El Picoteo De Malasana - Madrid

We went through the Tenedor as there was a good discount and we saw a couple of things on the menu that we could eat (we don’t eat meat or dairy . The food was a little greasy (we have had these common dishes in other places where they’re not soaked in low quality oil! ... and expensive if it weren’t for the discount. The waiter insisted that the octopus couldn’t be braised if we didn’t want the accompanying potato with cheese as it’d “be too dry” (which is funny because we live in Spain where that’s a popular dish and a common way of preparing it! We said we didn’t mind it being a little dry but it came drenched in oil! As others have mentioned they served every dish at once the starter and the two mains for the two of us, which shows they just don’t “get” how to make a lunch experience more pleasant! I commented on these points in my review on The Fork El Tenedor and I received a very abusive reply about how I should stay at home if I don’t eat meat or dairy as it’d be more expensive(?! I’m disgusted by this as I was in no way rude in my review, just stated that it’d make for a better experience to serve dishes one after the other. El Tenedor asks you to comment on ambience, so they shouldn’t be offended if that’s what someone does?! If you’re reading this, go to El Macareno amazing Spanish food that’s worth paying for. I wouldn’t go to this place even if it were free.

I come here often on the weekends to enjoy the lunch menús (for 12 euros you get a drink, a first plate, a second plate, and dessert/coffee). I 'm sorry two other reviewers had such a bad experience as I 've been coming here since I moved to the neighborhood over three years ago and have never been disappointed in a single dish. The food is totally Spanish and the only food not home-made and cooked fresh is one or two desserts. The clients are largely locals who return regularly (like me and my husband), definitely give it a try for lunch. I 've never considered this place a tapas bar, so if you are looking for tapas, maybe look elsewhere, although you will find other kinds of typical Spanish cuisine here.

Having decided to visit El Picoteo de Malasaña due to its close proximity to our hotel (Ibis) which is just across the road we felt we had made a good choice initially when a waitress approached us from within whilst checking out and discussing the Spanish menu displayed beside the door. Although she didn't speak English nor us Spanish she was able to produce a menu in English. The menu was limited but there was enough on it to enable us to choose what sounded like a fine meal each. We were quickly seated and soon ordered beer and starters with everyone going for the chorizo sausage and black pudding along with a portion of fries with mixed sauces to share. For the main I ordered venison (well done... crispy) and my colleagues ordered steak (medium rare), hake and lamb cutlets respectively. A Spanish waiter who spoke a little English helped us through the menu describing what each item was. Soon the starters arrived and it was very nice... but this unfortunately is where things started to go wrong. We were still eating our starters when the main meal was pushed onto the table. We hadn't even finished our starters... surely these waiters would understand the basic principle of letting a customer finish the first course before cramming the tables with the main dishes. We moved on to the main dish and despite the lamb cutlets being fine and the hake average my colleagues steak looked like what can only be described as a lump of lard and gristle with a miniscule amount of meat. He poked and prodded at it before finding the bit of meat... cutting into it it was plain to see it was not cooked correctly. Fresh blood dribbled out of it and it was completely raw inside. To say the whole piece was inedible was an understatement. Then we move onto my venison... which I requested crispy and well done... it arrived spongy, purple and bleeding. As my colleague and I pushed the food around our plate contemplating what to do with it our friends had by this time finished their main course... only then did a waiter approach us. We explained the cuts of meat were awful and not cooked as requested and we no longer wanted them. He smiled and took the plates away. At this point me and my colleague left the establishment for a cigarette and on the way out spied said waiter standing over a pan squashing our meat cuts down to cook them despite us saying we no longer wanted them. During the course of our smoke break the waiter returned to the table 3 times with the same plate of meat and was continually told by the 2 left in the restaurant that we no longer wished it as the meal was over and we asked for the bill. We explained to the English speaking waiter that we were happy to pay for the rest of the meal but would not be paying the cost of the 2 meat cuts which amounted to £30. At this point the waitress butted in... told the English speaking waiter to go away and stood shrugging her shoulders and shaking her finger at us stating we must pay. As we now had no ways to communicate other than getting up and walking out we begrudgingly paid for food that was not cooked, arguing was pointless due to the language barrier and as we weren't allowed to speak to the English speaking waiter we paid the bill and left. This was the down point on an otherwise fantastic trip. I simply cannot recommend this restaurant to anyone. The staff are ignorant, service is shockingly poor and the food of a very low quality. Do yourself a favor and avoid it.

Sitio agradable, buena música, buena atención y excelente comida. 13 euros plato del día, es mi sitio de referencia cuando vengo a Madrid. Ojalá siempre así, gracias por la atención.

Nos invitó un familiar. Todo muy rico y muy buena atención.