So, how did we end up travelling to Spain? Well, if you're a regular reader, it's a familiar story...much like almost all our other trips, it was food. We were having a version of Patatas Bravas at Tasty n' Alder in Portland when the Missus made Her decision. "We're going to Spain......" So there I was, planning first a trip to Spain, then adding the Basque Country, then Bordeaux, finally Dordogne. The decisions developed quite organically, the logistics, while not difficult took a bit of planning.
A few months later; there we were, a bit bleary eyed arriving in Madrid. Getting to where we needed to be was quite easy; the Expres Aeropuerto costs a mere 5 Euros to get from the airport to Atocha Station. We had some time to kill and walked around, though it was getting to be quite warm, up and down Calle Atocha. One funny thing, we actually sat and took a break in the square right where our apartment would be on our return trip to Madrid! Anyway, after some coffee, walking about, we met the owner of the apartment we were staying at....which happened to be a couple of blocks from Atocha Station and got settled. It was getting mighty warm by this time, so we were ever so happy to have a nice strong A/C unit. After a wonderful shower we headed out to get something to eat. It was 1pm, early for lunch in Madrid and Sunday to boot. We were close enough to one of the areas I had mapped out Calle de Jesus, a small stretch which has a number of Cervecerias and Tabernas. The favorite here is obviously Cervantes, but the line was crazy, and it looked like all tourists. Instead, we chose this little place next to La Anchoita named El Olivar.
The place was fairly quiet, there were two parties of what looked like regulars, a good sign, there were some items on the menu I really wanted to try. The place was manned by a staff of two.
I started with a beer, the Missus a "Tinto" a young, light table wine. The gratis olives were briny and worked well.
As for ordering food....well, I was tempted by the sign that said "Especialidad Rabo de Toro"...basically oxtails, but man, it was just too hot for us to try that. Rather, I saw two items on the menu I wanted to try.
The first, was Jamon de Bellota. Awhile back, I'd done some research and found that there's something above and beyond your "normal" Jamon Iberico. These days, "JI", while still having the heritage of the blessed Black Iberian Pig, is now corn fed, and perhaps; if you're lucky, acorn fed somewhere during the process. The Jamon Iberico de Bellota on the other hand, is truly acorn fed. Also, while typical Iberico is cured two years; Bellota is cured for an even longer period.
This place did Bellota, decently cut, already "sweating" when it hit the table, the taste is sweet, not too salty, the fat velvety, lacking in the 'stringy/sinewy" texture that I've had with Jamon Iberico.
Since we grow Padron Peppers, we couldn't wait to try some.
They deep fry these babies in most places. We found that the versions in Spain had a thinner skin and were a bit "sweeter". These were on the salty side though.
Lunch was nice and we headed back to the apartment satisfied and ready for a "siesta".
Awaking refreshed, we took care of a few outstanding odds and ends, then headed out to the Prado Museum. You see, on Sundays from 5pm to 7pm and on Mondays thru Saturdays from 6pm to 8pm admission is free.
I can truly say, that my visit here truly gave me and appreciation for art that no other museum had been able to do. There are no photos allowed; but I purchased postcards of some of my favorite paintings in the museum.
I had never heard of Diego Velazquez, but when I walked into the gallery and saw his painting "Las Meninas" (The Maids of Honor) I was amazed. I saw it from a distance, the painting had almost a 3-D effect and seemed so life-like, the composition and depth was amazing as it actually seemed to pop out to me when I walked into the room. I guess I had first seen this work at the angle that worked right for me. I was strangely moved by the painting, something that had never happened to me before.
And then there were the dark and somewhat disturbing works of Francisco Goya, who during a "dark period" (perhaps somewhat paranoid) in his life painted some rather disturbing works. Like Saturn Devouring His Son. Which kinda spoke to me in the "you know, I'm having a really bad day" way. Though Goya's most famous works are probably La Maja Vestida and La Maja Desnuda which are on display at the Prado.....it's the "dark works" that I found interesting.
There was a bit of overload, so we decided to stop and return the next evening. Because.....well, it's free, right?
