Spanish — By admin on March 4, 2009 at 1:00 am

Best Restaurants in Madrid: Restaurante La Dominga

1:00pm-4:30pm; 8:00pm-1:00am Mon-Sat

Metro: Noviciado or Tribunal

“Como En Casa” is the slogan used by La Dominga, either this is some obscure joke or the proprietors of La Dominga lived in homes with personal chefs who graduated from Le Cordon Bleu. Actually, the third and most plausible explanation of this slogan is that they start with a base of well known dishes, then proceed to turn these traditional items into something which hardly resembles anything you might be putting together at home and leaves you thinking about what to try next time.

The front of the restaurant has the look of an intimate wine bar, you can almost picture yourself sitting down with your hands wrapped around the stem of a wine glass, and striking up a conversation with locals. Their wine list offers a small, but carefully chosen selection of bottles and wines by the glass, which seem to adhere to the old adage of quality not quantity; however, the best I can do is to tell you that the house wines are so good that I´ve never ventured beyond that. If you have come just to enjoy a glass of wine or a caña at the bar, you´ll find a nice rotating selection of small bites like tortilla and bocadillos, which will do you well if a snack is all you’re looking for. However, if you do decide to indulge yourself with something from their outstanding menu, they have a dining area in the back where you’ll find a calm and relaxing private area for eating without the bustle of the crowd in the front.

Take a deep breath before opening the menu as the names of these dishes read more like a grocery list than menu choices (this with that topped with another thing…). One side of the menu is labeled “Surgencias” and is comprised of daily/weekly specials and the other side contains their permanent menu fixtures. If you choose to start off with a salad you can’t go wrong with the spinach option that comes topped with half melted brie cheese, slices of duck jamon, and drizzeled with one of their many specialty house dressings. Two real winners for me are the croquetas and the revuelta, which truly exemplify their theme of taking ordinary items to the next level. The croquetas come stuffed with shaved truffles and boletus mushrooms, and are the best croquetas I’ve had to date; any fan of fungi can’t miss these treasures. The revuelta is unlike any other I’ve ever had as well; the eggs are done over easy and spread atop thin-cut french fries, mixed in with amazing morcilla, and paired with raisins, which off-set the other fatty ingredients to create an explosion of flavors. Pasta is another thing they do well here, their daily specials usually include one or two choices and the mixture of boletus mushrooms and truffles also finds its way into their outstanding risotto. Other highlights include their ostrich steak (Solomillo de Avestruz) and the Milhojas (layered stacks of melted cheese and veggies). While at 10€-15€ the menu/tapas items are certainly not cheap, but the quality of the food and their unique preparation make it well worth the extra money. For dinner you and a dining partner can come away well satisfied for 30€, which includes a couple of drinks (when you select two items and stick to wine and beer).

This is a restaurant that holds everything to the highest standard, while at the same time not making itself into an obnoxiously expensive and extravagant fine dining place. The unique balance of traditional food and artisanal cooking, with accessibility to all, make La Dominga as good of a restaurant or tapas bar as you’ll find in Madrid.

By Coleman File

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