At number 1 of the Gran Vía...
THE FIRST
This route begins at number 1 (where else?) of the Gran Vía, and there it is, right on the first floor, the restaurant The first . A commitment to quality cuisine with all the essence of the north, as its owner and chef, Paco Quiros -Cañadío, La Bien Aparecida, La Maruca-, is Cantabrian by birth and in love with the cuisine that is made for his land.
Pure tradition in dishes that take us to the Sardinero beaches , As the dry rice with vegetables and baked mushrooms , the cod fritters wave rula hake , to name just a few of his tasty proposals. An address, that of the La Primera restaurant, which shows that lifting your eyes from the ground and looking up at Gran Vía is rewarding.
You will like it if… You are one of those who enjoy a copious meal with a lot of foundation.
_(Gran Vía, 1. Average price €35) _
The first
** ARALLO TABERNA, THE GALICIAN THUG**
And if looking up has a reward, so does getting lost in the streets surrounding Gran Vía. . Only then does one come across Arallo Taberna, the newest from the Amicalia group -Alborada, Ánima, Alabaster- that has come to the capital directly from A Coruña, where the original Arallo is located.
If you opt for this option, the first thing you have to keep in mind is that it is not a typical restaurant, but a local with a large bar placed in front of the kitchen in which cooks and waiters work at a frenetic pace, and a row of tables and high stools located just parallel to it.
Here everything revolves around the bar, as in the usual bars , where there were neither tablecloths nor great luxuries (because there weren't any, there are almost no cutlery, here they are all made of wood) . Pure hooliganism and absolute informality, without protocols . But with a basic premise: to exceed the expectations of cuisine and service.
And they do, with two cards, one solid and one liquid, which are like a trip from Galicia to Asia , merging -or contaminating, as they say- the best of each cuisine: nigiri croquettes of hake salpresa, cauliflower with coconut milk, kimchi and mussels, or their versions of pisco with pomace and negroni with vermouth. Why not.
You will like it if… You don't mind waiting to eat, they don't take reservations. But it will be worth it.
_(Queen, 31. Average price €30) _
Arallo Madrid, enjoy Atlantic cuisine like never before
** BURNOUT , GOURMET SUPERBURGERS **
We continue through the streets near Gran Vía, but without going just a few meters away, which are the ones that separate the main artery from Burnout, a gourmet hamburger restaurant that has proposed to serve the perfect burger: top quality meat - Galician blond cow - chopped by knife, molded by hand, cooked on the grill and with a brioche-style artisan bread that gives it a very interesting sweet touch.
The cheese is an English aged cheddar , and the potatoes that accompany it, homemade and fried in extra virgin olive oil. And all of this, in the case of hamburgers, could not be more gourmet. for a first time, essential to try the Smokin' , with bacon, caramelized onions and smoky mayo sauce, or the Cheezebrgr, a version of the classic cheese burger. Whoever is left wanting more, try one of their NYC-style shakes. Vice.
You will like it if… you are a confessed lover of meat and real burgers made at the moment.
(Valverde, 6. Burger between €9.90 and €10.95).
Burnout, you won't be able to resist the temptation
** THE TASQUITA IN FRONT, A CLASSIC **
It is one of the great classics not only of the area but of Madrid, an old eating house that has evolved over the years until becoming the great culinary reference that it is today . That is why we have made a hole for it on this route, despite the fact that its price is one of the highest that we are going to propose.
Its current owner, Juanjo Lopez -son of the founder of Tasquita- is the person most responsible for his notoriety, him and his culinary creations in which seasonal and market produce are the real protagonists, without artifice.
Memorable Guetaria tear peas with egg yolk, ham croquettes, ajoblanco with marinated herring , the fried hake cheeks or the tripe, an emblem on this side of the Gran Vía.
You will like it if… you are one of those who prefer small and charming places. East only has eight tables and many works of art on its walls.
_(Crossbow, 6. Average price: €60) _
Juanjo López, an essential Madrid classic
** THE CANALLA PORRÓN, THE ONE WITH MOTHER'S SANDWICHES**
The kitchen of this Porrón Canalla bears the signature of Juanjo López himself and his aforementioned Tasquita, but much more rogue and affordable, by the way.
Only sandwiches are made here , but not just any sandwiches: some sandwiches like the ones that mothers prepared to have a snack as God intended, with top quality sausages, gourmet preserves and bread so rich that it is to be eaten in bites . The one with marinated loin, bacon and peppers, or the one with cockles and potato chips, a tribute to the most traditional appetizers.
The fun does not end there, because to drink, and as its name indicates, here what is carried is the porrón, vindicating once again the good customs of always.
You will like it if… you miss the sandwiches your mother made you for recess.
_(Crossbow, 2. Sandwiches between €4 and €10) _
Mussel sandwich with chips at El Porrón Canalla
** HATTORI HANZO , LIKE IN THE STREETS OF JAPAN **
As we approach the Plaza de Callao restaurants with international flavors begin to appear , with a great Asian influence -although not only-.
In this context, Hattori Hanzo stands out, and in what way, the izakaya that has brought the most street dishes of bustling Tokyo to the capital. But make no mistake, because here there is no trace of sushi or maki . What is eaten in this purist tavern, launched by the young chef and passionate about Japanese cuisine Borja Grace (47 Ronin), is very faithful to the style of tapas served in izakayas, but also to what the Japanese eat at home and on the streets.
Good examples are its emblematic ebimayo (I tiger angosito tempura with rice caviar, oak leaf and creamy spicy sauce ) , the karaage ( free-range chicken marinated and crispy tempura in katakuriko ) or the takoyaki (homemade spheres, made one by one, of grilled Japanese dough stuffed with octopus with two sauces) .