It was still fairly early in Madrileno terms at 645 though the Prado was closing (it was Monday). So we headed off on a walk arriving at what is considered the heart of Madrid, Puerta del Sol - the "Gate of the Sun", this was once the location of the Eastern gate of the city walls. The Missus and I had our favorite objects in the bustling square. Mine is the statue of the Bear and the Madrono Tree, which is actually the official Coat of Arms of Madrid.
For the Missus, it's the iconic Tio Pepe sign, actually an advertisement for a brand of sherry. The sign shone with neon brightness over the square from the 1950's until 2011. The removal of the sign caused so much of an uproar, that it returned to its perch in 2014.
Because the sun sets so late at this time of year; it wasn't until our third night in Madrid, on our way back that we finally were able to take a photo of the sign in its full neon glory. The Missus loves these wide open squares, so we'd find ourselves returning here everyday during our stays in Madrid.
By now, the clock was closing in on 745, I thought a visit to one of Madrid's most popular eating neighborhoods, La Latina, targeting on the ground zero of eating and drinking streets in the area; Calle Cava Baja. The Missus loves Her eggs, so I thought She'd enjoy the classic "Huevos Rotos" (broken eggs) from Los Huevos de Lucio. The bad thing was....we couldn't find the darn street. We took a wrong turn down Calle Ribera de Curtidores ending up all the way down on Ronda de Toledo. We ended up having to turn up at Puerta de Toledo walking all the way back up the street.
We finally found little Calle Cava Baja. The street wasn't too busy since it was still an ungodly early hour to eat in Madrid......830 in the evening.....
As you can tell by the sign; the specialty here is huevos...eggs. The place is owned by I believe the son of the highly regarded Casa Lucio across the street.
We'd arrived just a tad after 830pm and you can tell, the place had just opened. It seems that only tourists eat before 10.
It was all part of our education. As was finding out that the portions were pretty hefty. It was only later on that I came to find out to order things "media racione" (half orders). Until then, we'd be eating pretty large portions...like this plate of Manchego Cheese (12.9 €).
The best dish of the evening was the Berenjenas crujientes con salmorejo (7.95 €).
Wonderfully crisp, well seasoned, thin slices of eggplant fried to perfection, not a drop of grease. The sauce was a thick tomato based "soup" with nice hints of garlic.
And of course there were the Huevos Los Clasicos (8.9 € - the House Classic Eggs).
"Broken Eggs", basically cooked soft then slightly mixed breaking the yolks. The eggs tasted lovely, almost rich, the potatoes had a wonderful flavor.....for some reason, potatoes in the states don't have the same flavor. It reminded me of potatoes in Peru. Again, this was a bit too high on the sodium scale for us...and we like salty.
I had a beer and the Missus a "Tinto" a light red.
It was a filling and satisfying meal.
Taberna Los Huevos de Lucio
Calle de la Cava Baja 30
Madrid, Spain
After dinner, the Missus decided that we needed to walk around a bit so we headed to Plaza Major a square ringed by very symmetrical three story buildings. This was once Madrid's Central Square. Many events have taken place in this square since it was built in the 17th century, from bullfights to public executions. On this evening, the square was packed for a concert. It was the end of the San Isidro Festival...though we'd come to find, there always seemed to be a celebration of one kind or another happening; Spaniard's like to have a good time.
We also started understanding why folks eat late here. It was almost 10pm, the sun had gone down maybe 20 minutes ago and the temperature was still in the 80's.
As we walked back down toward our apartment, the Missus and I discussed our day. We both loved the Prado Museum. Puerto del Sol and Plaza Mayor just seemed a bit too crowded and the place a bit more littered than we enjoy. The food was good, but on the salty side. I had enjoyed our meals more than the Missus. In the end, we were enjoying ourselves.....it was good to be on holiday, visiting somewhere we hadn't been before. And tomorrow was another day!
Thanks for reading!
The Missus will often combine all the walks into a single long one. We headed left and up (down?) the street and through Calle de Postas, a street that's been around since medieval times. Some of the building here were quite striking.
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