For a few months, Méndez Álvaro street has had a new neighbor: Cuatro A Gourmet.

Its name comes from

the initials of the four women

-Ángeles, Andrea, Alba and Ángeles- that fill the life of

José Ramón Sandoval

.

He is the second of the four Sandoval brothers,

yes, Coque's

, and a well-known soccer coach (Rayo Vallecano, Sporting de Gijón, Granada, Córdoba ... and until a few weeks ago he was from Fuenlabrada).

But José Ramón is not a novice in gastronomic matters, since before dedicating himself to the

world of the ball he

was linked to the kitchen and the

Coque

stoves

.

"In the midst of the pandemic, I proposed to my wife and daughters to take

a leap in our lives

and risk setting up this business. And on December 4, we opened this

gourmet

jewelry store

, as I called it, because we have everything in showcases and in urns and also for its wrapping and packaging ... ".

And because they offer premium products,

delicatessen

, high-end genre.

One of the pieces of meat that they sell.

That is, sourdough breads;

Iberian with DO;

canned: free-range eggs;

wines;

Italian products;

caviar;

T-bone steaks, entrecots ...

, pieces of meat that the customer can buy and leave in

the store's chamber so that they continue to mature

.

Do you want names?

Take note of their

suppliers

: Discarlux, Breads with Soul, Arturo Sánchez, Conservas Nosa Batea, Bonilla a la Vista, El Capricho, Los Peperetes, José Peña Prémium, Holy Spirit Oil, Domus Beer, Arzuaga, Pazo de Rubiales, Nacho Manzano Boxes Casa Marcial, Bolshoi Caviar ...

PRODUCTS WITH HISTORY

"We do not want it to be a commissary where one arrives, buys and leaves. We want people to enjoy the act of buying, for it to be a

gastronomic experience

."

And it is that here they are determined not to be a store to use, because of each raw material they serve they could tell

their story

.

The quillitos, the sweet star of the house.

"For example, if we consult a canned sardine we tell how that, how it is fished, which carries oil, how mature in the can ... or marinating of a mussel is prepared. Or

what is behind

the the craft beer that we sell, because we have been to the factory to see how they make it. Or the ice cream that we serve, whose production process we have witnessed ... ".

He continues: "It is about knowing what we sell and putting

a little of the soul

in each product

," explains a José Ramón who has not lost his passion for gastronomy.

Passion that you breathe as soon as you

step

foot in this

jewelry

worn by his wife,

Ángeles Jaut

, two of his two daughters,

Alba and Andrea

, and his son-in-law,

Diego Pascual

.

The 100 m² store with a small tasting area is

shown

to the public -including the ripening chamber where

impressive pieces of meat

hang-, and its 16 m² facade is a large glass showcase.

The roast suckling pig.

ROASTED ALREADY LOW TEMPERATURE

The other pillar of the project is the

daily take-away preparations

.

For this they have a small workshop.

"We have about 1

5 or 16 dishes that we rotate

every week."

Some are ready to take away and others are on request, such as lamb,

roast suckling pig

(watchword of the Sandoval family), both must be ordered a day in advance, or fish, cod with chilindrón, hake in sauce green ... In addition, we cook

meat at a low temperature

, such as ribs, steaks, which we pack ".

The idea is to prepare the recipes

almost directly

, although some can be packaged, such as the Russian salad, which "is made here, from chopping the potato to the mayonnaise and, if it runs out, we can make one right away."

As if it were a restaurant.

There are other dishes such as the

foie bonbon with rum candy

that are already in a jewel pack, "as if it were a ferrero ...", points out José Ramón.

The letter is in full growth: "We are incorporating new things so that people do not get bored. This Sunday we are launching the rice with lobster".

The store has a small tasting area with high tables.

For now, the stars of the house are the Russian salad and the

Quillitos

, a butter puff pastry that they make at the moment.

"It takes about three or four minutes. On the puff pastry, put the cream with mascarpone and freshly whipped dulce de leche and icing sugar on top".

At the head of the

stove are José Luis Moreno

, "a cook who was my right hand at Coque and my daughter

Andrea,

" explains Sandoval.

And until June - the date on which he will be able to train again - he also lends a hand: "To make torrijas at five in the morning, like this Easter, or whatever it takes."

Four A Gourmet

.

Méndez Álvaro, 34. Telephone numbers: 91 598 04 74/619 09 71 25. Open morning and afternoon from Tuesday to Friday and Saturday and Sunday until 2:00 p.m.

The proposals can be seen on the store's facebook.

Orders: orders@cuatroagourmet.com.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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