The only good thing in this restaurant was the salad. My fish sticks were cold and I waited 15 minutes for someone to come take my order. 6/10 would not eat here again read more

El Barril de las Letras - Salad - Seafood Near Me - Madrid, M

Do not go here if you are American / a tourist. We were treated differently the second we sat down. We simply ordered a filet and a beef chop both cooked Medium and they came out RAW. Manager took 15+ minutes to come to us and said he would do a fresh recook. Came out again RAW. Blamed us saying "I do not know how you do it in your country". I wish I took a picture because the meat was purple and raw as can be. In no country is what we got MEDIUM. Manager was mean and condescending. We just ended up leaving after being there an hour and a half and still hungry. read more

The restaurant was walking distance from our hotel. It was tucked in a cute little neighborhood and the food was delicious. The servers were so helpful as well. I would definitely recommend! read more

The 2* are for the service and ambiance which were not bad. Also starter salad was good. Otherwise I would not give any stars. But at the end of the dinner the main influence on the customer opinion is the main dish. We ordered seafood rice and all we got is a huge plate of rice. We asked the waiter about ingredients and were told that this is a seafood plate with shrimp and fish. There were a few tiny shrimp and a half of tiny rubbery scallop with a huge amount of rice. This dish was an embarrassment for the chef and the owners. read more

El Barril de las Letras managed to turn what should have been a simple dinner in Madrid into an astonishing display of arrogance and disrespect. We were told by the manager that a reservation was required, so we complied and made one. When we returned, however, we were told to sit at the bar, even though the dining room was nearly empty. After pushing back, we were grudgingly given a table--only to then be informed that the section where we were seated "would not be served." This is not hospitality. This is theater in contempt. What makes it worse is that there was no legitimate reason. There were plenty of open tables. There was no shortage of space. It was not about rules or policies--it was about attitude. The manager seemed to go out of her way to humiliate us, either because we were Americans, or because we had dared to wear shorts after being told they were acceptable. It was not simply bluntness, it was deliberate exclusion, as if our presence was an inconvenience rather than the very purpose of their business. Madrid is renowned for its warmth, charm, and extraordinary food culture. Most restaurants here make visitors feel welcome from the moment they walk in the door. El Barril de las Letras is the exception--a place that goes out of its way to remind you that your presence is not valued, your reservation means nothing, and your patronage is irrelevant. It was insulting, it was unnecessary, and it was unforgettable for all the wrong reasons. If you value being treated with dignity, if you care about professionalism, or if you want even the bare minimum of customer service, stay away from El Barril de las Letras. There are hundreds of restaurants in Madrid that will be proud to serve you, happy to welcome you, and eager to earn your business. This place clearly is not one of them. read more

One of my go to seafood restaurants in Madrid, Spain. It is located in a quiet little side street near El Prado. Would be a great place for business dinner or romantic night out. They have an incredible selection of fresh seafood and do a great job preparing it. We started with some seafood croquettes, fresh fried chips, and Galician style pulpo (octopus). All were great! For the main, we decided to carb out and order the seafood paella. Not my first choice with all the great fresh seafood available, but my co-worker really wanted the dish which was well prepared and delicious. During prior visits I've had their fresh seafood prepared to the chef's liking and have never been disappointed. If you are looking for a great local restaurant that caters to local foodies and not just a tourist trap, I highly recommend you try El Barril de Letras. Cheers! read more

One more of the Barrils in Madrid. However this one was even nicer than previous ones. Good quality and selección and extraordinary waiter services. Great customer service C. read more

One of the best seafood restaurants that we have eaten anywhere Dinner was great, had gazpacho with shrimp and mango sorbet. Steamed Clams and European bass (they call it lubina, we call it Branzino). Perfect delicious. Nice atmosphere. Great service read more

1/4/25: 1st time in Madrid, had dinner here because they serve both meat and seafood. Highly recommended by DoubleTree Hilton. Steaks (chuleta) were ordered medium well. They were in fact bloody and chewy. I requested a refire but it still came back rare. The manager took the steaks off the bill which was kind. However, he then gave the excuse that the issue was that the steak was thick and fatty. I would've much preferred that he simply acknowledge the actual issue: the steaks were neither cooked properly nor cooked as requested, period. read more

We had an outstanding experience here. The food and service were all excellent. The salt fish was delicious, as were the croquettes. Highly recommend for a seafood dinner. read more

