Madrid Spain May 2007

24, 24, 23, VE. Top toque and Ferran Adrià disciple Sergi Arola’s modern Med in the Miguel Ángel Hotel is “controversial”: aficionados admire his “unbelievable imagination” and “exquisite and daring” deconstructed dishes, while detractors declare them “weird” and the puzzled plead “who wants to eat rooster combs?” note that the “stark white setting” “couldn’t be more minimalist”, and the tab is about the “price of a Picasso”; N.B. closed Saturday and Sunday.

27, 24, 27, VE. Madrid's second highest rated restaurant. “It’s seldom that a restaurant can keep its standards up for more than 30 years”, but this “winner” in Salamanca has; “innovative” International cuisine using the best seasonal ingredients is served by an “excellent professional” staff in a “handsome” setting with salmon-colored walls and dark wood; you’ll need “mucho dollars but you’ll see it as a good investment” as it’s a gastronomic landmark that “lives up to its large reputation”; P.S. “jackets and ties are mandatory for gents.”

Home to Santceloni restaurant which is Madrid's highest rated eatery. 28, 25, 28, VE. Voted No. 1 for Food in Madrid is star chef Santi Santamaría’s (of the acclaimed Can Fabes outside Barcelona) “fantastic”, “cutting-edge” Med that’s “never over the top” in the Hotel Hesperia; the staff is the “best”, plus there’s a “great wine list, good sommelier advice” and a “chic” white skylit setting that provides well-spaced tables and “lots of privacy”; not surprisingly, such an “extraordinary experience” is “very, very expensive.”

27, 19, 20, VE. Third highest rated restaurant in Madrid. “A bastion of the fur-wearing Tetuán ladies and their banking husbands” is this very expensive Basque that boosters boast is “one of the best choices in town”, with “fine food” and a ”great wine list”; P.S. those who find the ambiance here “stuffy” prefer the newer, more modern and relaxed branch in the Wellington Hotel.

26, 18, 25, VE. They don’t take risks” at this “classic” Basque-Navarraise in Chamartín, but “top ingredients” and “extremely fresh, tasty and delicate food” make it “one of Madrid’s perennial greats”; an older crowd appreciates the comfortable split-level space and serious service and can cope with the “pricey” tabs.

26, 18, 21, E. These Galicians in Salamanca and Tetuán import their seafood from their own fish farm in that region and the result is the “best places in town” for simply prepared dishes; you can also make an excellent match with the establishments’ own wines from the area such as an icy Albariño; the “bill can add up”, but “you’ll leave satisfied.” This location is in Salamanca and a second location is in Tetuan.

26, 18, 21, VE. Fans of chef-owner Abraham García and his “innovative-in-all-senses” International near Retiro Park say he’s been doing “superb” “fusion cuisine in his own inimitable style for nigh on 20 years”, making it almost “impossible not to be surprised here”; an “attentive professional” staff presides over a black-and-white setting dominated by stills from the Buñuel film for which it is named; considered “one of Madrid’s best”, it’s “worth taking out a mortgage for.”

26, 24, 25, VE. "You’ll feel like a king” (or at least “Cary Grant”) dining in a “breathtaking” rooftop room in one of the city’s oldest “exclusive” clubs just off the Puerta del Sol; El Bulli’s touted Ferran Adrià is the consulting chef, and his “high-quality”, “high-tech” deconstructed Spanish dishes with foams are complemented by “great wines” and served by an “incredibly attentive” staff in a see-and-be-seen-in space; it’s “quite expensive” but the experience is “incomparable.”

26, 22, 24, VE. One of the most talked about restaurants in town is cutting-edge chef Juan Pablo Felipe’s “inventive” modern Mediterranean, which makes the most of white Alba truffles in autumn; housed in the Hotel Aristos, the “minimalist” pale-green-and-white space is enlivened by a skylight and gleaming open kitchen.

25, 24, 26, VE. Family-owned International dowager with a German accent near Retiro Park that’s been turning out “classic” cuisine like stroganoff and game dishes since 1943; an “excellent” solicitous staff (“in his heyday Franco would not have been treated better”) works an “old-world” room with floral fabrics and porcelain figurines; of course, you pay for a “formal evening out” like this “big time”; N.B. jacket and tie required.

25, 23, 25, VE. This “old-school”, über-expensive International in Chamberí has been putting itself through its paces since 1945 and still draws a formally dressed crowd of the “who’s who of the Madrid business and aristocratic worlds”; they come for “classic” cuisine, a “great wine list”, “attentive service” and a “clubby” setting with paintings and prints.

25, 22, 22, VE. “It really doesn’t get much better than this” “outstanding” Basque in the “ritzy” Salamanca district, where “perfectly prepared” modern cuisine and an “excellent wine list” are proffered by a solidly rated staff in a “relaxing”, “romantic” duplex setting.

25, 26, 26, VE. This “grand” Spanish-International on the ground floor of the Ritz comes with “pampering” service that’s a “tribute to the art of fine dining”; the interior, with its chandeliers and palms, evokes “old-world elegance to the nth degree”, and in summer, eating in the “garden is magical”; like one of its namesake’s paintings, its cost is “excessive”, but the “well-heeled” clientele doesn’t dwell on such mundane matters.

24, 16, 21, E. Plan on an interactive evening at this “fine” modern Basque in El Centro, where “attentive” chef-owner Iñaki Camba may “come out of the kitchen and help you design your meal”, which can be complemented with a wine from an impressive 700-bottle list; the cozy, “comfortable” setting reminds some of “eating at home.”

24, 15, 20, E. “Fabulous fresh seafood” like “big-as-a-whale sole” is the lure at this long-standing “no-attitude” spot in Salamanca; the “casual nautical decor” could use “refurbishing”, but that doesn’t keep the likes of the Royal Family from frequenting the place.

24, 15, 19, E. For “simple, satisfying and consistently excellent” “classical” seafood like clams and the signature turbot, fanatics flock to this sprawling Cantabrian in Salamanca; just be warned that its “unassuming” decor – “wood paneling” and a “nautical theme” with ships’ lanterns and wheels – “belies how expensive it is.”

23, 21, 21, E. Housed in a stone cottage in Salamanca is this Basque bastion serving “quality” “classic” cooking; “top-notch service” and a comfortable and “tasteful dining room” with wood beams and “beautiful art” make it “excellent for entertaining clients.”

23, 18, 22, E. As the name implies, chef-owner Jean-Pierre Vandelle is devoted to olives as well as their oils (there’s a trolley of them for sampling and for sale, and the ingredient even turns up in his signature ice cream) at this “first-class” Mediterranean in Chamartín; “subtle and delicate” cooking, a “kind” staff, “comfortable” setting and swell selection of 120 sherries are added attractions.