I take you back to my sublime dear Madrid !! The gastronomy is one of the highlights of my visit always and we love it !! So many to choose from , but we come back to our usual places, memories oblige!. I have written on restaurants and many, but there are always some that have a stronger family meaning to me and feels they deserve a post of their own, Therefore, compiling bits and pieces from other posts let me tell you in one my story with Docamar of my Madrid !! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
I like to mention here my sweet former neighborhood resto bar Docamar at Calle de Alcalá, 337. Metro: Quintana, line 5, just at the foot of my piso/apartment when lived in Madrid in the early 1970’s and my pilgrimage visit every year to Madrid, as brings back wonderful memories of my dear late Mom Gladys ,late DadElio and late wife Martine. If you want to try some of the best ‘patatas bravas’ in town (since 1963) , you’ll have to head out here, beyond the M-30 ring road. We decided on a hot day to stay in the terrace under a cool water fizzle spray love it !! I was able to speak with the waiter who has been here since 1976 ! I beat him told him lol !! A tribute to the faithful neighborhood, where, it is normal to share! We had of course the patatas bravas, huge tortilla (omelete) croquetas and big glass of Estrella Damm beers. And we brought home the salsa brava for the potatoes !!! Another nice chat and glorious food of my dear Madrid !
This was my old neighborhood in the old real Madrid of my teens years, this is Docamar in the Quintana neighborhood of Ciudad Lineal district. Metro Quintana line 5. Very near my old home always a pilgrimage there at Calle Alcalà 331 2do A Buzon 67 !!!! Memories forever !!! The task of cutting the potatoes is handle by a single cook and by his hands where on a single day more than 2,000 kg ( 4408 lbs) of peeled potatoes are cut into quarters. The sauce, secret of course, has a taste of paprika and is quite hot but doable. Many locals attest to the truth, they are the best in the City since 1963, and my best since 1970 !
I like history,you know it, and will tell you more of this wonderful nostalgic place of my Madrid by translating an article came out in the El Periódico de España newspaper hq located at Calle de Pedro Muñoz Seca, 4 Madrid.
Docamar, three generations cooking “the best bravas in Madrid” The bar, which has become a flagship in Quintana, has one of the oldest recipes for this sauce in Spain There are many, many bravas potatoes. It is a seemingly simple meal, which works well as an appetizer or as a portion, and which is not usually expensive, as long as it is the basic recipe and not a much more sophisticated variant. That is why it is not surprising that they are now served in almost any corner of Spain. But if we become purists, this dish is more traditional than the Calle de Alcalá street ! , which many sang about. And right there, at number 337, Docamar has been making them for exactly 60 years. They were one of the first to cook them from a recipe that, three generations later, is followed almost exactly the same.
It is told by Raúl Cabrera, owner with his brother César. His grandfather, Donato Cabrera Martínez (Do-ca-mar), arrived in Madrid to work when he was only 14 years old. He came from Mandayona, in Guadalajara. He worked as a soldier doing guards in the Moro camp of the Palacio de Oriente during the dictatorship of General Primo De Rivera (1923-1930). He also found work at the Bar Santa Isabel, where he spent the whole day, and when it closed and cleaned, he would go to sleep on a mat under the counter until the next morning. In 1930, that small tavern on Calle Galileo in the neighborhood of Argüelles, came to have its own name: Bar Donato. His daughters and sons, daughters-in-law, sons-in-law and various relatives worked there. Then the possibility arose of taking over this place,in the Plaza de Quintana, in the Ciudad Lineal district. At that time the patatas bravas, born in post-war Madrid, were becoming increasingly popular. Its origin is linked to two historical places , La Casona, located on Calle Echegaray ,and Casa Pellico, on calle Toledo both in Madrid, none of them are still open. I got the recipe from La Casona thanks to a brother-in-law who worked in this tavern, where they served bravas tapas with any drink. They gave it a few turns and voilà. The only difference between that sauce and the one now is that it no longer contains gluten. Docamar is one of those that has the original recipe. Their way of making the sauce is the most common in Madrid, where paprika predominates, leaving a spicy touch in the mouth, just enough to continue eating. On the walls of the second floor of Docamar, the result of the expansion of a premises that was too small, there are photographs of some well-known neighbors, such as Fary and his mother dressed in flamenco, the boxer Luis Folledo or the comedian Miguel Gila, all already deceased. There are also images of families and neighborhood football/soccer teams whom they sponsor. There is the rosted chicken maker, the baker, the woman who runs the kiosk… It is a tribute to those who are there and make up the neighborhood. We are very linked to it, that is why we like to promote it. The example was given during confinement (covid) , at a time when the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, offered Telepizza or Rodilla menus to children without resources. For almost half a year, Docamar began preparing homemade breakfasts, lunches and dinners every day, which were then distributed to dozens of families in the neighborhood who were in a vulnerable economic situation. Raúl put his entire capital at Quintana’s service without asking for anything in return, not even the ingredients. Many of his staff were willing to help. Whatever happens, there is still Docamar for a while. I wish them the best and to continue the deeds in my old neighborhood of Quintana !!!
The official Docamar :https://docamar.com/
The official story of the Salsa Brava of Docamar : https://salsadocamar.com/
And they are in the Madrid tourist office on Docamar : https://www.esmadrid.com/en/restaurants/docamar
The RestaurantGuru reviews on Docamar : https://restaurantguru.com/Docamar-Madrid
There you go folks, just passing and eating, Madrid has more per sq km than any other city in Europe !. The choices and prices at Docamar are unbearable and on lovely quant real folks, the good life of my Madrid. Buen provecho, Again, hope you enjoy the post as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 