The wife and I are both from New England (the Boston area) so we know seafood. The place was highly recommended by two people already living in Spain. The first time we were turned away because they were "full" but 70% of the tables were free. Reluctantly, we were given a table, on the second try. Beyond this, the service was excellent. The decor and the ambience projected a beautiful, classy, upscale atmosphere in a large, high ceilings, dinning room, old-world rustic styled. As you walk in, fresh looking seafood is clearly displayed on ice. All the staff were neat and professional in service and appearance. All of this promising a great new food experience in Madrid. Promises were broken. Wanted to experience some of the famous local "Gamba" shrimp, so appetizingly displayed on entry. So we ordered the "Fuente Gamba Blanca de Huelva" for €39.50 and got a grand total of 10 tiny white shrimp lacking any of the flavor I had previously experienced with these shrimp. We passed on almost €140.00! large red shrimp from the cold case we then saw the next day in the basement level of "Cortes Ingles" selling for €12 per pound (equivalent). A fraction of the cost. My wife had fresh Cod Fish, that although she did enjoy, I could taste was previously frozen. Remember we come from a place known as "Cape Cod" so I know what I am talking about. I had the pan fried "Lenguado salvaje" Sole that although was seasoned and cooked very well, still lacked that fresh fish flavor. 'Disappointed' is what I would entitle this review. We made an extra effort for what turned out to be a false bill of goods misled by the glitter and the hype to pay exorbitant mark ups for food that was only just passable. *Full disclosure* We were barely two days behind one of the most fantastic seafood experiences in the entire world at "La Boqueria" on "La Rambla", back in Barcelona. read more

Food was decent but are you kidding? Our party of 4 had a reservation for 1:15 and arrived at 12:50. The restaurant was empty, save for one party of two. The head waiter, Javier, eventually found our reservation and then went to his computer, weirdly muttering to himself. Then he started to direct us upstairs to the overflow seating where a member of the staff was having her lunch before her shift started. When I objected to this strange choice of where to seat us, he directed us to the farthest corner of the restaurant, a four top in the back corner with no window. Upon being asked if we could at least move to the next table over, Javier said absolutely not, he had important clients arriving from the Basque Country who had specifically reserved that table. Again, at 1:00 we were one of only two parties in the entire restaurant. When I went to the bathroom I exchanged words with him again (something I never do but I was upset) and he raised his voice at me, saying we had a choice - either sit upstairs in isolation or stay where we were because the restaurant was full. At about 1:45, people started to trickle in. At 2:15, when we left the capacity was at about 30% and the table that we requested was, no surprise, empty. Honestly, Javier, your attitude is a disgrace. We were not walk ins. We had a reservation and were treated with a level of disrespect the likes of which I have not encountered in years. I am not going to assume that race had anything to do with this experience but the question lingers and it stinks. I am a frequent traveler in Spain and this is the first time I have encountered behavior this unpleasant. Don't worry, we left a generous tip. read more

Elegant, affordable, and food is beyond belief. All the versions of squid are great, and the grilled red tuna is spectacular.

A very cute and intimate spot with superior seafood. Service was spectacular ++ Sangria tasted exactly how real sangria should taste - not too sweet; not watered , just awesome - Cava was the best choice between red, white and cava Running eggs were delicious, we took the ones with fried squid strips. I'm sure cod version was also as great. Pulpo was to die for. Soft, well cooked but very tasty literally melted in my mouth Seafood rice dish with red prawns was also delicious. Prawns , monkfish and some other seafood mixed together - A++ Tuna tartare was next level! Sweet and fresh. Tomato salad with olive oil and sea salt hit the spot Enjoy !!! read more

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The decorations here are kind of weird. There are Kellogg's Corn Flakes cereal boxes and Campbell's tomato soup cans. This contrasts with the formal white linens on the table. It is as if the restaurant is not sure if it wants to be casual or formal. I got the prix-fixe menu and enjoyed most of the dishes. The food is pretty traditional Spanish cuisine -- croquettes, omelet, paella, and iberico ham. While the food tasted pretty good, I could not say that I was excited by it. There was no wow factor (1 star off). Ironically, the best item I had was the gluten-free bread! The cava we ordered also tasted very acidic for some reason (1 star off). Overall, I think this place is good for a weeknight meal, but I would not come here for a special occasion. I need more "Olé!" read more

Awesome dinner for fresh seafood! I try to cross reference restaurants near tourist centers and the consensus is pretty clear that El Barril de las Letras was as good for others as it was for me. The seafood was extremely fresh and we tried various dishes with the octopus a must order! The paella was also delicious so I'd suggest that. For wine, I asked for various suggestions and went for a 44 euro bottle which was highest end of choices as there were lots in the mid 20 euros range. Overall a great spot for dinner that we really enjoyed! read more

El Barril de las Letras - Octopus - Seafood Near Me - Madrid, M

So, I am not at all impressed with this place, but it might be my problem.... Service slow and not accommodating, food mediocre, ambience ok. So I have seen much better places around the world. Nothing to add. read more

