Monday 9 February 2009

Trial by tapas

"Hi Owain, How are you down there in VLC? Fancy finding a needle in a haystack for CNN Traveller magazine? Let me know. Ta!" Well, the editor may as well have said that. What he actually said was nearer to this: "Get over to Madrid, sniff out six of the best tapas joints and file copy as soon as you can. I don't care if there are greasy prints on it." Now finding six of the best 'anythings' is always going to be a tricky job. My six best might not even make it into your twenty best, for example, but it's normally a fairly subjective decision. Not a massive problem, but there is the problem of finding six of the best tapas bars in a city that's heaving with them. So where do you start? Having a fairly sound knowledge of Madrid from previous visits I decided to narrow it down to the best in the barrio (neighbourhood). In La Latina, for example, you head straight to Cava Baja for the best selection of tapas bars in a row. I chose a Basque one, Taberna Txakolí, as it stood out in the crowd of Madrileños. So my 'best tapas bars' piece became a collection of tapas bars with the best angles. An old man's bar turned gastro tapas bar near Real Madrid's hallowed stadium (Iciar), a Michelin-star chef turning his hand to ensalada rusa at Sula and a place that's been famous for salsa drenched patatas bravas since 1963 (Docamar). But then again, if my best isn't good enough for you, it's probably best to start pounding the streets of Madrid for yourself. (cnntravellermagazine.com)

1 comment:

Sinestesia Gastronómica said...

Hola Owain,

Tienes razón, para ir de tapas por Madrid la mejor zona es La Latina (Cava Baja); aunque como Granada ningún sitio para ir de tapeo, bueno... Badajoz también, jejeje "yo soy de allí, aunque vivo en Madrid".

Un saludo,

bye