From the Madrid Visitors & Convention Bureau
Nine of the best restaurants in Madrid, Spain, combine sophisticated and varied cuisine with pleasant surroundings. Here, in this gastronomy walk through the city, are presented restaurants worth stopping into for a bite or a complete meal.
They can all be found in the same place, the Casa de Campo Fairgrounds, though each of them has its own distinctive flavor. Housed in traditional and historical buildings that include palaces and ancestral homes, the restaurants of the Paseo de la Gastronomia combine excellent cuisine with pleasant surroundings. Discover this culinary avenue in the heart of the city and enjoy an evening in their sumptuous interiors or on their open-air terraces under the Madrid night sky.
Colonial de Monico
A piece of advice: always leave a little bit of room for dessert. The classic homemade pastries are just one more attraction in this large colonial-style house where every effort is devoted to giving traditional Mediterranean cuisine an avant-garde touch. The speciality of the house: vegetable and rice dishes.
Casa de Burgos de Araceli
With its large central cloister in the old Castilian style and a tower with two separate dining rooms, guests enjoy an intimate atmosphere throughout the Casa de Burgos. The restaurant offers a traditional menu in a classical setting, including dishes such as churrasco of beef, pimientos del piquillo (stuffed peppers) and medallion of fillet steak in port. The wine cellar has an excellent selection of reds from Rioja.
La Masia de Jose Luis
A traditional stone masia or farmhouse, with restrained and elegant decor by the interior designer Pascua Ortega and a menu that features contemporary versions of traditional dishes: scrambled egg with baby beans, sauteed pigeon in mushroom sauce and foie mousse, stewed strawberries with almond cream. The restaurant is run by the prestigious José Luis group, which also has its own winery.
La Pesquera
The “Frenchified” atmosphere of Madrid’s 18th century court is brought to life in every nook and cranny of La Pesquera, which itself is housed in a replica of a stately home from Toledo. The Puerta de Bisagra, a replica of the gate that still stands in Toledo itself, gives out onto the patio which is dominated by a fountain. Some suggestions: grilled meat or shellfish from the restaurant’s own hatchery.
Restaurante Currito
A well-known Basque institution in the heart of Madrid. Hake in salsa verde, bream, kokotxas (cheek of cod or hake) are lovingly prepared alongside excellent cuts of meat on the enormous grills that dominate the central patio around which the tables are spread. The décor gives a maritime air.
Restaurante Guipuzcoa
Begin with pastel frio de cabricho (cold scorpion fish pie) and complete your meal with tarta religiosa (religious cake). In between you can try the hake with seafood sauce. These are just some of the delights on the menu at the Guipuzcoa, which offers a number of different sized rooms in which guests can enjoy its wonderful Basque cuisine.
El Bosque Sagrado
Guests enjoy the sensation of dining in the forest, sitting out under the moon on warm summer nights on the restaurant’s beautiful patio. Asturian cuisine: hake fillets in cider, bean stew and fish from Cantabria. Excellent ingredients and careful presentation.
El Pabellon de Ondarreta
Housed in the old Casa Regional de Segovia, this restaurant respects the building’s original exterior architecture, with its square tower and weather vane, and also retains its fantastic skylight, allowing diners to gaze up into the night sky as they sample delights including mousse of tortilla de patatas on a bed of toast or wild salmon in salt.
El Palacio de la Mision
Built in the style of an Extremaduran palace, this is the perfect stage for a restaurant whose great passion is fresh market produce. The atmosphere is intimate both inside in the dining room and out on the terrace. The chef recommends oxtail ravioli in its special sauce.
