183 replies to this topic

[nuxvomica]

ha, went back and forth on Combarro - guess will have to add it back and just have two dinners one night (which i've done before )

could the other place, the one with 1925 Ygay be O'Pazo?

by the way, i can't believe that Alvaro Palacios & Peter Sisseck (Pingus), as well as Mary Ewing- Mulligan are having dinner at Tocqueville tonight (separate tables) and i'm here packing

[S.C.S.]

Arce was killer. We had tortolano, which we mistook for ortolan in translation.

Go for a long, long afternoon. He will sit down with you & go on & on with courses. The room is fascinating--the whole experience was the most memorable overall, with Combarro's percebes the best & one of the only good things about the restaurant. I have many pictures but don't know how to post them.

[Steven Dilley]

ha, went back and forth on Combarro - guess will have to add it back and just have two dinners one night (which i've done before )

could the other place, the one with 1925 Ygay be O'Pazo?

by the way, i can't believe that Alvaro Palacios & Peter Sisseck (Pingus), as well as Mary Ewing- Mulligan are having dinner at Tocqueville tonight (separate tables) and i'm here packing

It could be O'Pazo but I don't recall with any degree of certainty and can't find my notes. And unfortunately I didn't write that trip up online. Actually, I think we found the place through a recommendation from the chef at Arce. Though once again, I could be wrong.

I'll dig around a bit on my desk and see if anything turns up.

[Steven Dilley]

Glorious percebes!

[Steven Dilley]

Still haven't found the restaurant, but here's the btl. The owner of the restaurant has a stash direct from Ygay.

[nuxvomica]

i'm sooo not showing my husband that picture of percebes - i think i'll surprise him

meanwhile, Palacios recommended La Terraza at Casino de Madrid, where Paco Roncero is the chef (apparently former Adria's sous chef) and El Chaflan (also a chef's recommendation), throwing a wrench into our much agonized over plans. I haven't seen much posted on either restaurant here or on eG - anyone been? thoughts?
i might drop Viridiana

i'm starting to think we might be ODing on the high-end stuff though

[omnivorette]

i'm sooo not showing my husband that picture of percebes - i i'm starting to think we might be ODing on the high-end stuff though

Yeah...watch out for that, really. You'll want to do spontaneous and low end stuff a lot, right?

[Daisy]

i'm sooo not showing my husband that picture of percebes - i i'm starting to think we might be ODing on the high-end stuff though

Yeah...watch out for that, really. You'll want to do spontaneous and low end stuff a lot, right?

....aka tapas and jamon

[Steven Dilley]

i'm sooo not showing my husband that picture of percebes - i think i'll surprise him

I ended up eating them everywhere in Madrid, but the first time I tried 'em was at Combarro and had no idea how to approach them. After poking at a several with a fork for a few minutes I finally called the waiter over.

[Wilfrid1]

Is Arola related to Le Broche - a second restaurant from the same chef? You may not need to do both. What you are missing is a traditional grill place, if you like that sort of thing. For myself, I'm happy to eat that kind of food at Botin. You should also drop into Abuelo once for the shrimp tapas.

[nuxvomica]

I ended up eating them everywhere in Madrid, but the first time I tried 'em was at Combarro and had no idea how to approach them.  After poking at a several with a fork for a few minutes I finally called the waiter over. 

and??

don't keep me in suspence here

[nuxvomica]

Yeah...watch out for that, really.  You'll want to do spontaneous and low end stuff a lot, right?

....aka tapas and jamon

figured i'd do that between lunch and dinner - that's just about as spontaneous as i can be with only 3 days there

and that's if we get there tomorrow - last year each of our international trips started with a cancelled flight. Ramada Inn buffet instead of Gordon Ramsay
flying to Brazil to Argentina to catch a plane to Chile
at least we're not flying AA

[Steven Dilley]

I ended up eating them everywhere in Madrid, but the first time I tried 'em was at Combarro and had no idea how to approach them.  After poking at a several with a fork for a few minutes I finally called the waiter over. 

and??

don't keep me in suspence here

With one hand, grasp the end that looks like a dinosaur toenail. With the other, grab the base of the leathery sheath and twist. The sheath will pop off exposing a rubbery-looking purple nub. Eat the nubby bit.

[Steven Dilley]

And whatever you do, don't miss La Vanencia, even if it's just for a quick glass of sherry and a few olives.

[Wilfrid1]

And whatever you do, don't miss La Vanencia, even if it's just for a quick glass of sherry and a few olives.

Except you should really spend more time there and sample the mojama .

Meanwhile, bad news about a Hard Rock Hotel opening in the Plaza Santa Ana - but in the meantime its a nice neighborhood to check out. This is the square where we were able to relax on a terrace until the early hours while our five year old enjoyed the little playgrounds.

NY Times