This is not only one of the best restaurants I've been to in Spain. It's one of the best I've been to, period. The soup and the olives they bring that are complimentary are both great. For apps we got the baked scallop; it was very different than any type of scallop I've had and it was delicious. For the main dish we had the Monk Fish. Woah!! Most magical Monk Fish I've ever had!!! It was simple yet beyond delicious! The portion is huge so I recommend it for three people rather than two. We also had the fresh fruit & lemon sorbet desert; the lemon sorbet was better than any lemon sorbet I've had in Italy or anywhere! Overall, if you are in Madrid & you don't try this restaurant you are choosing to deprive yourself of a magical experience! read more

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Our hotel recommended this place because it was close by. The food was actually very good-- loved the seafood rice and the grilled asparagus. On the downside service was just not nice at all. Staff seemed impatient and we had to ask multiple times for our drinks. Maybe because we were non locals? read more

We stumbled on this after touring El Prado. Everything was wonderful. Would come here again for dinner. We ordered a shrimp special and cheese platter for lunch. The shrimp was amazing; best meal we have had so far in Madrid! read more

I first found this place while wandering around the neighborhood looking for tapas. It's basically right behind the Westin Palace Hotel and everything in that neighborhood is solid so I had no fears of trying a new place. I've now had 3 meals here (2 dinners and a lunch) over the course of 3 visits to Madrid and honestly each visit is better than the last. This is incredibly fresh seafood - especially when you consider that Madrid is a landlocked City. I love that much of the fish is ordered by the pound, so you can try a lot of different things. I definitely recommend that you try the octopus both ways that they offer it - they are very different but both delicious in their own ways. The shrimp and lobster also were standouts. My favorite had to be the cuttlefish served over rice made from its own ink - both creative and unique. read more

I agree with the other reviewer who wrote that this is perhaps the best seafood restaurant I have ever been in ANYWHERE. I ordered a fish called "Merluza" in España. In the United States, when you can find it, it is known as Hake. In Spain it can be a very large and expensive fish. I had it in El Barril de las Letras as "Cogote de Merluza." BTW, if you speak Spanish as a second language and ask for this fish in Spain, you had BETTER pronounce the Z as a Madrileño or your Spanish friend will scold you! Mine did! I think the name merely means "baked hake with sauce," but that does NOT do it justice. SUPERB is a much better definition! My wife had Fuente Gamba Blanca de Huelva. These are special shrimp caught off the coast of Andalucia. She had them grilled and loved them. The restaurant also makes numerous tapas and ceviche. I cannot wait for the virus to end so I can return! read more

Referred by our amazing bellman staff who were bating 1000 with suggestions. Greeted and seated immediately. Some spanish/english speed bumps for us but navigated well. Great wine. Good service. Delicious food. Nice after diner drinks Highly recommended Slanche read more

Meh. Food was okay. Service was okay. The food was a little pricey and for what we paid I wouldn't expect to get 'meh' but that's exactly what they gave. read more

Great service and ambiance! The paella was amazing too--best I've had. We started with the green salad. Perfect compliment to the paella. Highly recommend!!! read more

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We ordered a whole bunch of food and I will list them from my favorite to my least favorite: Grilled octopus was wonderful, perfect combination of crust and tenderness. My sea bass entree was cooked very well, flavorful yet light. Paella was a little too wet and al dente to my liking but flavor was good and I loved the red prawns that came with it. Panna cotta was good but we all hated the overpowering crust. Restaurant was very nicely decorated with cute plates, and extensive wine selections (proud to say that I didn't drink any, hahaha). It's three star worthy because I didn't feel any wow factor except the octopus and cmon we are in Spain, shouldn't I be wowed every second of the day? read more

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Great dinner. We had the octopus with aioli and lobster paella. Very nice meal, more expensive by Spain standards, but the ambience is well worth the price of admission. Service was excellent. read more

El Barril de las Letras - Lobster paella - Seafood Near Me - Madrid, M

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I ordered the merluza, which was a mistake. It had virtually no taste. Thankfully one of my dining companions gave me his potato, which at least had some flavor. In fairness, I tasted someone else's bass, which was better, and I liked the amuse-bouche they gave us. The service and atmosphere were fine, but overall I found it disappointing and won't be returning. read more

We had dinner tonight at the Parilla EL Barril, right next door to the Barril de las Letras. Highly recommended, very tasty meal. My wife and i shared the chuleton de carne roja and the legumbres a la brasa. We also ordered bread and a bottle of Juan Gil Tempranillio. Truly a superb dinner. My son had the costiitas de cordero, he was very happy with his order as well. Will definitely beback, and would like to visit other Grupo Oter restaurants around Madrid. read more

Great service. Good food. Romantic restaurant, good date night. Would eat there again!

