Food destinations within easy reach of Madrid, worth the early start.
Food destinations within easy reach of Madrid. worth the train, the rental car or the early start.
Famous for: Cochinillo asado at Meson de Candido and Jose Maria, plus the Roman aqueduct
Segovia, 30 minutes from Madrid by AVE, is the Castilian wood-oven capital, with Meson de Candido at the foot of the Roman aqueduct serving cochinillo asado.
Famous for: Marzipan from Santo Tome and Casa Telesforo, plus the venison and partridge canon
Toledo, 33 minutes from Madrid by AVE, is the marzipan capital of Spain with Santo Tome and Casa Telesforo making the canonical almond-and-honey treats.
Famous for: Fresas con nata at Casa Pablo, royal-gardens asparagus and the Cercanias dining tradition
Aranjuez, 45 minutes from Madrid on the Cercanias C-3 train, is the royal-garden town with the spring strawberry tradition (fresas con nata at Casa Pablo).
Famous for: Cordero asado in the 17th-century Plaza Mayor mesones, plus the Anis de Chinchon liqueur
Chinchon, 55 minutes from Madrid by bus, is the 17th-century arcade-plaza Castilian town with cordero asado at Meson Cuevas del Vino (a 1648 wine-cellar.
Famous for: Castilian roasts at Charoles and Horizontal, plus the Royal Monastery food history
San Lorenzo de El Escorial, 1 hour from Madrid by Cercanias, is the royal-monastery town with Castilian-roast canon at Charoles (Michelin Bib Gourmand.
Famous for: Cocido madrileno at Chiron, the regional Michelin Bib Gourmand cocido house
Valdemoro, 30 minutes from Madrid by Cercanias, is the suburb-and-Manchego frontier where Chiron (1 Michelin Star since 2014) cooks the canonical Castilian.
Famous for: Costrada de Alcala almond cake at Casa Salinas, plus the historic Mostrador university tradition
Alcala de Henares, 45 minutes from Madrid by Cercanias, is the UNESCO heritage university city where Cervantes was born, home to the Costrada de Alcala.