It’s always a tricky thing when television chefs try to translate their winning ratings formula into a bricks and mortar establishment. But when the chefs in question were trained by the likes of Alain Ducasse and Santi Santamaria, it’s probably a good idea to reserve judgment for the time being.
The Torres twins, Javier and Sergio, are hoping to replicate the success of their one Michelin-starred Dos Cielos restaurant at the Meliá Barcelona Sky hotel with a sophomore outlet, this time in Madrid’s Gran Meliá Palacio de Los Duques.
The palace’s former stables have been converted into a long mod-rustic dining room, where the exposed brick walls, original equine fixtures and glass paneled floors are quietly set off by thin-stemmed modular furniture and burnt colours. Arched windows open out into the jardin ancient, a particularly lovely spot in which to sample the Dos Cielos’ 166-wine cellar during the Spanish summers.
In the kitchen, the Torres hermanos have entrusted the brigade to Damián González as well as their diktat to populate the menu with local produce. Some the dishes will be familiar to long time fans with reliable pickings including chicken wings roasted with fenugreek, the ever reliable suckling pig, cod tripe braised with chickpeas, and slabs of top sirloin that have been marinated for three months in a vinaigrette of meat jus and pickles.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
Cuesta de Santo Domingo 5 y 7
-
Oliver Spencer’s orbiting installation offers a meditative shopping experience during London Design FestivalAt Oliver Spencer’s Shoreditch store, a sensory light installation by Studio Rhythmics offers a calming moment during LDF
-
These benches are made from £2.5m worth of shredded banknotesYou could be sitting on a fortune this London Design Festival, as the Bank of England Museum explores the creative repurposing of waste with furniture made from decommissioned banknotes
-
Rachel Whiteread creates silver collection for Puiforcat inspired by corrugated cardboardThe Turner Prize-winning artist reinterprets imperfection in a new silverware collection with French maison Puiforcat
-
Has the ice cream parlour come of age?A global wave of architecture studios is treating the scoop as spectacle, turning parlours into immersive social spaces
-
Jaç Hi-Fi Café brings Japanese listening-bar culture to BarcelonaIsern Serra Studio unveils a sound-sculpted interior that brings Japanese listening traditions into Catalonia’s contemporary design landscape
-
This chic new restaurant in Ibiza looks like a gallery and feels like a partyMira by Gathering marries contemporary art, Mediterranean fare, and laid-back glamour in a space designed for both contemplation and celebration
-
Do luxury hotels need a farmer-in-residence?From Ibiza to Indonesia, hospitality brands are cultivating a new travel experience, where wellness begins in the soil and ends at the table
-
The most stylish hotel takeovers to pop up at this summerFrom Capri to Ibiza, luxury fashion brands are taking over seaside resorts with exclusive boutique pop-ups and bespoke poolside accessories
-
Ten lesser-known gems you shouldn’t miss in MadridCelebrated for its Beaux-Arts architecture, art museums and culinary creativity, Madrid continues to reinvent itself thanks to a buoyant cultural scene
-
Wallpaper* checks in at The Palace Madrid: an old soul with new sparkleOnce a haunt for intellectuals and artists, Madrid’s grand dame navigates a new era of luxury following a four-year-long renovation by Lázaro Rosa-Violán Studio
-
Sun-soaked European destinations to visit in springDreaming of Florentine palazzos and Greek islands now that the weather is starting to turn? Check into one of these beautiful European hotels and holiday homes
