Maribel and all others here:

We are traveling to Cuenca, Valencia and Denia in November.
Will arrive in MAD early and I think we might be helped by an overnight close to Chamartin train station, for the Iryo to Cuenca.
So my partner could rest up a bit and not waste a day in Cuenca to recover from the overnight flight and train ride.

I've only just thought of this option, so wonder if there ia good hotel we should stay at fairly near (taxi ok) to Charmartin, which would also leave us close to a very good restaurant.
I have never been to Hevia, so might try eating there that evening, as I read good things and Mairbel seems to approve!!

But where to spend that first night in Spain???

I like small-ish, upscale hotels, not sprawling business hotels...do I have any choice in this area?

As I mentioned, it just occurred to me that we would do well with a rest before moving on to Cuenca....more worried about older partner who needs his rest!!!

Option would be to return to a hotel in Salamanca/Almagro but this might be the opportunity to try something different.....

I'd welcome any thought about hotels (and restaurants) close to Charmartin; hopefully we could negotiate an early check-in....without that, the whole point of resting for the day is kind of moot.....

eks,
Overnight near Chamartín rail.....well, something both of you would enjoy....slim pickings, as I know what type of hotels you enjoy. However, if you´re willing to go down south a few blocks there is one where I stayed (during the 4 day pandemic quarantine) and one that I also know because I used to live nearby. But with major caveats for you....

The NH Eurobuilding actually, currently houses Michelin-starred DiverXo (he's moving somewhere else, a secret place, in 2025 and NOT to La Finca!!!), 99 Sushi Bar and the new Casa de Comidas and Bikini Bar, both by Rafa Zafra of Estimar (Barcelona/Madrid).
We occupied a very top floor room with double terrace that was lovely, with all the bells and whistles. That would be my first choice for you to be very close to Chamartín.
But....and it´s a big but..... It´s a very large hotel, though, a business class hotel, not intimate at all like your lovely Orfila and flight crews stay there.

For restaurants near Chamartín, I would just stick with the NH Eurobuilding options, or return to Sacha or El Qüenco de Pepa. And there, you might even catch a celeb dining. She, Pepa, is very well known among the Telva set and the Preysler family and her vegetables come straight from her garden.

But to be near Hevia and back to Salamanca....
If you don´t mind the expense, I would stay at the Rosewood Villamagna on the Paseo del Castellana, which has become my very favorite hotel (I think your sister and husband have stayed there). But that would be throwing caution to the winds, as the rates will be far more than your "friend of the Orfila" rate, as you know.

But if you would like something less expensive but still right off the Castellana, consider the Barceló Emperatriz, very boutique and very small and book a Premium room (28 square meters) or the Premium Emperador (40 square meters). (Again, near my former home). Why the Emperatriz? So that you can walk easily to Hevia.
Remember that Hevia is in the Salamanca district on Serrano (very near where I used to live and very near the Fundación Galdiano). From the Emperatriz it's only a 3 minute walk to Hevia!

Maribel you are our STAR!

Reading your comments, I am now thinking that we might stay two nights in Madrid.

The big issue is to book a hotel that would allow us to check in early, hopefully without paying the charge for the previous night. But how to know that before booking..one can only request, I suppose. As you know, the Iberia flights from JFK arrive very early (we would take the one leaving the latest (I think there are a few choices) and so arriving the on the latest flight would be best, but surely this would arrive around 9am or so....I can certainly understand that this would be cause tremendous stress on the hotel to allow us to enter the room so early......)



Yes, my sister and Andre ADORED Villa Magna.....they would not stay anywhere else--I have to look at the prices. Last time I checked I needed to lie down for a moment to catch my breath.
Probably not worth it since this is for a rest and refresh before moving on.....but will check this morning.... OOOps...not this morning, it is almost 5pm!!! (Just arrived home from Sicily and Munich and may internal clock is is in more disarray than usual!!). And here I am..barely time to unpack and get ready for my beloved SPAIN!!!!!

