El Bohio

El Bohio Restaurant Review:

Originally established as a roadhouse between Madrid and Toledo, El Bohio (‘The Hut’) owes its name to brothers Pepe and Diego Rodriguez’s grandmother, who founded the restaurant in 1930 just before the Spanish Civil War, as she returned to Spain after emigrating to Cuba. The various dining spaces are bright, crisp and fresh, with elegant wooden beams and chunky pieces of furniture that rest on stone tiling. Private dining areas are available, too, the most sought after of which can be found in the wine cellar. There are three menus: Tasting Menu, Seasonal Menu and Menu of the Day. They draw on the surrounding Castilla-La Mancha region’s finest seasonal produce while paying homage to the traditional and simple cooking of the brothers’ aforementioned grandmother, Valentina, and are elevated with subtle sparks of creative and contemporary pizzazz. Expect starters such as cod stew, foie gras with sardines, and crispy beef salad. Main courses and tasting dishes include veal meatballs with mashed potato, beef ribs with gnocchi and summer truffles, and the classic Cuban dish, chicken fricassée. A particularly extensive wine cellar is managed by sommelier Jose de la Fuente, bringing together many of the finest selections from across Spain. Finish with hot apple pie with forest fruit sorbet, passion fruit with praline and toasted maize, or truffles with pineapple jelly, potato sticks and toffee macaroons.