We were beyond excited to started our 1 month Interrail trip through Europe in Madrid. We had decided to make this a culinary tour of the old continent, but since the Spanish capital is full of amazing restaurants and tapas bars, it just felt like a tremendous task to filter the genuine from the tourist traps. We needed help!
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| Gilda skewers (olives, anchovies, and slightly spicy Guindilla peppers - this popular Basque pintxo was named after actress Rita Hayworth for her "spicy" role in the movie "Gilda" |
We learned about these incredible food tours of Madrid, a fellow food and travel blogger - Lauren from SpanishSabores - was organizing. Everybody seemed to love her tours, since it was (still is) ranked the #1 activity in Madrid on Tripadvisor.
We met Lauren on our first evening in Madrid, for a private tapas tour. What struck me almost immediately was, well... Lauren! Sure, anybody can be a tour guide but not everybody is born to be one. But with only one year of experience as a guide, Lauren was probably the best tour guide we've ever had! (and we had our share of tours, I can assure you). She is a natural. Genuine. Friendly. Knowledgeable. Funny. And for over four hours she led an engaging tour we will never forget.
She immediately made sure we had no food allergies or strong sensitivities. Very thoughtful! We have been visiting Spain for over a decade now and we stopped in Madrid a couple of times before, so it’s not like Spanish cuisine was new to us. Nevertheless, throughout the tour, Lauren made sure she was introducing us to a part of Madrid we didn't know and during the evening we went from tasting new and surprisingly delicious dishes, to falling in love with the culinary scene of Madrid. All I can say is that after mid-night, when we parted, we went back to Hotel Meninas convinced Madrid was the food capital of Spain.
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| Vermouth and olive skewers |
Our evening started with a stop at Mercado de San Miguel. The market is close to Plaza Mayor, but without guidance, you could easily pass by it thinking it’s yet another of the many beautiful buildings of Madrid. However, this is not your usual food market, the business here being concentrated around selling tapas and pintxos rather than fruits and vegetables. We went straight to a shop that looked like an olive lovers paradise. We worked up our appetite the same way the locals do, with olive skewers and vermouth. Lauren explained vermouth was a fortified white wine with lots of herbs, spices and even wood for its unique flavor. It is very trendy in Madrid to drink it as an aperitif and alongside tapas.
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| Salmorejo topped with Serrano ham |
Next, we moved to a pintxos stand. Though originally from Basque Country, in the past years the popularity of these miniature culinary delights spread throughout the country like plague. Under Lauren’s guidance, I opted for the salmorejo (cold tomato soup made of fresh tomatoes, day old bread, garlic, olive oil and Sherry vinegar). I’m ashamed to admit I had never before tried this dish, under the misconception that it’s just like gazpacho. Well, though similar, it is different enough and I loved it. And this is all I needed to learn to trust Lauren. For the rest of the night I follow her recommendations. And boy she was great at this, and never disappointed. This girl is a food connoisseur and knows Madrid's food scene inside out, and I would follow her blindly wherever she would take me for dinner. The pintxos were great, and the world was a good place to live in. And since we were headed for San Sebastian in a few days time, the Madrid pintxos were a great introduction that only made us even more eager to get to pintxoland!
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| Goat cheese and caramelized onion pintxo |
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Salt cod brandade
(dried and salted cod that's been soaked in water to "desalt" over a day or two then stewed in milk) |
Our next stop was a little bar where we had the most delicious stuffed mushrooms in our life. We accompanied them by tinto de verano (wine-based cold drink similar to sangria). But the best part was that I knew we wouldn't have entered this place by ourselves in a million years. Too easy to miss, the facade too uneventful, no neon lights pointing towards it. We devoured the mushrooms one after the other while standing at the bar, blending in with the madrileños and embracing the local culture.
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| Chorizo stuffed mushrooms |
By now, we didn't feel that hungry anymore, but Madrid’s food scene seriously picked our interest. A short walk away, we stopped for what could have been a whole meal in itself. We started with a red beet gazpacho tasting served in fancy glasses, followed by tosta and cava (the Spanish version of Champagne) and even dessert. There’s lots of food and lots of drinking included in Lauren’s food tours. Walking in between tapas bars made it a pleasant experience and lots of fun. It was a great opportunity to get to know each other and gave Lauren the chance to talk not only about the food we were sampling but also about the history of our surroundings and put things into perspective for us.
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| Red beet gazpacho |
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| Cecina de León topped with cured sheep's cheese and olive oil (Cured beef from León, Spain) |
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| Cured duck and Valencian orange "tosta" with crisp cava |
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| Salt cured anchovy and Cabrales blue cheese |
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| Strawberries and whipped cream |
We were part of la marcha by now and as the night grew darker, the streets of Madrid got even busier. We entered a bar with incredibly lively atmosphere. By now we were accustomed to be greeted with a smile in each place, as the camareros seemed to know Lauren by name. She recommended us to try the tortilla de patatas, under the credentials that it was the best in Madrid. I was a bit circumspect at this idea, since I do some pretty amazing tortilla myself at home and I also had it in numerous bars and restaurants before. But just when I though I found something impossible to surprise me, SURPRISE! Loved it!
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| A modern "Tortilla de Patatas" (Spanish omelet with potato, onion and egg) |
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| Grilled foie gras with berry reduction |
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| Veal tenderloin with piquillo peppers |
Lauren's genuine interest for our well-being was incredible. She constantly asked for our feedback and adapted according to our answers. We made one more stop, in a quiet bar this time, for crispy chicken and paté, accompanied by red wine. And now we were full.
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| Crispy free range chicken |
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| Partridge Paté |
But it was impossible not to end such a great evening on a sweet note. Our last stop was at Chocolateria San Gines, a churros institution since 1894. This is the most famous place for dunking churros in chocolate in Madrid, and it has been recommended to us over and over again by locals and travelers alike. It really lives up to it’s reputation, and both the churros and the thick, dark chocolate were delicious. We have to admit, since churros are a big thing in Las Fallas in Valencia, where temporary stands can be found at literally every street corner during the duration of the festival, over the years we became a bit of churros snobs. Nevertheless, we can say wholeheartedly that the ones served at Chocolateria San Gines are very good. It was a pity that inside all seats were taken, because the yesteryear atmosphere, with green velvet seats, marble tables and mirrors was pretty cool. Instead, we sat on the terrace, enjoying the cool night breeze.
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| Churros and chocolate |
Both my husband and I agree that the concept behind Madrid Food Tour is a great one, combining small groups (max 8 people), a highly customized itinerary and a shared passion for food with the local culture. I tend to believe that most of the info one receives during a guided tour washes away in a week’s time. However, what remains are the way a tour guide made you feel and in this case, the flavor of the dishes you've tasted. And since Lauren’s tours offer so much more than a simple history lesson, we strongly recommend if you are to take only one guided tour of Madrid, do yourself a favor and pick one of Lauren’s food tours. It’s the best (and most delicious) way to build everlasting memories of this city!
Want to keep this tour in mind for your next visit? You can follow Madrid Food Tour on Facebook & Twitter.
This article was written in partnership with Expedia Spanish cuisine is rich and varied and each region contributes unique flavors. This incredible culinary diversity relies on the proximity to the sea, the abundance of locally produced fruits and vegetables...
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