BTW: My sister spent THREE weeks in Iceland last March, when I was in Vejer (Imagine!!)...from her photos, which were beautiful, the impression I got was ICE, parkas, snow boots....... Not only that, she is returning with Andre, who is now 90, within a few months!!!! I want to ask her how I can post some of her photos on the Iceland forum.....she does take great pics although even those do not entice me enough to trek to those snowy lands!


Sorry for the far off-topic comments....




I see the QUENCO DE PEPA seems to offer excellent tomatoes. Would those be in season on November???
Which would you choose: This or Hevia?
Sacha would be my first choice but for the reservation issue.



But I am thinking here about the partner; this is his big birthday year and we must keep In mind his tastes......I fear that he will not be able to take many more trips, unless he agrees to take "medication" for his back issues......topic for another time... By coincidence, we will be there on my own "big day, too!!"


So exciting to be in the planning stage for another visit to Spain!!!
I think I will skip Alicante unless you convince me not to......we have less time than usual for this trip, and as you know, I will be back in my beloved Vejer (and Sevilla, and ??) in March!! Solita!



BIG EDIT: Maribel, just looked at dates, and arriving in Madrid would put us there on Sunday the 17th November.
Restaurants we discussed not open Sunday night... Sacha is not. Hevia is not, according to TA. Nor El Quenca de Pepa. (!!!!). The old Sunday in Madrid dilemma!!
So will depart NYC on 15th, arrive Saturday the 16th). Stay two nights in Madrid (??). Sunday lunch at Rafa or wherever you recommend....Since 16 is my "big day, " maybe Hevia??

What I have is 18th and 19th in Cuenca....then by train to Valencia for 7 nights....




EDIT: Booked two nights, Saturday and Sunday at the Barcelo Emperatriz in the Premium Empress room (English website). Cancellation up to on day before arrival.
Two nights with breakfast: 948 euro, my, Madrid hotels are pricey!! Why am I surprised???
Perhaps will look into my old favorite to compare prices....

Requested early check in at the Barcelo, since stated check in is at 3pm..what will partner do from about 9am until 3pm? Will investigate further and see about payment for early check in....



If you have time:



https://www.hungryonion.org/t/munich-who-knew-oktoberfest-began-in-september/39941/82

The early checkin conundrum.
There´s just no way to guarantee it other than paying for the night before. Our little Pavilions and the Tótem allow us, as much as they can, to check in early but this is at noon, not at 9 am!

BTW, the Barceló is a 5-star. Of course the Rosewood Villamagna is a Virtuoso hotel selection. But at the Villamagna you could have a wonderful breakfast and enjoy the many public rooms or have a spa treatment. At the Barceló you could walk to the Villamagna for all of the above.

Go to HEVIA on Saturday.
A bit of gossip--you'll be walking right by the mansion of the Franco family, where his daughter and grandchildren lived, at Hermanos Bécquer 8, now sold by the family and reconverted to luxury condos measuring 600 square meters. This is a very affluent neighborhood.
I was one lucky duck to be living close by just by luck of the draw.

And Hevia is old school in a very fine way, still family-run, veteran waiters, classic, traditional Madrid cuisine but up to date, not staid, not resting on its laurels. It's been home to the carriage trade for years.

