Black is the new Black
Pro Authentic touches of Madeiran cooking.
Con Inauthentic attempt at Madeiran prices.
Pay
€€€€
Per Person €35. Starter, main, two beers, dessert. Gratis; not a sausage.
Find
Madere has closed.
In Short
Hopes? Madeiran simplicity.
Reality? In the right spirit, but work needed.
First Impressions? It's off-white.
A USP? Is there another Madeiran restaurant in Madrid?
The food in three words? Add garlic butter!
Can they get the staff? One slightly overworked server.
Service with a smile? Yep.
Friend friendly? Menu's almost entirely meat and fish.
Rating for dating? For meat eaters, it'd work.
Tip? Small one.
Change one thing? Praying for an improved prego.
Going back? If we hear good reports in future, we would.
Compare & Contrast
More meat dishes at Los espetinhos.
In Pictures
On Google Images
What's the story?
Iron out some issues and Madere could be a real taste of the island that inspires it.
Madeira's a 1800m high island plonked halfway to the Canaries. It's very green. It's got three beaches (just about) and a genuinely scary runway that looks like someone parked an aircraft carrier on the side of a mountain. Oh, and they're obsessed with Christmas lights.
It's got a cuisine all its own. Not really Portuguese. Certainly not meditteranean. You've got a choice. Meat, or fish plus a load of veg and salad. There's not a lot of prettiness, either. You eat what's on your plate. And you get a lot on it.
So, with several trips out in the Atlantic in our passports, how does the first Madeiran restaurant we've ever found off-island spin the food for a big city audience?
It's a story of hits and misses.
Passing some incomprehensibly chosen asian starters (not building confidence in your USP there, guys), we asked for chicken wings and a prego.
Now, the prego is why we're here. It's probably Madeira's national dish, and done right is an utter winner, every time. A beautifully simple concoction of minute steak, garlic butter, salad and unique bread. Imagine the French had invented hamburgers and let the rest of us have them without a hefty shrug or a haughty pfuf! We can recommend the ones at this astoundingly located bar-restaurant on the island. But how about the Cardinal Cisneros version?
Silver linings, 1. Madere have the bread dead right; 2. Their steak's well cooked; 3 The salad's spot on. But...cloud time. One, the garlic butter was awol. Two, and this is a scary cloud a Voldemort could only dream of, it's a crime to burn the bread. And burnt it was. Carbonised. Like Han Solo after a bad day on Bespin.
You could have steamed
with the crust. But, today's blackout aside, this dish is readily recoverable. Really, Madere. Just correct those two points and it would be there. We'd be heading back for more, in a trice. Or more likely on foot as they don't do trices on mytaxi.
But today, can it be so? Do we go, prego?
Oh and the chicken wings? The came with a salad with some pleasingly punchy cherry tomatoes, but they were a bit swamped in a balsamicky syrup. The wings - ahlf a dozen or so of them - were well cooked - no pink bits - and felt home-prepared. But....they're chicken wings. More polished than in a cardboard box from a pizza scooter, but worth the extra cost? Hmmm...
Things weren't promising at this point. Quality trajectories rarely rocket upwards after the starters. But the mains, pleasingly, upset expectations instantly. Both had us nodding and this is pretty gooding from mouthful one.
Pro Authentic touches of Madeiran cooking.
Con Inauthentic attempt at Madeiran prices.
Pay
€€€€
Per Person €35. Starter, main, two beers, dessert. Gratis; not a sausage.
Find
Madere has closed.
In Short
Hopes? Madeiran simplicity.
Reality? In the right spirit, but work needed.
First Impressions? It's off-white.
A USP? Is there another Madeiran restaurant in Madrid?
The food in three words? Add garlic butter!
Can they get the staff? One slightly overworked server.
Service with a smile? Yep.
Friend friendly? Menu's almost entirely meat and fish.
Rating for dating? For meat eaters, it'd work.
Tip? Small one.
Change one thing? Praying for an improved prego.
Going back? If we hear good reports in future, we would.
Compare & Contrast
More meat dishes at Los espetinhos.
In Pictures
On Google Images
What's the story?
Iron out some issues and Madere could be a real taste of the island that inspires it.
Madeira's a 1800m high island plonked halfway to the Canaries. It's very green. It's got three beaches (just about) and a genuinely scary runway that looks like someone parked an aircraft carrier on the side of a mountain. Oh, and they're obsessed with Christmas lights.
