Madrid is, above all, its people. It’s been 13 years since my Ramón Freixa Madrid restaurant opened and I live in this city and, even though I’m from Barcelona, I also consider myself another Madrilenian. This is a city of opportunities and a welcoming land, and it also means gastronomy and outdoor terraces. Their skies and their light continue to fascinate me, true music for the eyes.
Nothing better to start the weekend than a morning walk or a run with my dog Bubbles through El Retiro Park (at this time of year you shouldn’t miss the Rosaleda, in full floral effervescence) and afterwards, as a ‘guilty pleasure ‘, savor a chocolate croissant from Moulin Chocolat and an orange juice on the terrace of the house.
As I like to say, “Sundays are for rice” and that’s why I love receiving friends to share a plate and a table.
I also like to get lost in the Salamanca district, where I live and work. Paraphrasing the British writer Samuel Johnson, “when a man is tired of Madrid, he is tired of life, because in Madrid there is everything that life can allow”, and this area is a perfect example of this, becoming the epicenter of the revolution cuisine that lives the capital, a destination for buyers from all over the world and a space for lively social life.
I enjoy starting the day with breakfast at Ultramarinos Quintín before visiting the Mercado de La Paz, where the freshness and colors of the products on the stalls are the best inspiration for a cook. Also inside the market it is possible to taste one of the best tortilla skewers at Casa Dani, which has become a place of obligatory pilgrimage for all lovers of this traditional dish, or a delicious pasta at Matteo Cuccina Italiana.
Temptation doesn’t just live upstairs, it lives everywhere in this neighborhood, home to many of my favorite stores. At Lander Urquijo I always find the perfect pants and jackets, and at Casa Loewe I like everything, from its wonderful windows to the crafts that decorate its walls and its exquisite pieces of leather goods. I buy the flowers for the house in Brumalis.
I am passionate about the world of perfume (I also have the honor of being an academic of merit at the Spanish Academy of Perfume). I love exploring the latest novelties on the shelves of an old legal bookstore now converted into counters of the most sophisticated fragrances in Abanuc, next to the Plaza de las Salesas. In the new Maison Guerlain I have discovered the addictive Cuir Beluga from its L’Art collection
I declare myself a compulsive reader of cookbooks and I find the most complete selection and the most recent publications in A Punto, but also a visit to the Taschen bookstore is a delicious experience.
As for restaurants, I can recommend La Única, which marks the return to Madrid of my friend Andrés Madrigal. Also in a Mexican key, Jerónimo, in the spectacular Edition hotel, recently opened. We must celebrate the opening of great new hotels that place the capital at the forefront of world tourism. In it, by the way, there is also space for new gastro concepts from young entrepreneurs such as Comparte Bistró, on Gravina street. And what greater pleasure than tapas and few places in the world for it like Madrid. The Austrias area is full of bars with charm, tradition and stories such as Casa Labra, with its battered cod.
On Sundays, a good part of Madrid becomes pedestrianized, usually with races in which to experience the city from another point of view. This provides a magnificent opportunity to enjoy a walk along the Puerta de Alcalá-Paseo del Prado axis and visit the Prado Museum to see the exhibition ‘The essence of a painting. An olfactory exhibition’, starring the work ‘The Smell’ by Jan Brueghel and Rubens, which represents a new approach to art through this sense and a collection of ten fragrances that fully introduce us to the painting.
This is the last weekend to visit Casa Decor (this year’s edition ends on Sunday the 22nd), a meeting place between design and decoration, and where it is possible to enjoy an Italian lunch in my ephemeral restaurant.
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Ramón Freixá (Barcelona, 1971) is a chef with two Michelin stars at his Ramón Freixá Madrid restaurant. He also owns the Mas de Torrent restaurant, in Ampurdán, and Cuatromanos, a quality food delivery service created together with Paco Roncero.
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