We have a new temple of stew in Madrid!
Just a week ago it opened its doors and The Front Kitchen It has already positioned itself as a classic. How in such a short time can we love him? because it comes with the unmistakable stamp of its creator, Juanjo López, alma mater of one of the best product restaurants in the country, The Tasquita in front.
Ibiza's boulevard is getting very interesting. Are we facing the new gastro street of the city? Possibly yes. Casa Julián de Tolosa, the removal of the Bistronómika and now the Front Kitchen, in addition to everything that comes in the next months of 2019, that from what we know, this street will host several proposals for different cuisines and spaces dedicated to beer and wine.
have already been more than twenty years at the foot of the canyon, always faithful to its own philosophy, those who have elevated Juanjo and his Tasquita to the top. And now, with a master stroke of effect, he returns – although he has never left – to put us in check.
The one that concerns us today is mr cooked that this genius of the kitchen has marked himself. Recovering the space that was Carmen Casa de Cocidos, he has developed a restaurant with her as the absolute protagonist.
La Cocina de Frente, the new by Juanjo López in the Ibiza neighborhood of Madrid
“La Cocina de Frente was born with a cultural background, a reflection of what a stew is. That is why you will see that there are strange turns, unusual dishes... It is almost a gastronomic representation of what this dish is. The stew is a very cultural dish and depending on the economy of each house it is prepared in one way or another. Here we are going to create a space to offer 'everyone's stew', Juanjo tells us.
And the name? "It's a game with the Tasquita de Enfrente, but front cook, it also means doing it for real. Nothing here is going to be a short cut,” he concludes.
From everyone and for everyone. This means that chefs like Albert Adrià, Pedro Sánchez de Bagá, Luis Alberto de Lera, Pepe Solla, Arturo and Stephan from the Gastroteca, but there will also be room for other types of stew, such as Lalín, the Catalan escudella and, in addition, La Cocina de Frente will give voice to anonymous people who admire Juanjo's work and have a close relationship with the dish.
Today there have been dozens of proposals that the chef has received, like that of a kid who tells how in his town it is made with big game, pigeon, cardillos and chickpeas in pepitoria or that of another who started cooking when his father got sick.
Juanjo goes from rankings. He wants his new restaurant to be a nexus of union for lovers of cocido, a space that he was born with a vocation to share, not to compete. And another peculiarity is that All the dining room staff are also in the kitchen, thus giving them the opportunity to rotate through the restaurant.
Smoked eel with al dente Pedrosillano chickpeas
WELL, WHAT DOES THE COOK OF THE FRONT KITCHEN CONSIST OF?
This gastronomic tribute has been conceived based on five passes or turnovers. "Opulence seems like an aberration to me," says Juanjo, who wanted that his cooked be one of those that you can finish.
This is not an ode to abundance. “You will end up satisfied because we make a conscience stew. We do not pretend that nothing is left over”, says Juanjo.
With the broth as a common thread, he has created a stew that obeys the classic format with its overturns, but that incorporates dishes that make us realize immediately that we are dealing with a great one.
The menu is the same for everyone. start with a gilda seasoned with EVOO Dominus, to make way for the next appetizer, a stratospheric and unctuous croquette of old clothes, with the peculiarity that the cooked broth is added to the milk, which makes it have a honeyed interior.
Next comes the turn of the soup with the first of the broths that we will find in food, the most balanced of all. they prepare it with eggless durum wheat noodles, a variety that takes longer to cook and much longer to cook.
They leave the tureen on the table for you to repeat. Until They suggest that we accompany it with mint, the way it is done in the south, adding it hot to the broth to refresh and with chives to drink between spoonfuls.
Croquettes of old clothes
And so, with the second overturn comes one of the strong points, one of those dishes that goes beyond the canonical, but that for Juanjo is a representation of stew. Is about smoked eel with Pedrosillano chickpeas al dente and a reduction of the broth itself from cooking them. Pure poetry.
follows him the third turn, the vegetable dish with chickpeas, potato, carrot, cabbage, turnip, leek, the ball, made with pork tenderloin, pork and bacon and the third broth from La Cocina de Frente. To dress them, they recommend a confit tomato at home with stew broth and cumin.
The following is an example of mastery, a marrow lord, a dish that gives a twist to this delight which is often lost in cooking.
It is presented as a marrow glazed with the stew's own broth, on which they lay a slice of black truffle and which they serve on crusty toast.
The idea? Rub the bone content well on the toast, put the truffle back on it and enjoy it.
The thing is ending and arriving the last turn, the meats. A plate made up of Iberian pork, three types of bacon (Iberian, duroc and salted Iberian), cheek, stewed blood sausage, free-range chicken drumstick, blood sausage and chorizo.
All this seasoned with the same sauce with which they stew the morcillo. To not leave a drop. Ecstatic, amazed and enthralled we prepare for the final touch.
With what? with desserts from Pastry of the Well , of those that evoke Madrid and memory. From their Torrijas, anise and drunken donuts, up to the classics bartolillos , which are served on Saturdays and Sundays, made with a dough of lard and filled with cream.
And best of all, to digest as God intended, they give you a a Popcorn, that very Madrid drink made with anise and water. Chapo!
A tribute to stew conceived in five passes
WHY GO
Because everything that bears the seal of Juanjo Lopez it must necessarily be good. And we assure you that it is.
ADDITIONAL FEATURES
From March it will also open at night with a simple and light proposal. “A kitchen for stomachs tired of gastronomy nonsense”, points out Juanjo.
The letter will consist of broths, exciting tortillas, oysters, some mythical dish that is no longer made in the Tasquita like the black butter stripe , a bellavista sea bass and two meats, steak tartare and some other grilled.
A popcorn to finish!
Address: Ibiza, 40 See map
Telephone: 91 060 72 20
Schedule: From Tuesday to Sunday from 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. From March also at night.