And the Sunday night dining dilemma. Well, I've curated my own list now, and these are the ones that i would recommend to you as options. Most appear in the Macarfi guide and have been well-reviewed by the critics. It depends on what type of experience fits the bill for the two of you

• KulTO on Ibiza in Retiro, owners from Zahara serving almadraba but giving the dishes a slight Asian twist. Book upstairs because the bar can be a zoo.
• CASA JULIÁN DE TOLOSA on Ibiza up at the eastern end, part of Bullbiza, for txuleta and the trimmings (more stylish than the one on Cava Baja)
• If in the mood for a gourmet, stylish Peruvian (all the rage here these days, QUISPE on Conde de Aranda in Salamanca, We really like it.
• If in the mood for a gourmet, stylish Mexican, TEPIC on Ayala in Salamanca, a Bib Gourmand
• for Andalusian, there's Dani García's TRAGABUCHES on Ortega & Gasset in Salamanca. Like it more than his Lobito del Mar. Better pricing.
• LA RAQUETISTA en la HABANA, Spain meets Cuba, the informal bistro of the Aparicio brothers on Juan Bravo, Salamanca, key lime pie, ropa vieja, tostones
• for dining with splendid rooftop views, there's CLUB FINANCIERO GÉNOVA, facing Plaza Colón, a private club now open to the public and cuisine by La Ancha group. But a jacket of some sort for the men (or a raincoat will do)
• BAR MANERO from Alicante, gorgeous, chic, for tapas, small plates, must reserve a low table, at Castelló near Retiro Park in Salamanca

(I don't recommend Robuchon, lots of staffing issues, hasn't taken hold here, and you've been to the Robuchon in Paris)
(ditto to El Paraguas, which for me is over priced and like most of the Paraguas group, a place mostly "to see and be seen" for aristocrats and fashionistas--you had finer Asturian fare at Casa Marcial, Casa Gerardo, Casa Fermín, Ca Suso, El Molín de Mingo, etc, all my favorites)

Hope this helps, eks.

Yes, all of that helps immensely.



But if we arrive on Saturday, maybe a lunch on Sunday. instead of a late dinner? I see that Kulto is open Sundays for lunch and dinner.....so far I think this would be the top contender on your list.
Too much info here but I am undergoing dental work that pretty much rules out txuleta for a couple of months (this had better be resolved before I get to La Castilleria in March!!) (it's months and months of work...just this morning found out that I need even more work than originally planned!!!!! ). Its' a wonder I can take enough time to travel between all these dentist and doctor appointments for the both of us!!!

I know about Rafa...when you get time, maybe a couple of other options for Sunday lunch that I can present to J. There must be more open for lunch than dinner on Sunday, I'm guessing.....

Do you think the breakfast at the Barcelo is excellent?

Last question: I can book Hevia now. They have a choice of "salon" and "salon2." Any idea of which to choose?? (They also have a terrazza (??).
Interesting that they begin serving dinner at 5:45pm!!!!! Of course we will go early, as this will be the day of arrival from the US) and surely will not see anyone in the Telva crowd, but that's fine....I would have to really study up on photos before I could recognize anyone-who-is-anyone!!!!





Thank you a million times, as always! ek

The Telva crowd I referred to is not at HEVIA. At Hevia it's the carriage trade.
The Telva set and aristocrats and fashionistas can be found at El Paraguas. You´ll see a very fashionable crowd at HEVIA, but it´s not a "see and be seen crowd" like the places on Jorge Juan. I don´t know about salon 1 and salon 2 at Hevia (I need to go in next week and check), but they do have a lovely outdoor terrace with heaters that we've used but only in the summer months. I assume they will also have blankets.

There are actually more options for Sunday lunch, including TABERNA PEDRAZA on Recoletos in Salamanca (but for their very runny tortilla de Betanzos and txuleta) and RAFA, of course, our favorite seafood temple, and TABERNA Y MEDIA, a Robert de Niro favorite in Retiro and another LA MONTE on Dr. Castelo, belonging to the family that owns La Castela (plus Castelados plus La Montería)
MARCANO also on Dr Castelo, plus another seafood temple like Rafa, which is O´GRELO, also in the Retiro district on Menorca.

I've stayed at the Barceló Emperatriz, actually before it became a Barceló so I don't remember breakfast.

