El Cucurucho del Mar

Best Gambas al Ajillo ever! For us Americans, that’s shrimps baked in boiling olive oil and garlic. Just off Callao plaza.

Restaurante con muy buena calidad, marisco muy bueno, y local agradable. Puede ser algo caro para algunos bolsillos, pero se paga calidad. Por ejemplo una ración de zamburiñas 12 €, ostras 20 €. Postres 4.50 €. También hay carnes, aunque no las he probado, ya que siempre que vengo me decanto por el marisco. Sitio recomendable, en pleno centro de Madrid.

Pegadito a la plaza de Callao te puede resolver el almuerzo con un menú sorprendente donde no faltan los moluscos, mariscos y pescados, por un precio muy razonable, en torno a los 12 euros. Gestos destacables: pides una copa de vino y te plantan la botella en la mesa: sírvase usted mismo tantas veces como quiera. Olé.

Restaurant de fruits de mer et de poissons. Cadre sympathique. Cuisine simple et gouteuse. Service un peu rapide. Très bon rapport qualité prix, comptez 35EUR par personne à la carte avec le vin. Produits frais. Cuissons maitrisées.

The best part of having my dad pay a visit to Spain is that I get to play tour guide and he gets to open his wallet for lunch.
We decided to head to El Cucurucho del Mar after hearing wonderful things about the seafood and shellfish. The restaurant is tucked away on one of the side streets off of Gran Via, but it was definitely bustling with people looking for a good meal.
The restaurant features a 3 course menu of the day, which I made my selections from. Not only was it a great deal, but it was also delicious food (sometimes the menu of the day options can be hit or miss). My waiter also brought me a bottle of wine, which was included with the special, and allowed me to take as many glasses as I wished… I won’t hold my breath for this to happen in NY!
As a starter, I had the melon con jamon. It was delightful. The melon was so sweet, like nectar and the jamon was fantastic as well. We also sampled some of the empanadas to start; the pastry was flaky and the fish was very fresh.
My two options for the menu of the day were anchovies (not the white boquerones) and veal, so I opted for the veal. Fortunately, my father was nice enough to share some of his hake with me, which was absolutely delicious.
For dessert, I opted for the fresh peach. I do not exaggerate when I say this was the best peach I have ever eaten. In general, I find the produce in Spain to be incredible, but this peach was firm, juicy, and sweet. My father chose chestnuts with nata, which were also a delicious treat.
Our service wasn’t the most attentive, but they were there when we needed them, which I appreciated. And they left me with that bottle of wine. All in all, a very good and satisfying meal.