5 Cucharas - Madrid

This small restaurant on two floors is situated in the north of Madrid near the Plaza Castilla but easily accessible by bus and metro. There are even spaces to park. We came here for lunch with a small group of friends. Even though several of us refused to share and taste different dishes except our own, it was an innovative menu and the two courses were excellent, everyone agreed. The chocolate dessert which is extra was especially good.. The only negative was the fact the only other diners on the mezzanine with us were a large company group and it was difficult to hear yourself think. I imagine it does not happen that often so it´s worth taking a chance or at least asking at the time of booking.

This was the best meal of our trip. The upstairs dining room is stylishly decorated, the server was friendly and knowledgeable. They had a wide range of wines by the glass, well selected, all delicious. My wife favored the Mencia, I loved the Garnacha. The food was innovative, beautifully prepared and presented. We started with vegetables in a cream sauce, followed by Finisimo Solomillo, which turned out to be raw meat with little bits of cheese and sauce, then cod, perfectly cooked, on a bed of garbanzo beans, finally croca de ternera, thin slices of veal cooked just as we had requested. For dessert the Carlota de Manzana, with a glass of PX. Excellent value given the quality.

Highly recommended place with friendly staff and price as well. The food was really tasty! If you travel to Madrid you must visit this place!

Whilst visiting Madrid for the weekend, I happened to be in the neighbourhood of this little restaurant and based on other reviews, decided to give it a try. So pleased that I did! If you get a chance go you'll hopefully be as delighted as I was, with everything. For me, of course the food part of going to a restaurant is important, but it's also about the total package, which can make a nice experience a special one(including in this case, very well thought out music, played at just the right level as not to be a distraction). I went with a friend and from the moment we entered, we were made feel very welcome. We had made a reservation, largely because this restaurant is in a street with quite a collection of busy restaurants and as it was a Saturday lunch time. You may be lucky without, but to be sure not to miss out on the opportunity to try this place, book a table. At the entrance there are a few long communal tables to stand and eat tapas. The other seated tables are upstairs in a very bijou but well laid out space. There are not many tables, so another good reason to book. This is basically a tapas restaurant, but in my opinion they take there food to another level. My partner and I opted for the daily menu, which allowed a choice of two starters and two mains, plus dessert and a drink. This actually allowed us to try quite a bit of the daily offering. The menu changes each day, so although limited in choices, the options are changed often enough to encourage frequent visits. The food was a delight, each and every morsel and coupled by in my case a very nice Rioja Crianza. When the food is presented you have each dish explained, in terms of ingredients and how it has been prepared. This was I thought done very well by an owner obviously passionate about food, it's creation and how it pleases people. She was also very knowledgeable about the wines on offer. It's an experience I hope to repeat. It's a joy to go to a place with such a young, enthusiastic team. I hope it grows from strength to strength.

Fue involuntariamente, ni siquiera planeado, pero ciertamente fue un gran descubrimiento. Todo lo que hicimos fue darle confianza al chef para elegir por nosotros y ser un gran éxito. Mis más sinceras felicitaciones por todo, por la calidad del personal, por la comida y sin duda por un buen trabajo.