nowhere close to the varieties of shellfish that you have in Spain and I am so excited to try each of these!

Por favor, traeme una mariscada grandota!

Hello again! Time to refine my list for Madrid..

Robert, I like the look of the Asturian Couzapin and the menu sounds intriguing and the prices very reasonable. And it may even be within walking distance (??) or a short taxi ride, of the Ritz..

I would love to have your opinion, and the opinion of others who have been there, on whether Couzapin would be a good place first-rate traditional Asturian dishes..(I am afraid that my travel partner is far less experimental in a culinary sense than I am; the carta here appears to have many options for him..)

Bookmarking!

I liked the Couzapin, it's more casual and can be entertaining, and very Asturian. And yes, it's walkable (about 20 minutes walking around the park) from the Ritz, just out the door and to your right. It's shorter walking through the park, but it gets dark quite early in January. You can take a taxi back, or walk off the food.

Maribel has her new Madrid Dining Guide up. You'll find a few more interesting places to check out in the same neighborhood, several in fact.

Robert thanks so much.

I had missed the fact that Maribel had just published a new dining guide for Madrid, so I have more reading to do....

Maribel's new, updated guide is wonderful!

On her advice, and online reviews, I took a good look at the many delectable-sounding places in what Maribel refers to as the Ibiza area, east of Retiro park.

I was able to book Casa Rafa for a 3pm lunch on a Sunday.


I also booked, for another night, Taberna Laredo. The hotel concierge made the booking for me. He told me that the earliest dinner reservation at Taberna Laredo was 9pm.

Question: Would that mean that the restaurant will be closed until 9pm? Or just that, while the bar is open for tapas, there is no dining room service before than time?

ekscrunchy, it is usually the latest ... the bar will be open but not the dining room. There are restaurants where you can get an 8:30 booking, but usually the earliest is 9 o´clock.

Rgds, Cova

I am just bringing this back up to see if anyone has a recommendation for cocido, which I have never tried.

Am I correct in thinking that this dish is usually eaten for lunch? Can it be ordered only for one person at the table?

What do you think of these places, for cocido, especially:

Casa Lucio


Malacatin http://www.malacatin.com/entrada.htm#


La Bola (too touristy??) http://www.labola.es/

If not these, where would this dish best be sampled in Madrid?

There are a few places our friends have taken us, off the beaten path so to speak, but if you want to try cocido (Tuesday is the big day), then I'd head to one of the Taberna de la Daniela's restaurants. Cocido is one of their specialties. The one at Plaza de Jusús, next to Cervantes is one of my favorite stops, but I also like the atmosphere of the one in the Salamanca district.

Everyone at the table usually eats cocido because of the way it's served, but they are known to make an exception, if asked.

There is also another Daniela's branch at Calle Cuchilleros, close to the Plaza Mayor.

I just noticed that Maribel lists La Bola in the "very touristy" category.

Question: If Tuesday is cocido day, does that mean that Casa Lucio might offer cocido as the daily "plato de puchero" on Tuesday?


The only problem with the cocido idea is that if I have that for lunch, I wonder if I will have any room for dinner!

http://www.ellaboratoriogastronomico.com/2010/02/10/cocido-madrileno-en-madrid/

Looking forward to a trip report/restaurant reviews on your return. We go in May and the choices look overwhelming. Have fun!

You'll have to settle to tapas in the evening! And that after a good walk.

Ok--will surely report back...I am very grateful for all of the good advice I received here, despite my endless questions!