Kintaro
+34 913 992 888
All Sushi, All the Time
OK. If you want sushi, and I mean REALLY want sushi, go to Kindalo. It's got one of those rotating serve-yourself bars, and for a scant €16 you can literally eat until you burst. It's amazing. Every time I go there I probably eat at least €60 worth of sushi, not to mention the noodles, rice, chicken and pork dishes, salads, soups and desserts. The selection isn't that varied, but at that price, who cares? call for reservations, it fills up during the week and you're left standing at the door with your mouth watering.
Siam
+34 915 598 315
Thai-riffic
If you're tired of tapas, and the greasy Chinese places aren't doing it for you, try Siam, which is near Plaza España and close to Malasaña. The menu del día is €11, and if you go for dinner you can try heaping portions of pad thai with shrimp, chicken or beef. Try some Thai iced tea for a real treat, and if you can't decide what to order, there is an appetizer plate with four selections of dishes that i sperfect to split between two or three. It's not really that crowded, but call in advance just to make sure.
Casa Mingo
+34 915 477 918
Chicken or....chicken.
You’re not exactly spoilt for choice at Casa Mingo as there’s only three things on the menu. Luckily, the roast chicken, Asturian cider and crispy fresh salads are all delicious and ridiculously cheap. The place is always heaving with Spanish families and is a great venue to go with a big group.
Food with a Side of Cross-Dressing
Looking to spice up your night? Visit Gula Gula, with its unique cuisine and a distinctive cross-dressing waiters, who not only serve up delectable dishes such as salmon with almonds and passion fruit sauce, but also a racy show. Be prepared for an experience unparalleled to any other restaurant in Madrid.
Tuscania
+34 915 780 234
Gourmet Pizza
If you want good pizza in Madrid, please, PLEASE avoid the takeout chains! There are great slices to be found in the capital. At Tuscania, try the Prosciutto, rúcola e grana (€8.60) or the Alpina pizza (€8.90), with tango tomato, sweet caramelised onion and creamy goat cheese. There are lots of veggie options, the crusts are crisp and the flavour combinations perfect, and there are great desserts. This is a great date restaurant!
Sara In-Madrid discovered this service :-)
Nippon
+34 913 600 354
Sushi
This is the traditional sushi experience, not Spanish-style sushi as in other places. The food is divine, the atmosphere very zen. Try the hijiki black seaweed salad with grilled tofu, chicken and carrot. The “Sashimi Spanish”, is a plate of bright red ahi tuna and pale hake arrive drenched in a tart lemon-soy sauce and sprinkled with chives.
The prawn and salmon sashimi and California rolls are also amazing, as is the tempura vegetables with seafood. Tempura, when done wrong, is just a fancy word for “ball of fried dough”. Not Nippon’s tempura. This is the most impossibly light, crispy, flavourful combination of courgette, carrots, onion and prawns in Madrid’s city limits. After the heavenly tempura, ginger-infused noodles with veggies and water chestnut are good, but are topped with tiny, formerly frozen salad prawns. I’d have preferred a second (or third) helping of the tempura vegetables.
Mexican Food
First of all, this is the first Mexican place I’ve been to that gives you free chips and salsa right off the bat. (There might be more, but I haven’t found them.) Points in my book right away. La Taqueriá de Birrä has two locations; we went to the one in the secluded Plaza de la Comendadoras. It’s got a great terrace, lots of space and not too much noise.
The menu is huge; for starters there are four kinds of quesadillas and quesos alone. We’re not complaining, though. It’s nice to have a big selection.
We had a margarita to start, which was hand-shaken at our table (My friend is an ex-bartender, she assures me it was properly done.) It was really strong but had a smooth, sharp taste. There are also six different Mexican beers on the menu, if tequila isn’t your thing.
To start, we chose the quesadillas with flor de calabaza; I couldn’t actually taste the flor de calabaza because of all the melted cheese that oozed out. (Again, not complaining. I love cheese.)
We picked the tamales with pico de gallo and the enchiladas Rancheras with mole. (Entreés between €8-10). The tamales were perfect, and the presentation is cool; there are four, and each have a different little sauce on them which is then smothered by amazing pico de gallo. The chicken enchiladas with mole sauce were also really good – the mole was sweet but not spicy – but were covered in cheese, which even for me was a bit overwhelming.
For dessert, we wanted the fried platanos, but they were out. Good thing, though, because we might not have gotten to try the Georgina cake, the house specialty. It was amazing; a homemade light, fluffy cake layered with creamy lemon and drizzled with raspberry sauce. Amazing. We also had the crepes de cajeta, which were swimming in dulce de leche and very rich.
The portion sizes were perfect, and the place is lively and fun. It would be a great place to have a birthday or get-together (just not with all your Spanish friends if you don’t want to shell out for everyone’s dinner!)
Circus Let's Noodle
+34 915 225 215
Noodle-y Delicious
This place is great for a fun, quick meal that looks a lot more expensive than it really is. It's trendy enough to take someone on a date and impress them sufficiently without breaking the bank. They've got all sorts of...you guessed it, noodles, but they are all interesting enough and differnet to make you change your mind at least twice before ordering. The noodles with duck and broccoli are delicious.
Acquafredda
+34 914 116 314
Lunchtime is the best time to dine at Acquafredda, assuming of course you’re not here to shop for ingredients, in which case head straight for the huge deli that greets you as you enter. Venture further in and you’ll find a pastry counter, and with pride of place at the back of the restaurant is the ample wine cellar. The first page of the menu includes a range of crostini, several different carpaccios and smoked venison, all of which can be ordered in half-servings as a starter. The only gripe is the lack of pepper-grinder action — no Italian meal is complete without a huge mill being brandished by the waiter. Try the tiramisu (€4), which is wonderfully rich and creamy, and the chocolate cake (€4.50), which arrives crowned with fruits of the forest and drizzled with a raspberry coulis. A special mention for the Illy espresso, one of the finest cups of coffee you’ll find in Madrid.
Cocina del Desierto - Al Jaima
+34 915 231 142
This is one of those great little Aladdin’s cave type places that once you’ve discovered it, you don’t want to tell anyone about it in case it becomes too popular and loses its charm. But what the hell. In the small front room you can sit on cushions and dine at low tables in true Moroccan style. The walls are whitewashed and there’s Moroccan paraphernalia all over the place: trumpets hang above the bar, lamps give off a cosy glow and African music completes the set up. Even the wait staff are in traditional African dress and you’ll feel as though you’ve left Spain completely. The food is deliciously infused with herbs and spices and their scent fills the air. The hummus and aubergine cream are divine starters, and the falafel is fresh and slightly crunchy on the outside and moist and aromatic on the inside. Finish off with a traditional mint tea and a selection of sweet pastries.