What makes a restaurant famous, the time it has been open, the relevance of who has sat there to eat, the success of its chef, the awards it has received? Although new openings are always attractive, the truth is that staying open over time is difficult in a city like Madrid, so yes it is a key factor, but it also has to have contributed something different to the city’s gastronomy. Something attractive enough so that it has gone beyond fashion and has become a classic, an essential where it is always difficult to get a table.
Lhardy
Azorín said of Lhardy that the city cannot be conceived without it, and it is true that modern Madrid has been built in part from here. Émile Huguenin created Lhardy in the image and likeness of the restaurant that was then fashionable in Paris, Café Le Hardi. With this premise, it became the first fine dining house, designed to bring together the city’s aristocracy in its dining rooms. And so it was. The Marquis of Salamanca planned here the neighborhood that would bear his name, Queen Isabel II brought her lovers here, Primo de Rivera was a regular during his dictatorship and here Alcalá Zamora was elected president of the Second Republic. This resume is more than enough to conclude that this is the most famous restaurant in Madrid.
📍 Carrera de San Jerónimo, 8 (Centro).
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DiverXO: An Avant-Garde Gastronomic Experience
DiverXO has changed the city’s modern gastronomic scene and its chef, Dabiz Muñoz, has marked an entire generation. The only restaurant in Madrid with three Michelin stars, it is known for its extreme creativity and a tasting menu that changes daily. Among the dishes that can be found in this unique culinary experience, include such surprising mixtures as the Kakigori of ceviche, which can be enjoyed from Tuesday to Friday.
📍 NH Eurobuilding (Calle del Padre Damián, 23, Chamartín).
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Casa Lucio
Casa Lucio has in its walls a hall of fame worthy of the walk of fame on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles. Some scrambled eggs with potatoes have never been more famous or more glamorous. Lucio’s simplicity and know-how have made this restaurant crowded since they opened in 1974 and it is still a success today.
📍Calle de la Cava Baja, 35 (Centro).
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Coque
Sometimes you don’t need a TV chef or a conceptual decoration to be and stay in the gastronomic league of the city. It is not only known for its two Michelin stars that confirm their good work, but because when you ask for a good restaurant in Madrid Coque always comes up.
Mario, Rafael and Diego Sandoval are the third generation of chefs at the helm of Coque, a space of 1,100 square meters with four distinct spaces (cocktail bar, wine cellar, kitchen and dining room) in which everything is thought to detail for an experience that well justifies its fame.
📍Calle de Marqués del Riscal, 11 (Almagro).
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Tatel Madrid
Tatel is a restaurant created by celebrities with the intention of verging on culinary stardom. It opened in 2015 with Rafa Nadal, Enrique Iglesias and Pau Gasol among the partners, joined a couple of years later by Cristiano Ronaldo. That the restaurants are a good business is not only confirmed by the list of well-known names behind this one, but also by its expansion, they already have headquarters in Beverly Hills and Riyadh.
The one in Madrid has a decoration inspired by the golden 20s in the United States and is one of the best restaurants to listen to live music while you eat. Nor can we forget its cheese tart which holds the award for the best in Madrid, according to the Association of Chefs and Pastry Chefs of Madrid.
📍 Paseo de la Castellana, 36 (Salamanca).
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BiBo
It’s one of award-winning and prolific chef Dani Garcia’s more casual restaurants, but something about its attractive decor and menu with nods to Andalusia means it’s always bursting at the seams. A confirmation of its success is that Pedro Almodóvar has chosen it to take Dua Lipa, Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton to lunch there, while they were filming their latest movie, La habitación de al lado, in Madrid. The mere possibility that sitting at one of its tables means being able to find some of the most relevant people of the international culture gathered together, already makes it very attractive.
📍P.º de la Castellana, 52 (Salamanca).
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Botín House
Casa Botín is recognized as the oldest restaurant in the world, open since 1725 as a house of meals – before the concept of a restaurant was even established as such in Madrid. Three centuries later it is a city institution that has remained more impassive to time than the Puerta del Sol itself. Even its menu has changed little, roasts, especially suckling pig, are its star dish.
📍Calle de Cuchilleros, 17 (Centro).
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