Among the tens of thousands of hospitality businesses that the coronavirus pandemic has already taken away (and, unfortunately, those that remain) there are several classics of the capital that have accompanied different generations of Madrid.
Obviously, the most notorious case has been that of
Zalacain
, for which the restaurant founded by Jesús Oyarbide in 1973 meant not only for Madrid but for Spanish gastronomy in general, by becoming the first three Michelin stars in the country.
Santceloni.
But as important or more than the closing of
Zalacain
has been that of
Santceloni
, who pulled the shutter almost a year ago and it is still not known when it will reopen its doors ... if it reopens them.
What is certain is that if it does, it will not be at all the luxury restaurant that the longed-for Santi Santamaría inaugurated in the Hotel Hesperia in 2000 and which sported two Michelin stars, among other things because its three master souls, the chef Óscar Velasco , the room manager Abel Valverde and the sommelier David Robledo, are already immersed in other projects.
In fact, it is unlikely that if it reopens it will not even continue to call
Santceloni
...
99 KO Sushi Bar.
Two other star-studded restaurants that have succumbed to the situation have been the
highly
ambitious Japanese
99 KO Sushi Bar
, the spearhead of Grupo Bambú and whose commitment to high-end Japanese imperial cuisine in a bar collided with sanitary restrictions.
And the Mexican
Punto MX
, victim of real estate and corporate problems.
Fortunately for the city, after dedicating himself for a few months to delivery, chef Roberto Ruiz has just returned in a big way with
Barracuda MX
, dedicated to the cuisine of the Pacific coast of the North American country and a success from the day of its opening.
Less media but equally sad have been the closures of some neighborhood stores with a lot of prestige.
For example, the
Bacoa
hamburger
restaurant
, one of the pioneers when it comes to dignifying that bite that in the past was only conceived as fast food.
Another burger joint, much more renowned, that has not succeeded either is
Hard Rock Café
, which occupied one of the most privileged places in the city, next to Colón, and which, despite its huge collection of musical memorabilia and merchandising, does not has been able to combine capacity restrictions with the billing needs of a business model based on the massive influx of public.
Of course, it keeps its delivery service alive.
Less well known, there are two other neighborhood spots that your neighbors will miss a lot.
The 50-year-old
Hontanares
cafeteria-pastry shop
, an almost obligatory meeting point next to the Avenida de América interchange, and
Ferpal
, a friendly and central cafeteria that evoked seventies breakfasts and snacks.
There are also two very special cases of second lives.
That of the
Palentino
has been rather ephemeral, because after a first closure in 2018, after almost 80 years of experience, it reopened in 2019 with a new property, but the project ran into the crisis.
Quite the opposite of
Melo's
, which lowered the blind, it was supposed to be definitively, and a few days ago it reappeared to the delight of its hundreds of joyous followers, to whom it continues to offer its mythical and hypercaloric ham and cheese slippers and its XXL size croquettes.
It is good that from time to time a ray of light breaks through the dark clouds that stalk us.
Patas House.
Finally, there is the thorny issue of flamenco tablaos, which are also restaurants, but are considered venues for shows.
While
El Corral de la Morería
, with its Michelin star, waits patiently to reopen, others have not been able to keep up.
These are the cases of
Casa Patas
and
Café de Chinitas
(although it seems that negotiations are well under way to
revive it
. Hopefully).
Let's cross our fingers, although we fear that it will be a chimera, so as not to count more casualties.
According to the criteria of The Trust Project
Know more
Madrid
GastronomyThe Copernican twist of the restaurant 'Soy Kitchen'
GastronomySix starless restaurants that are well worth the trip
GastronomyStars at your fingertips ... and your wallet
See links of interest
Work calendar
Barcelona - Elche, live
Atalanta - Real Madrid, live
Borussia Mönchengladbach - Manchester City
Zenit Saint Petersburg - Valencia Basket
Napoli - Granada CF