Bar Tomate

This weekend I headed to the spacious and fashionable Bar Tomate, a Grupo Tragaluz restaurant located in the Chamberi area of Madrid.  This place prides itself on serving vibrant Mediterranean market dishes with a modern twist and I have to say - it does so pretty well.

Bar Tomate provides a comfortable, welcoming and relaxed ambience with its wood-burning stove and wine bottles lining its rustic wooden shelves.  The wine list is extensive and although the menu is quite simple it still delivers some spectacular surprises.

To start we went for the "Breaded Asparagus with Romescu sauce"; the "Spanish cheese platter"; the "Pascualete Warm Cheese with Fig Jam" and the "Pancetta stone baked pizza".  The cheeses were varied and strong and the melted Pascualete (a sheep's milk cheese from Extremadura) was unusual but delicious.  The perfectly cooked asparagus worked well alongside the Romescu sauce and the pizza (albeit simple) was definitely the best of the starters with its perfectly crispy thin base.

To continue the mediterranean theme of the meal I tried the "Grilled Hake served with Black Olive Tapenade and Tomato".  The fish was perfectly cooked remaining moist and flavoursome and strong enough to hold its own alongside a generously seasoned tapenade.

For dessert we tried the "Chocolate Coulant" which was beautifully presented with a dusting of honeycomb and some vanilla bean ice cream. This could have been hotter in the middle but nonetheless it was a very pleasant pud.






After all of this spectacular food I was somewhat disappointed that Bar Tomate's staff could't match the work of their peers in the kitchen.  The waitress was rude and disobliging - something you wouldn't expect of a restaurant of this price and quality.  Nonetheless, the food is of a high standard and the restaurant is a great option for a special lunch or dinner out.

Price: 40€ per person (inc. wine)

Service: ☆☆
Food: ☆☆☆☆
Decor: ☆☆☆☆

Bar Tomate