Author and photos: Abbas Asaria
One of the things l love the most about Madrid are the senseless yet beautiful contradictions it serves your way. One of our most famous dishes is the bocata de calamares despite being 350km away from the coast, and ordering ‘un mini’ will get you a litre of beer, to name a couple.
My favourite of them all relates to the bar that does the best callos inside the M30 (in my opinion), which you can recognise from the huge sign out front proudly identifying the place as Marisquería Bar Alonso. Founded in 1957, according to one of the tiles behind the bar, or 1956 according to the website (what’s one more contradiction while we’re at it), the place is run by José Manuel, who started working there as a teenager in the 1980s, who took over when the founders retired and cooks 10kg of callos per day.
Despite this being a marisquería (a seafood restaurant), I didn’t touch any seafood the first time I went, with the callos and torreznos – another speciality of theirs, which you’ll also see stacked high on plates behind the bar – leaving me feeling full and warm on a cold November’s day last year. On my most recent visit I paired the callos with some boquerones fritos and some fantastic gambas al ajillo, with the oil still sizzling and the cazuelita blackened on the top and sides from its time under the grill.
Best of all, Marisquería Bar Alonso is a wonderful place to just take your time, soak in the buzzing atmosphere and enjoy its character. It’s loud, and can get fairly crowded considering it’s not particularly big – meaning you’ll likely be shouting or gesturing your order from across the bar.
The walls are adorned with Andalusian tiles and, behind the bar, there are shelves of ceramic beer tankards that regulars have gifted to José Manuel over time, while the floors are decorated with discarded servilletas and sucked on prawn heads – something actually encouraged by one of the signs on the wall.
Finally, I have no words for how much I enjoy the shape of the glasses they serve their dobles in: thinner and taller than the more modern doble glasses. Most importantly, they’re exceptionally ‘bien tiradas’ – the texture of the foam couldn’t be better.
Abbas Asaria is a British chef and food writer based in Madrid. Follow him on Instagram, where he shares his vibrant recipes inspired by his adventures around the world – especially his story celebrating the crisp factories of Madrid.
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