Madrid, the best seaport

A compass rose in Puerta del Sol marks Kilometre Zero, the point of origin of all of Spain’s ring roads. We may be right in the middle of the Iberian Peninsula, but the sea breeze reaches all the way to Madrid! Make a note of our suggestions: fish and seafood—grilled over charcoal or cooked au naturel—await you in the city’s restaurants.

A quí no hay playa, vaya, vaya (There’s no beach here, what a shame, what a shame). A fa - mous song from the late 80s reminded us that Madrid lacked a feature many people believe to be essential in the summer. It’s true, but for all their disappointment, the lapping of the waves has always echoed through our city. Just think of some of Madrid’s most traditional recipes: hearty dishes and lighter fare with centuries of tradition like soldaditos de Pavía (cod fritters), Madrid-style (oven-baked) red sea bream and the calamari sandwich, a sta - ple of some of the bars and tabernas in the Centro district. Back in the 16th century, fish was already arriving in the city on mules from the north. It wasn’t until two hundred years ago, however, that devel - opments in transport allowed it to be eaten fresh. Everything is easier now thanks to Mercamadrid, Europe’s biggest food logistics platform and the world’s second-largest fish market, surpassed only by Tsukiji Market in Tokyo. That’s pretty incredible considering we’re 400 kilometres from the sea! A sea we’ve never had much occasion to miss.

Published in esMADRIDmagazine in September 2023

MAR MÍA

Plaza Isabel II, 7. ÓPERA. Tel. 91 330 93 84

A city beach bar. That might be the best description of this restaurant in the hotel Ocean Drive Madrid, located just opposite Teatro Real opera house. It’s the perfect location to enjoy one of the specialities made in the spectacular space it devotes to cooking displays, which is right next to the grill and features a bar full of fresh seafood. Diners will have a tough time choosing from a menu that brings together all of the authenticity and delicious flavours of the east coast. Here are some suggestions: red prawn carpaccio, Andalusian-style battered striped red mullet, Mediterranean mussels with herbed butter, monkfish tails... and, of course, rice dishes, which are the reason why it seems as if the Mediterranean breeze were blowing through the restaurant. Mar Mía has two other spaces: the Lounge Bar, which is more casual and laid-back, and an outdoor courtyard with orange and olive trees.

LOBITO DE MAR MADRID

Jorge Juan, 10. SERRANO. Tel. 91 088 94 40

Welcome to the city’s most happening bar, a seafood paradise where you can enjoy the finest, freshest offerings from Spain’s fish markets. Diners are greeted with this message from Malaga-born chef Dani García. They can choose between casual tapas at the bar or a more formal lunch or dinner at a low table, where they can select one of three “experiences”, or set menus: Sea, featuring mashed tuna salad with prawns and tuna belly tartare; Ocean, which includes a grilled tuna T-bone steak; and Greatest Hits, which begins with tuna carpaccio and continues with fish and seafood rice. Here’s a tip: Let each dish surprise you. They’re inspired by popular recipes that have been tweaked very creatively by the chef, who runs another Madrid restaurant, Smoked Room, which has two Michelin Stars.

EL PUERTITO

Paseo del General Martínez Campos, 42.  GREGORIO MARAÑÓN / RUBÉN DARÍO. Tel. 91 542 75 26 

France, the Netherlands, Ireland, Portugal and, of course, Spain are where this newly opened, sensational oyster bar gets its oysters. Featuring decor inspired by the oyster farmers’ cabins in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. Inaz Fernández is the creative force behind this innovative culinary mecca where customers can order individual oysters from different countries and cultivation zones.

ESTIMAR

Marqués de Cubas, 18. BANCO DE ESPAÑA. Tel. 91 429 20 52

The best way to describe Estimar is as a restaurant that serves honest, simple cuisine with no more than five ingredients, using the most suitable preparation techniques for each dish, and combining the Gotanegra family’s passion for the sea with the extensive experience of chef Rafa Zafra and his expertise on the products that arrive each day from the fish market. All of the dishes are cooked over charcoal and are subject to seasonal availability, the fishermen’s skill and the will of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, patron saint of sailors.

PEZ FUEGO

Orense, 68. NUEVOS MINISTERIOS / SANTIAGO BERNABÉU. Tel. 91 571 82 65

A return to our roots and to simplicity underpins the menu of this restaurant which selects the highest-quality fish and seafood available in the market. You’ll be spoiled for choice, with everything from charcoal-grilled octopus with mild aioli to black-bellied monkfish cooked over hot coals and even grilled bluefin tuna tataki with leeks and romesco sauce. The stuffed baby squid in ink is fabulous! So is the Cadiz-style jig-caught calamari

EL SEÑOR MARTÍN

General Castaños, 13. ALONSO MARTÍNEZ / COLÓN. Tel. 91 795 71 70

Fish. Only fish? Well, yes: the very best. That’s what you get at this restaurant which is obsessed with the sea, “the origin of all life”. It brings in local specialities from all of Spain’s fish markets, paying utmost respect to their biological cycles. Customers can choose the specific item they want and watch as it’s cooked. Vilanova red prawns, Malpica red scorpionfish, Barbate dentex… it’s a bona fide foodie’s delight.

CAÑADÍO

Conde de Peñalver, 86. DIEGO DE LEÓN. Tel. 91 281 91 92

The Madrid branch of this famous restaurant from Santander tastes of the Cantabrian Sea. You need only try its battered calamari strips, clams in red sauce or cod loin in pil-pil served with cod tripe to be transported to the north. Here’s our suggestion: the hake, in any of its forms.

DESDE 1911

Vivero, 3. GUZMÁN EL BUENO / CUATRO CAMINOS. Tel. 91 545 72 86

This restaurant knows very well that Madrid is Spain’s best seaport. Devoted to the pursuit of excellence, and based on a deep respect for the sea and the generations of fishermen who worked passionately to make our city the capital of fresh fish and seafood, Desde 1911 is a tribute by fishmongers Pescaderías Coruñesas to the legacy of these families. The menu is reinvented each day.

FILANDÓN

Ctra. Fuencarral-El Pardo, km 1,9. Tel. 91 734 38 26

You’ll need to go to El Pardo Park, an exceptional natural setting on the outskirts of the city, to enjoy the delicious food at this restaurant where everything revolves around the grill and the sea, the restaurant’s true passion. The Evaristo sole, made for two, is famous all over the city