I forgot others that are now open for Sunday lunch:

A favorite of yours (and mine), LUA in the Almagro neighborhood (1-3 pm)
The iconic, historic LHARDY, now owned by Pescaderías Coruńesas, on Carrera San Jerónimo for its lenguado Evaristo and soufflé (1-4 pm)
RAVIOXO of the Dabiz Muńoz XO empire, his noodle-pasta centric eatery, in the Gourmet Experience of El Corte Inglés Castellana (1-6 and also open Sun dinner starting at 8)

Maribel: I switched our hotel to the ORFILIA. And believe it or not, the room is less pricey than the Barcelo Imperatriz, although we are taking the superior double at the Orfilia, not a high class as I had planned at the Barcelo.

I'm not surprised. I thought that the Orfila with your "friend's rate" might be competitive with the Emperatriz.

Isn't that something about the price?

Would you still recommend Hevia for a Saturday night? If we go to Rafa the next day, that will be two classic, upscale places....but we do need to make sure the seating is comfortable for him...I know it will be at those two!! I've ruled out TASQUITA DE E...I can already imagine the comments I will hear about the portion sizes and the prices..... I'll probably stick to those two original restaurants, unless you wildly enthuse about someplace else for Saturday night.... AND I can dip by ALEX CORDOBES during the day of arrival for some after-dinner-in-room dessert! Not only that, if they do not let us check in early which I, of course, requested, maybe I can drag him to Casa Dani for breakfast after dropping off our bags at the hotel....

Maribel as you know, a traveler to Madrid can pull out his or her hair trying to decide--there are SOOO many fantastic options!

OR: FISMULER, where I've never been (?)

If you are looking for a hotel really close to Chamartín station, consider the Barceló Imagine
https://www.barcelo.com/en-es/barcelo-imagine/

Revulgo,
Ekscrunchy will be returning to her favorite hotel in Almagro, the Orfila. She has decided not to stay at a hotel near Chamartín.

I love Fismuler for lunch and we do order the San Román, the giant pork scalop, which we can never finish. It seems that everyone leaves with a to go bag. It´s always on the menu whereas the other menu items change from day to day.

The seating will be comfortable at both Hevia and Rafa, but.....you must reserve in advance for seating at Rafa (as I know you will) so that you don´t get seated in the second upstairs dining room, which is accessed via a very narrow and very steep staircase (been there with family recently) that will be hard for your partner. The first floor tables are very well spaced and very comfortable and easy to access.

We dined at Hevia on a Saturday night on their outdoor, heated terrace since it was a beautiful night, which was lovely, but who knows what the weather will be like in November.

Madrid these days has so very many fantastic restaurants from which to choose!
Have you been back to La Manduca de Azagra or to Lúa, which are both, as you know, very close to your hotel? Or maybe you just don't want to repeat.

If you have any interest at all in game dishes, since it will be November and game, mushroom, truffle season, you might consider either TREZE in the Salamanca district or LA BUENA VIDA in Salesas.

Maribel it's overwhelming. It would be different if it were only me, but I think for Saturday night I have narrowed it down to either LA CASTELA or their sibling (which one?) or HEVIA.

For Sunday I will book RAFA for lunch, as late as possible in the afternoon. Downstairs.

One of my thoughts about HEVIA was that he would be in two very upscale, fairly traditional places, and would not experience the fun of those in the Retiro area that I like so much.
Taxi not a problem, although myself I could walk to all of those.

Do you think CASTELA and HEVIA have an array fuera de carta items?
Should I book the original Castela or Castelados, and is there anyplace I should request to sit at either of those? Am I corrrect that these open early, so we could even dine at 7:30 if he wants to, as this will be day of arrival? That in itself would be a plus for him.

I asked him about FISMULER but he said that he just had the "schnitzel" type meat dish for almost five nights straight in Munich last month, so would be ok with trying something else. And he. has never had rabo de toro, which I know he will love! Pity having that at Rafa but that is probably how it will play out. I, in turn, will be in heaven at any of those three spots.. Every single one you mentioned sounded great, for me.

