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It all started with his grandmother Valentina , who set up with his aunt Romana a house of lifelong meals in the middle of the Toledo town of Illescas, just 35 kilometers from Madrid. They called it El Bohío, when nobody in the place and at the time (1934) knew what that was: a house built with logs and raised to a certain height of the typical Caribbean soil.
The name had its explanation: the family of Pepe Rodríguez (Illescas, 1968), the popular chef of Masterchef that occupies us and current owner of the restaurant with his brother Diego, had lived a season in Cuba. And some melancholic grounds remained. The Toledo took over the business after he was also run by his father, bullfighter and bullfighting photographer. And that Rodriguez as a child wanted to be a singer ...
That modest local got a Michelin star in 1999 and, just a few days ago, he has also been chosen as the favorite restaurant of the 2019 Spaniards according to El Tenedor, the leading gastronomic reservation platform in Europe, with more than 79,000 establishments throughout the geography national. And the first of the 100 ranking that the portal has been making for three years has turned out to be El Bohío.
"It is a pride to appear among the 100 favorite restaurants, especially because the list is made by the guests who come to taste our food, to know our room and to enjoy. Their opinion is very important for us," Rodriguez stressed this week before one of the halls of El Bohío, which after a careful remodeling sports an immaculate white in all its facilities, including the kitchen on the ground floor , in view of the public from the moment they set foot in the building.
Michelin stars
Abraham Martín, Marketing Director of El Tenedor, agrees with Rodríguez that the list they make each year does not start with professionals from the sector, but from the clients themselves as well as users of the web, which has more than 19 million opinions. For the Top 100 they have taken into account criteria such as the notes obtained by the establishments during this 2019, the volume of opinions during this year, the visits to the restaurant file, the reservations generated, as well as the references in other guides of local prestige and national.
In this way, the restaurants included in the top 100 are also part of the El Tenedor Insider selection , which includes the best of the moment, including 60% of those awarded by the Michelin Guide in Spain. As for regions, Madrid is the city with the largest number of restaurants on the list (17) and Catalonia , the most represented community (21).
The second on the list is the one that Jesús Rodríguez, El Cenador de Amos, in Villaverde de Pontones (Cantabria), owner of three Michelin Stars , commands, while the third is Echaurren , by Francis Paniego, in Ezcaray (La Rioja). "We have known each other for a thousand years and have lived many things together, such as when one of my students stayed at his house in Mexico when we went to the gastronomic event of Millesime . Even a mariachi came to touch us," recalls chef Sánchez while the Rodríguez himself observes how they serve an original plate of lentils with sausage in the form of a curious sphere. "It tastes like lentils, lentils," the diners point out.
This is one of the starters of the menu of the day that Masterchef's chef has made to celebrate the mention of El Tenedor. Other of the first that causes more sensation are the Russian salad meringue or the spiced octopus, as well as the half ham croquette . "There are always wars to see who makes the croquette more liquid; then you will find out ...", he adds. Of course, among its gastro jewels the cooked pringá and its broth stand out. "No one can leave here without trying it; it is one of the hallmarks of the house." And like lentils, it tastes cooked, cooked.
The most liquid croquette
The Bohío has three menus: the one of the day costs 65 euros; the tasting one , 135, and the seasonal one, 90 euros. Drinks go apart. All of them focus on a "avant-garde kitchen", but at the same time attached to the product and the flavors of the land, as Rodríguez likes to explain. It is what he has done throughout his career, although he is also aware that it has not always been easy to get ahead. "If it wasn't for television , maybe we would have had to close at some point."
He likes to rescue those "grandma's dishes" that take him to childhood, he continues to count while supervising the arrival of the curious (and very green) gazpacho of olives, herbs and almonds that explodes in his mouth. The emulsion of mushrooms, truffle and sweet potato and the lamb with pak choi stuffed with carrots are some of the culinary proposals that are usually repeated in the menus. He likes to innovate every season, but Masterchef's is also clear that "you can't please everyone." Even so, it seems that with dessert, he has managed to bring many positions closer. Here is the example: lemon and wasabi, on the one hand, and coconut and sesame, on the other. Great climax
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