Shukran: Lebanese for everyone
NORTH AMERICA
USA . The Yankee dish par excellence **is the hamburger**, and to have a real one, one that has little or nothing to do with the most conventional fast food, it is essential to visit Alfredo's Barbecue . Since 1981 it has been the king of hamburgers in Madrid : recipes without variation since the beginning, top quality meat on the grill and its own barbecue sauce, whose secret has not yet been revealed. They are part of the keys that have contributed to the creation of this culinary myth . But if what you are looking for is the cuisine of deep America, ** Gumbo **, ** an emblem of Cajun Creole cuisine from the state of Louisiana **. Fried green tomatoes, mussels au gratin and the gumbo soup, made the traditional way with shellfish and okra seeds.
Mexico. Jingle Bell Hall . He is one of the last to arrive in the capital. It bears the unmistakable stamp of MX Point (authentic Michelin star Mexican cuisine), but in 'craving' format , a type of informal place where people go to take 'whatever they want'. In Salón Cascabel you can eat from guacamole or green shrimp aguachile, to toasted scallop ceviche, Iberian pork and rind taco, quecas ahogadas (quesadillas) or machete, the most forceful and carnivorous dish of the 12 on the menu (beef rib, 1.2 kg, grilled) . And to drink, **there is no shortage of tequilas or mezcals**.
Cuba. A little piece of the Malecón is in Madrid, inside The Black Tomasa , where every night you eat, they drink, sing and dance to the rhythm of Cuban son . Live shows and a menu that gives off an aroma with specialties such as minced beef, white rice and tostones, ropa vieja, roast suckling pig, shrimp enchilada, fried malanga, tamale... and liters and liters of rum.
The quintessential Yankee dish: the hamburger
SOUTH AMERICA
Venezuela. The arepa It is one of the essentials of Venezuelan cuisine, to be eaten alone or with countless fillings. ** Arepa Olé ** has about thirty options, to choose between shredded meat, chicken, avocado, beans, pork, plantain... , in addition to other specialties such as empanadas, patacones, yucca sticks or tequeños. And to drink, papelón with lemon and natural juices of lulo or tamarind, among others.
Colombia. There are several Colombian references in the city, and one of them is **Rochela Café**. Homemade and very traditional dishes, keys to Colombian cuisine: patacones, sancocho, ajiaco, tripe and the forceful **tray paisa (warning: only for the brave)**, which is made with rice, meat, pork rinds, fried egg, patacón, beans, arepa, chorizo antioqueño, hogao, tomato, ripe plantain and black pudding. And nothing more.
Brazil. To the brazilian all you can eat buffet they are known as 'rodizios' and that is precisely the name of one of the Brazilian restaurants in Madrid, ** Rodizio **. The meal protocol begins with a extensive selection of salads and entrees , which is followed by a parade of waiters with meat skewered on swords for each diner to choose and repeat as many times as they want: Creole sausage, chicken thighs, loin to the Herk, Mamiña with lard, baby beef, ox picaña, veal fraldinha, filleted beef steak, Parmesan tenderloin…
A little piece of Cuba in Madrid
Peru. A dish and a drink define Peruvian gastronomy: ceviche and pisco sour. And to enjoy them you just have to go to the area of Puerta de Toledo and ask for a table in Piscomar, a very modest restaurant that has legions of fans. The fault lies with dishes like the green ceviche so (a mix seasoned with leche de tigre and coriander paste), the stretcher (seafood and fish stew) , sweet corn with cheese and causita a la limeña (Pressed potato with chili cream, stuffed with tuna, onion and avocado). To drink pisco sour, in addition to piscotonic and the aphrodisiac 'maricucha'.
Argentina . The pizzas arrived in Argentina from the hand of the Italian emigrants and they knew how to give it their own style until it became a native dish: thicker and more spongy dough, with more cheese and a multitude of ingredients. To enjoy the 'authentic' Argentinians there is ** Picsa **, the new premises with the Sudestada seal , where with half a pizza you go out for dinner.
Ecuador. Recipes from that Ecuadorian grandmother that anyone would like to have is what one finds in ** Paralelo Cero **, but in haute cuisine version. The pantry of this restaurant contains ingredients such as kinua, tamale, yucca, plantain, citrus, pork, chicken or beef, Creole sausage and lots of fish , with which he makes, among others, his ceviches, llapingachos, hornados, tartar and flag (a taste of Ecuadorian gastronomy in a single dish, consisting of guatita, achiote rice, shrimp ceviche and dried goat, avocado tartar and whistles.)
