La Perejila — Restaurant in Madrid

Phenomenal spot in a fantastic neighbourhood. I’d read it was good but my expectations were massively exceeded.

Stylish, Spanish decor with a colourful, creative twist and busy walls filled with stuff to look at as you sip your opening vermouth. It was packed full with a mixed crowd, all clearly enjoying themselves.

Food was outstanding: 1. Delicious, finely sliced cured beef (can’t remember name but see attached photo), 2. Pulpo a la Gallega was as tender as it gets with fab mashed potato - a nice twist on the classic boiled. 3. Chorizo al vino was stunningly good and just the right amount of paprika, 4. Mejillones - beautifully presented, huge and juicy, with an amazing tomato and pepper broth to dunk your bread in (it’s Spain. Bread is life). Great house vermouth and jolly good Verdejo + Ribera. We didn’t stop commenting how delicious everything was.

The service was wonderful, too. Wry approachable staff, mega-friendly, and despite the bar being packed, helped us move to another larger table, took our order in about 3 minutes, and turned up querying about refills whenever we were one sip away from an empty glass. Legends!!!

One word in...

We walked into the venue and were told to wait about 10 minutes for a table. So far, so good, they even told other customers that we were already in line. However, during the wait, we were repeatedly and insistently asked if we wanted to start ordering drinks. We politely declined, preferring to wait for the table.

When a table finally became available and we were about to sit down, to our surprise, they let other customers seating, who had ordered drinks in the meantime.

Now, if this is your policy, giving priority to those who order at the bar, that’s fine, but at least have the decency and transparency to say so upfront.

Treating customers this way, with broken promises and unclear behavior, is neither professional nor respectful. I don’t know what kind of people you’re used to dealing with, but we’re definitely not stupid.

This is not about a personal experience, neither angry. This is precisely how you are used to work. That's...

What a lovely hidden place at Calle de la Cava Baja! The place looks like stepping into a different world. Decorations are a bit over the top but it does create a lovely atmosphere. The place is rather small and so are the tables and wooden stools. But that does’t really matters cause it gives a kind of cozy feeling. The food we’ve ordered was really nice but not extraordinary. Although I really have to recommend the cod with cream cheese and the dried beef, extremely delicious! Bread was fresh and crispy. The wine we’ve had was very nice and the service the best! The young girl, working behind the bar and also in the restaurant was a true host! Friendly, welcoming, honest and most of all, very funny! She made our regular lunch into a wonderful and funny experience! Love to come to this...