La Gabinoteca

Ok, so Dave and I follow Anthony Bourdain...a LOT! I have had a mini-crush on him since the publishing of Kitchen Confidential. Dave tried to clear out some of my books awhile back and this one was not going anywhere. When Travel Channel announced the inception of his show, "No Reservations," I nearly wept for joy. So it seems natural that when the Madrid show aired, conveniently a few weeks before our trip, that at least one (but in our case two) spot made my list.

La Gabinoteca is a cool place. Its one of those spots where you feel kind of awesome for finding it and even better after you try the amazing food. This place is headed up by chef, Nino Redruello and I would call the format, "nouveau tapas." Another thing that moves this place high up in the ranking is the affordability quotient. This was one of our favorite restaurants on our long trip, but also one of the cheapest at the end of the night.

So here is a rundown of our meal:

1. Tomate de Almeria en ensalada

2. Berberechos al natural

3. Huevo, patata y trufa

4. Bocata de calamares

5. Carne roja gallega con sal inglesa

6. Fideado con pulpo y sepia

In this instance I am going to recreate my notes for each course. This may seem unconventional, but I don't think I can really elaborate without giving you my first impressions.

1. Heirloom-esque tomatoes with a magic combination of salt, oil, + acid!

2. Cockles served in a can with homemade chips...super oceany; not a fan with the chip, but without it is a chewy, briny morsel

3. Wow...truffle mania...creamy potato; yolky egg; touch of salt

4. Calamari sandwich; Crisp and crunchy tentacles with mayo and a green bell pepper relish

5. Medium rare, rich, velvety, medallions paired perfectly with salty crystals

6. Pasta made from octopus...cross between pasta and octopus in mouth feel with a casserole-esque taste...kind of breadcrumb, cheesy goodness

Sorry if these descriptions seem disjointed, but first impressions are the ones that matter and these are mine. All I can say is La Gabinoteca is one of those places that would make a weekly rotation on any locals list. Anthony did not lead us astray!