Uruguay. What would one eat in Uruguay? A lot of grilled beef: strip roast, high loin, chicken... as well as dishes such as chivito (on bread or on a plate), stuffed or grilled provolone and, for dessert, chajá (meringue, sponge cake and cream). That is precisely what is served in La mano de Pablo.
Seco de gallina in Parallel Cero
EUROPE
France. Although it is the neighboring country, the metro still does not reach the Eiffel Tower. But it is not necessary, because in ** The Committee ** one can feel with in la France if you eat delicacies like foie grass mi-cuit from the Landes, fried camember with cranberry sauce , steak tartare, snails bourguignonne, prawns with Pernod or entrecote with black pepper. And speaking of meat, meat lovers are in luck, because a new restaurant has arrived in town: ** L’Entrecot Café de Paris, ** where only entrecote is served with the genuine Cafe de Paris sauce and accompanied by all the fries that the diner wishes.
Germany. German cuisine tastes like home-made sausages ( Bratwurst, Nürnberger and Thuringer ), knuckle, mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, pâtés, smoked meats, Rösti potatoes, käsespätzie, sweet mustard, goulash, sirloin Stroganoff, roast beef… And it is what one finds on the main menu of ** Fass **, one of the mythical authentic German cuisine restaurants in Madrid where, of course, beer is not missing .
England. Although rumor has it that British cuisine does not exist… if you want to try it, you just have to Approach Lavapiés and find a place in ** Los Chuchis **, a picturesque place run by a British chef, Scott Preston , which provides his particular vision in his letter. the star is the slow roasted pork with apple and baked potatoes.
You won't forget their sauce...
Italy. There are many Italian cuisine restaurants in the city, but if you have to choose one, we prefer the recently opened ** La Pasteria **. It is a restaurant and daily pasta making laboratory , which is the fresh pasta that is later served in his little room and that is sold in his store to take home. Indispensable fettuccine alla ruota (The cooking is finished inside a wheel of Parmesan Reggiano aged 24 months).
Belgium. Belgians boast of having their own recipe (and even a museum) for fried potatoes, a curious total and absolute protagonist of their gastronomy. At ** Belgian Atelier ** share menu with mussels marinated in different sauces , Parmesan or shrimp croquettes with parsley and lemon, gratin snails and sweet-savory waffles.
Swiss. Switzerland has the aroma of cheese and its most symbolic dish is fondue, like the ones prepared at ** La Fondue de Tell **, to choose between Bourguignonne (meat), Chinoise, of clear Chinese inspiration (with shiitake mushrooms) or the traditional three cheese, to name a few.
Greece. Going to Greece is seeing remains of ancient civilizations everywhere. That's right ** Mythos **, a restaurant decorated like a typical Greek tavern: lots of sculpture, amphorae and ruins surrounding the tables. And to eat, Greek specialties such as tzatziki, dolmadakia, hummus and feta cheese, accompanied by retsin, the white wine of the greeks.
Fettuccini a la ruota at La Pastería
Poland. There are few references to Polish cuisine in Madrid, but there are some, such as ** La Polonaise, ** where you can find everything from traditional herring _(sledz) _ beetroot with horseradish (cwikla ) and, of course, lots of sour cream and dill to season their dishes with almost unpronounceable names.
Portugal. Portuguese cuisine revolves around cod . In A tasca do bacalhau portuguese they know more than 400 recipes to prepare it, such as the Portuguese, with creams, à braz, royal, à lagareiro... cod that the diner can (and should) water with liters of vinho verde.
Russia. **Moscow nights are anything but cold at this city center restaurant,** because the atmosphere is hospitable, cozy and warm. To eat, from the classic steak tartare to a chicken and mushroom casserole with vodka, blinis with caviar or the Russian specialty, veal bitoke with roasted legs and pickles.
Bacalhau pataniscas
AFRICA
Morocco. Authentic Moroccan cuisine is what the restaurant **Almounia** serves, the first in the city at the end of the 1960s. It has numerous international awards and its aesthetics could not be more careful in detail. Between your letter, traditional and popular dishes of Moroccan cuisine, such as the different types of couscous_, tagine_ and the sweet pastella.
