Gastro

Gastro Review

At the end of 2007, celebrity chef Sergi Arola—Ferran Adrià's most popular disciple—left La Broche, the restaurant where he vaulted to the top of the Madrid dining scene, to go solo. The result is a smaller, less minimalist though equally modern bistro space crafted to enhance the dining experience, 30 customers at a time. At the height of his career and surrounded by an impeccable team—which now also includes a talented and talkative bartender in the lounge—Arola offers three sampler menus (no à la carte) ranging from seven courses (€105) to more than a dozen in the namesake "Gastro" menu (€160). The latter includes some of the chef's classic surf-and-turf dishes (such as rabbit filled with giant scarlet shrimp) and nods to his Catalonian roots (sautéed broad beans and peas with blood sausage). The wine list has more than 600 different wines, mostly from small producers, all available by the glass.