La Castela will be very, very lively, as in standing room only and all high top tables reserved, with people spilling out onto the street, but for your partner's sake, you'll want to sit in the back dining room.
Their sibling, Castelados on another street but also in the Retiro district, will also be bursting at the seams, and there you'll also want to sit in the more formal and quieter and more comfortable dining room instead of around the bar. We enjoy both. Castelados is the newer one. Same menu, more or less.

The family also owns La Monteria, on Lope de Rueda, which now we like even more (probably our current Retiro favorite), and the dining room has been remodeled and is quite nice and comfortable. In fact, it would be an excellent choice for game dishes. It's received some high praise lately on HO, and TJ really likes it and ate there twice. We talked about it at our recent lunch with this lovely (and highly food knowledgable) couple.
La Montería is also a superb value. When we dined there last, there were several fuera de carta choices. Of all of the 4 owned by this family, I would choose La Montería actually.

And the family owns La Monte, La Montería's new sibling but it's high top tables only. I wouldn't do it.

Hevia will be a more "sedate" experience and a Barrio de Salamanca carriage trade crowd.

Maribel, mil gracias, as usual.

I think I will go for Castellados and Rafa.

Castellados does not appear to take bookings at night for their dining room, but I will do my best. Call them, have hotel phone, etc. they do take bookings for lunch in the dining room but again, I will investigate. Parnter can sit at a mesa alta if necessary. It's the walking that is more of a problem, the seating not much..... My date will open up in about four days, so I will be on it, as you can imagine.

And on Sunday we can have a late lunch at Rafa.

Is this Saturday night? If so, Castelados does take reservations in the dining room for Saturday nights, starting at 8 pm, but I see that it isn't available online for some strange reason. Maybe only by phone?? The window for the Sala isn't available. And they do serve rabo de toro.

Any specific reason not to choose La Montería? It also serves rabo de toro. but the earliest reservation for the sala (dining room) is 8:15.

Maribel that's because of the focus on game, which I am not sure either of us are enthusiastic about. (I had partridge only once, in Toledo, and didi not like. it much; probably it was in the preparation).

But iLA MONTERIA remains on my list in case either of the Castelas do not work out in the dining room for early Saturday night.

I am sure you know ab out this small restaurant, but for anyone looking near Chamerbi, BARRERA jut caught my attention; they seem to feature baby goat, which I like very much.
Not sure if they have a website, or any menu online and cannot find out their hours, albeit with minimal checking.


Do I need to book the Iryo tix from Cuenca to Valencia now, or can I wait until I get to Cuenca and buy those to days in advance. of weekday travel?

I thought that might be the case;
however, La Montería isn't strictly focused on game at all. When game dishes are in season, they do appear on the menu (venison, rabbit, partridge), some fuera de carta, but there is enough on the menu that is not game.
We had nut & raisin bread, asparagus & mushrooms in tempura, morrillo de atún, parpatana de atún and a Pisco Sour sorbete.

Barrera in Chamberí I do know. It's a one woman show, Ana Barrera, and has a bit of a cult following.
The décor is stuck in time, as in the 70s, and like Asturianos, if you pass by, you don´t think that inside there would be a fine restaurant, given its very modest exterior and equally modest interior until you get to the elegant tablecloth bedecked back dining room with 6 or 7 tables.

She serves simple dishes such as partridge, baby goat ribs, ensaladilla rusa, fried artichokes, patatas revolconas con torreznos, battered hake, ventresca...her menu is super traditional, a classic "casa de comidas" for those in the know, her loyal clientele (kind of like the former Ibai).
There is still no printed menu; dishes change according to what she finds in the Mercado de Chamberí.

It closes, by the way, all day Sunday and Monday nights. No online menu, no web site, no wine list (her brother selects the wines). Phone: 91 594 17 57.

Did you see it on "Someone Feel Phil"?