It's got a cuisine all its own. Not really Portuguese. Certainly not meditteranean. You've got a choice. Meat, or fish plus a load of veg and salad. There's not a lot of prettiness, either. You eat what's on your plate. And you get a lot on it.
So, with several trips out in the Atlantic in our passports, how does the first Madeiran restaurant we've ever found off-island spin the food for a big city audience?
It's a story of hits and misses.
Passing some incomprehensibly chosen asian starters (not building confidence in your USP there, guys), we asked for chicken wings and a prego.
Now, the prego is why we're here. It's probably Madeira's national dish, and done right is an utter winner, every time. A beautifully simple concoction of minute steak, garlic butter, salad and unique bread. Imagine the French had invented hamburgers and let the rest of us have them without a hefty shrug or a haughty pfuf! We can recommend the ones at this astoundingly located bar-restaurant on the island. But how about the Cardinal Cisneros version?
You could have steamed
with the crust. But, today's blackout aside, this dish is readily recoverable. Really, Madere. Just correct those two points and it would be there. We'd be heading back for more, in a trice. Or more likely on foot as they don't do trices on mytaxi.But today, can it be so? Do we go, prego?
Oh and the chicken wings? The came with a salad with some pleasingly punchy cherry tomatoes, but they were a bit swamped in a balsamicky syrup. The wings - ahlf a dozen or so of them - were well cooked - no pink bits - and felt home-prepared. But....they're chicken wings. More polished than in a cardboard box from a pizza scooter, but worth the extra cost? Hmmm...
Things weren't promising at this point. Quality trajectories rarely rocket upwards after the starters. But the mains, pleasingly, upset expectations instantly. Both had us nodding and this is pretty gooding from mouthful one.
No denying it. Eating in Madrid in July, neither screams summer. Well not a Madrid one, anyway. On the left - the solomillo - looks more Fulham than Funchal. But it was well marinated solomillo and excellently creamy mash. A shame there wasn't lots more cooking juice left over for more sauce.
Espetada is another island speciality. A giant prongy thing (cheffy term!), loaded with grilled beef and peppers served vertically, with garlicked polenta underneath to soak up the juices. This one arrives flat, but it's a decent portion for the Madrid market - although half the size we've had on the island at much the same price. More than a garnish, the mango salsa salad works as a palate cleanser. A couple of cuts of the garlic-buttered (aha there it is!) meat followed by salad leaves leaves you ready for more. A well judged combination, and cooked well too. There's enough carbonisation to make it a genuine taste of neighbourhood island restaurants. The polenta cubes were great - good herbs and garlic; deep fried, crispy. They just needed more juices to mop up.
The mains had won us over, so dessert was worth exploring. A chocolate orange combination, we combined the cake with a generous glass poncha. Enough for two to share (well done on that decision), there's a hint of Sara Lee about the cake, but crumbled digestive added a clever salty crunch. That orange poncha ended up subbing for non-existent chupitos. Authentically punchy, the puncha...err..poncha was proper goodnight Vienna material. Otherwise, we'd stuck to beer and it's surprising there's not even bottled Portuguese brand on offer. Madrid's not short if you want to find them. No madeira, either as far as we could see.
The mains had won us over, so dessert was worth exploring. A chocolate orange combination, we combined the cake with a generous glass poncha. Enough for two to share (well done on that decision), there's a hint of Sara Lee about the cake, but crumbled digestive added a clever salty crunch. That orange poncha ended up subbing for non-existent chupitos. Authentically punchy, the puncha...err..poncha was proper goodnight Vienna material. Otherwise, we'd stuck to beer and it's surprising there's not even bottled Portuguese brand on offer. Madrid's not short if you want to find them. No madeira, either as far as we could see.
Service wasn't bad, with one server working hard and, in fact, working out hard. At least he'd be saving dosh as he could forget a subscription for the BasicFit step machine. He's climbing stairs non-stop with each delivery.
Decor's blander than it could be. More greenery and a touch of local art would give things a distinctive touch without going kitsch. Mind you, plating is really impressive; that chocolate cake looking superb on its beautiful dish.
Lastly, it's not a budget option. Even with a healthy El Tenedor discount, and staying on beer, you'll be spending €50 and it's not the best deal around, at this moment.
Decor's blander than it could be. More greenery and a touch of local art would give things a distinctive touch without going kitsch. Mind you, plating is really impressive; that chocolate cake looking superb on its beautiful dish.
Lastly, it's not a budget option. Even with a healthy El Tenedor discount, and staying on beer, you'll be spending €50 and it's not the best deal around, at this moment.
Dish of the day: Espetada