Ethiopia. In Argüelles itself one can enjoy specialties of the ethiopian cuisine, based on various starters and vegetable or meat dishes (lamb, of course) served on a injera , name given to typical ethiopian crepe. dishes like misir wot (red lentils with berber sauce) , for alitcha (braised beef with bits of injera in a mild sauce) or al mandi (roasted lamb with rice) can be had at **Hanan. **
Senegal. Modest but very hospitable atmosphere, as its name indicates in Senegalese. That's how it is The Teranga , a sub-Saharan restaurant in the heart of the Lavapiés neighborhood that offers a short menu with specialties such as mafe (rice with meat and stewed potato and a peanut sauce) or the thieboudienne (rice with fish and vegetables) . And for drink, the native bissap , red drink made with hibiscus flower, or the bouy that is made with a fruit of the baobab tree.
Your table is an explosion of colors
MIDDLE EAST
Saudi Arabia. Without a doubt, Al-Jaima, with the surname 'The kitchen of the desert', is one of the most authentic Arabs in Madrid and is in the heart of Chueca. The interior of the restaurant recreates the Bedouin aesthetic, simulating desert tents , and its menu, with very exotic flavors and aromas, proposes delicacies such as hummus, mutaabal, couscous and tagine , among many others.
Lebanon. On the terrace of the Casa Árabe and with views of the Retiro. This is one of the most authentic Lebanese restaurants in Madrid. It is shukran , known for its tasty food in which dishes such as Fatoush salad, fatayer or Lebanese empanadas and falafel.
Turkey. The restaurant omar represents quality Turkish cuisine in an atmosphere of traditional aesthetics. There is no shortage of specialties from its popular gastronomy, based on charcoal-grilled meats, vegetarian dishes, homemade breads and the company of belly dancing in the background (on Friday and Saturday nights) . Starters such as their spiced yogurt (haydari) , you ask for Lahmacun (kind of pizza with minced meat, onion, tomato and pepper) or the Beykoz Kebap (veal wrapped in strips of aubergine) are part of its long list of specialties.
Iran. The restaurant esfahan It is a modest Persian-style eating house, with carpets that decorate the walls as a plinth and motifs brought from Iran. Delicacies such as barbecue meat skewers , traditional stews such as krufte tabrizi (meat and vegetable dumplings) , baghali pole (baked lamb), a lot of basmati rice and homemade sweets.
India/Pakistan. Lavapiés has long since ceased to be the most traditional neighborhood in Madrid to become the most multicultural. So much so that today it is the heart of the Little India of the city, with representatives such as New Delhi , known for its Indo-Pakistani style cuisine. Dishes such as the tandoori chicken or the seekh kebak (which is not a kebab but a skewer of minced lamb meat) .
Tasty homemade vegetable croquettes... we love Es Shukran's falafel
ASIA
Thailand. Fusion of aromas, flavors, textures and a lot, a lot of spice in the menu of krachay , authentic Thai cuisine in the Alonso Martínez area. To prove it, just order the tung krapao (prawns with chili and basil) or the panaeng nua (Paneng-style red curry beef tenderloin strips), to name just a few of their extensive and careful menu, in which they classify the intensity of the spiciness with the letter 'P' (one equals a little spicy, four, very spicy) .
China. In addition to the authentic Chinese restaurant on the ground floor of Plaza de España (by the way, its real name is Zhou Yulong ), there are other options that take us directly to a table in the Far East. This is the case of El Pato Laqueado , opened in Madrid around the year 2000, and whose specialty could not be other than the one that gives its name, as well as a tasty selection of dim sum and other treats.
Korea. The Korean offer seems abundant in the city, but there is a restaurant that, although modest and atypical (its interior is that of an old traditional tavern), stands out from others thanks to its classic Korean cuisine . **It's Seoul, ** and their chabche noodles or tanguyuc grilled pork are some of the reasons for their success.
Vietnam. At Le Petit Hanoi one can begin to get into the essence of Vietnamese cuisine, where vegetarian rolls, noodle soups and different rice dishes form part of its foundation.
Japan. Hattori Hanzo is one of the last to arrive in the city and the first to recreate an authentic japanese izakaya , or what is the same, street food stalls like those in Tokyo itself. But it is also a tatami restaurant. In the letter, no sushi, but Japanese-style tapas, Like the nikuman (bread stuffed with meat, prawns and vegetables) or the chikuna (blue seaweed surimi in tempura) .
Haven't tried Okonomiyaki yet?
AUSTRALIA
Australia . The spirit of Sydney cafes is closer than we think: in the heart of the Conde Duque neighborhood, because Federal Coffee recreates its atmosphere and its cuisine, a fusion of Anglo-Saxon recipes and international products with an ecological and artisanal trend. One of its classics is the kangaroo burger (because in Australia, kangaroos are also eaten) .
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A classic: salmon sandwich