The tradition and pleasure of food lovers
A young team of professionals led by Elisabeth Horcher keeps turning good meals into an artistic experience, maintaining alive one of the most emblematic family sagas of international haute cuisine. Having recently celebrated its 75th anniversary (2018), the fourth generation of the Horcher family continues to create single gastronomic experiences, maintaining the original essence that has made them an authoritative reference in Madrid. In 2015, Horcher received the prestigious Dos Soles Repsol award, a certification granted to the best restaurants and chefs, and a symbol of culinary excellence.
Horcher Restaurant has been serving authenticity while facing the Retiro Park gardens since 1943; straightforward truths based on the tradition that Elisabeth's grandfather, Otto, put in his suitcase to found one of the temples of good food in Madrid. His trademark and personality are still shown on the walls of this classic among classics.
Time comes to standstill when the steps are climbed from number 6 of Alfonso XII street revealing the dining area in one of the most prestigious rooms in the capital, where personalities such as Sofia Loren, Víctor de la Serna, John Wayne or Salvador Dalí have been. In this room, part of the contemporary history of Spain has been cooked, and as soon as you enter it and seen each of the details of the tables (with beautiful Riedel glassware, silver cutlery, untainted tablecloths and porcelain laden with tradition) you can grasp an unforgettable adventure for the five senses.
Gastronomy
During the autumn-winter months, the hunting season rules with the legendary Perdiz a la Presa as the most requested, cooked the old-fashioned way, with no thermostats or corsetry. The same care is given to the woodcock (the queen of the hunt), the loin of roe deer and the goose (amazing and elegant when it is finished, plated and served at the table). Horcher’s menu is also exciting during the warmer months of the year with some entrees that make choosing a hard task. Two emblematic examples are the classic Herring in Cream with Kartoffelpuffer or the unique Gazpacho with Lobster and salmon roe to prove its pureness. On the other hand, the anglers claim the absolute prominence during its season with turbots of more than 15 kilos that melt in the mouth, where the “star” is the “product”, a resource that brings up applause and admiration among the public.
The final apotheosis comes with Baumkuchen, the tree cake, a handmade candy made layer by layer in a special oven with an approximate weight of two and a half kilos and made with more than 70 eggs. Cut in veined slices as if it were a carpaccio, it is served covered with hot chocolate, vanilla ice cream and whipped cream, being for decades one of the biggest hits.
Elisabeth was running around the bowels of the store as a child, dreaming of one day becoming be the fourth link of this saga of lovers and faithful counsels of haute cuisine. Her dreams were fulfilled and after training in Lausanne, she now leads a young team of professionals who, in perfect harmony with the most veteran staff, keep the essence of Horcher untouched. She knows every inch of her “shop” and every detail that make this restaurant a unique reference in Madrid, as it has been taught by her father, Gustav, whom she affectionately calls “her boss.” Elisabeth, Blas Benito Aguilera, Raúl Rodríguez Fernández and the current chef Miguel Hermann (a very young chef born only 29 years ago but with more than 9 years of experience in Horcher kitchens, trained at the School of Hospitality of Toledo), they imprint all the respect, love and passion that can be held for this trade keeping alive the flame of the best culinary tradition.
Thus, following the essence of the Central European cookbook, from the kitchen comes out dishes that perfectly fill the room, as many of them get finished under the careful eye of the client with the obligation to adapt to him until absolute approval is given. A tradition, that of finishing off the plate at the table, which is almost impossible to witness today.
Horcher cellar
It is a true oenological treasure within Madrid, where wines of landmark vintages rest, enriched with the explanation and wisdom of sommelier Blas Benito, who is also in charge of the coordination between living room and kitchen so that it works milli metrically.