You will like it if… you are passionate about authentic street food and the street atmosphere, because the restaurant seems to be taken from a typical street in Osaka .
_(Mesonero Romanos, 17. Average price: €30) _
Japanese street food
** SURYA , AS IN THE STREETS OF INDIA **
And from Japan to India, specifically to the streets of Mumbai. But without leaving the outskirts of the Gran Vía. It is Surya, and what it brings to Madrid -after passing through Barcelona, where it already has two more homonymous restaurants- is the street cuisine of the underground food stalls of the Indian capital , in a totally casual and very colorful way.
A kitchen that Ketan, the son of Indian parents and the architect behind Surya, knows perfectly well. many curries.
And that is what also comes out of the Surya kitchen, where they give us the privilege of choosing between the mildest flavors, such as the Makhany curry with butter chicken sauce, and other more powerful ones, such as the Vindaloo, with green chili; For the not so daring, the Tikka masala is always a hit.
And as in the streets of Mumbai it is very common to eat with your hands, in Surya too. Among these finger food dishes, the Pakoras (vegetables battered with chickpea flour that are a delight) and the Papdi Chaat , a traditional dish that mixes pakoras with Bhel Puri (a combination of nuts, crackers and puffed rice), yogurt sauce, tamarind and mint. I'll just say it one more time: a-dic-ti-vo.
You will like it if… you love trying genuine flavors that take you on a trip around the world without leaving the table.
_(Tudescos, 4. Average price €20-25) _
Surya, a full color plan
FIVE GUYS
Five Guys puts the most yankee note on the Gran Vía, with some hamburgers that are all the rage on the other side of the Atlantic and all over the world -they have more than 1,500 stores-, and they have among their confessed addicts the very Barak Obama . And the truth is that they are very good - they take great care of the quality of all their products.
Another of its strong points is the absolute rejection of boredom, because in a place like this it is impossible for you to get tired of eating hamburgers. If you don't want to, you don't have to always eat the same thing: they have 15 free toppings to choose from so that everyone can eat the burger they want, which guarantees that they are all made at the moment, and always in sight.
And if the burgers are good, potatoes are not far behind . They are totally fresh - there is nothing frozen here - cut on the premises and fried in peanut oil. Peanuts, by the way, are another of the hallmarks of this fast food chain: not only are they the perfect accompaniment to their burgers, but you can eat as many as you want and more. Because they are for free.
You will like it if… you are a fan of fast and hooligan food, but of quality.
_(Gran Vía, 44. Burgers from €6.50 to €9.75) _
** BUNS AND BONES , THE TREND PIONEER**
They could not be left out: neither the baos, the Asian steamed bread snack that has been revolutionizing the city's restaurant menus for several years, nor the poke bowls , the new trendy food among the foodies of the capital coming from Hawaii.
And we're in luck because Buns and Bones he has both. His first restaurant, opened in the Antón Martín market, is considered one of the pioneers in having a menu dedicated only to baos, and his second restaurant, in San Bernardo, the first to add the poké bowl.
That is why eating here is a success for the stomach -and, by the way, for your social networks, especially if you are a regular on Instagram-. If you opt for the baos, you will have to choose between a fortnight -including a vegan one, a version of the squid sandwich and even a ramen one- , but you will surely be right with the shrimp in tempura with Japanese garlic or the tonkatsu, with Iberian pork and coleslaw. If you prefer poké, the marinated salmon is a delight, accompanied by rice, edamame, avocado, cashews, leek and sesame.
You will like it if… In addition to baos and pokés, you like grilled Asian dishes. We look in the 'bones' section.
_(San Bernardo, 12. Buns price from €4.20 to €6.40) _
Finally you can go with your group of friends
LAMIAN, THE BARETO FUSION
July -His real name is Yong Ping Zhang - takes us on a journey through the best of Asian cuisine in its Lamian by Soy Kitchen , the tavern in the Plaza de los Mostenes -less than two minutes walk from Gran Vía-.
What started as a neighborhood Chinese with slot machines and everything, has become a very stylish tavern; but what hasn't changed is the brand new and affordable Asian food that Julio prepares in his kitchen, with the lamen as flag.
The licked it is his star dish, chinese noodles with meat -in his case, oxtail or yearling sirloin to be precise-. And the dim sum , which is filled with proposals as traditional as anchovies in vinegar. Pure Asian fusion with a foundation.
You will like it if… you want to be surprised with genuine Chinese dishes.
_(Plaza de Mostenses, 4. Average price €25) _
Ramen Jackie Chang you're not Bruce Lee in Lamian by Soy Kitchen
** OVEN, BECAUSE EVERYBODY LIKES PIZZA**
The mention of an Italian on this route was missing, right? Well, we have located it. Es Oven, the monumental restaurant -because of the size of its two floors- overlooking the busy Gran Vía.
Everyone likes pizza, and if they are made in a stone oven -here we can see it on the ground floor, in full view-, with ingredients brought from Italy and traditional style Even the Italians like it.
That's what happens with the pizzas at this 'Mozzarella Bar', handcrafted alla romana and with special flours, including stone-ground organic spelled and which also comes from Italy, following a slow fermentation process (48 hours ), which achieves a fine dough, light and above all digestive -something that seems to go against the very word pizza, as many understand it-.
That's one of Oven's secrets, and the pear and truffle pizza wave classic spicy diabola , two of its main culprits.
You will like it if… you want to discover the taste of authentic Roman pizza.
_(Gran Vía, 6. Pizzas between €9.5 and €11.5) _