We had dinner at this restaurant last night. The food was amazing, salted fish delicious. We had an amazing wine that Vanessa recommenced us. This is a definitely place to visit while traveling in Madrid. read more

Absolutely one of the best meals I had in Spain. To start we ordered Serrano ham that was freshly and precisely sliced by Paco - pictured. Tender and tasty. It's a must if you like it. And if you don't, try it, you will fall in love. I ordered grilled octopus. It was very tender and tasty. Tentacle chard and crunchy outside, then you get a bite and it is so tender you wonder "how they do that?" Mix greens with fresh lemon vinaigrette comes with it. It was very healthy! Heaven on a plate. My husband had whole grilled flounder and he loved. Again, simple just grilled but fresh and melting in your mouth. Wine list wasn't long but had a very nice selection of all kids and all prices. So there is something for everybody. Ambiance, atmosphere and service was EXCELENT. Friendly and a bit sophisticated without being pompous. If you are in Madrid, make a reservation. It's worth the trip. read more

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We had lunch, not expecting anything special. It turned out to be great! We had dinner there the next night. Fairly expensive, but worth it.

It's weird b/c I had better better paella after writing this review, but the overall rating for this place would have to be a 5! Ok so first things first- FOOD: the fried octopus is really good! Crunchy on the outside and soft but cooked on the inside. The Paella for 2 most definitely feeds 3 people! It was good but not my favorite. I ordered the grilled sea bass and it was POPPING! It was grilled very well (not burned but not raw) and the potatoes were good (although they felt a little greasy). My co workers ordered a dessert (forgot the name- see picture) and they loved the bottom of it but the top/sauce was bot their favorite. I ordered white wine and it was delightful! Now, on to service: we had good service! Our last waiter was so classically handsome! (Reminded me of Roger Sterling/ John Slattery). Loved the place! MUSIC: so they played top 40.....of 1990! I heard spice up your world, thriller and i gotta tell you i wasn't mad about it! :-) read more

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HIGHLY recommend this restaurant for a nice dinner. Hands down the best octopus and paella! We enjoyed the relaxing ambiance and the friendly service as well. read more

El Barril de las Letras - Seafood Near Me - Madrid, M

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The service was really bad. We asked the waiter for help and suggestions but he didn't even looked at us. We ordered a couple of dishes and he took away the menu and told us that we had enough. The salad was OK but the merluza, nothing special, no flavor at all. We ordered drinks that we never received. We felt rushed all the time. Honestly many other good places in Madrid with better service and better food. We don't recommend this place. read more

Horrible. Can't order a glass of wine ended up with a bottle of cava which I couldn't finish. The manager/order taker (supercilious snot in a suit) could have only been less engaging if dead. The green salad with fruit was dripping on olive oil which was bitter. My lamb chops were fried in more oil and the meaty part cut off the bone. (So much for medium rare.) They were fatty and gristle, and oddly, 3 "steaks" but 4 bones, and served with a gooey, ill colored, tasteless risotto. The chops were inconsistently butchered. The rim of the dessert plate had been ineffectively wiped leaving a dried streak with fingerprints. Finally I was offered a roll only to be charged 1.90 euros for "artisan" bread. They hustled me through my courses reaching for my plates before I was finished except for the salad plate which was in the way when the overcooked lamb chops were delivered. The only positive was the playlist. Avoid. read more

El Barril de las Letras - Seafood Near Me - Madrid, M

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What a great place all we order was amazing from the wine to veal to the sea bass . Wonderful atmosphere great please

My husband said this was the best restaurant he's been to in his entire life. #restaurantsinMadrid We've eaten a lot of places in a lot of cities, but for my husband, El Barril is bar none. It was transcendental for him; for me, it was a terrific meal. Either way, this place is absolutely worth trying. For $138Euro, we had: - Barnacles - we'd never had these before. They taste like a cross between mussels and crab. - Leg of octopus - I usually stay away from squids because they're chewy; this was cooked perfectly. Smokey and tender. - Raw clams - like eating raw oysters, but meatier. So fresh. - Seared tuna - fresh and cooked to perfection, with a side of grilled onions and garlic. - 2 mojitos - hand-crafted at the bar, beautifully constructed and with fresh ingredients. It wasn't a cheap meal, but you get what you pay for and in this case, that was fresh seafood prepared ideally for the type of marcisco and the style. Service was fantastic. Attentive and made great recommendations. Atmosphere is bright and modern/industrial. read more

Our hotel recommended this place and when checking with another hotel they didn't sound as enthused noting that they were new. I thought they were fantastic! The service is very professional as was the presentation. Our Spanish language skills led to mostly not knowing what was coming, but we couldn't have been happier with what we got. Three of us had a different fish dish which were cooked perfectly. We ordered one salad which they said was a single serving but it did nicely for all three of us. Everyone else in the place seemed to be enjoying themselves. Nice and quiet on our side and really just a very enjoyable adventure. It didn't seem too expensive but it added up quickly but it was quite worth it. I recommend it without hesitation. I can't remember the name of the wine, but it was on the last page of the reds and it was a cabernet franc. It was perfectly suited to the dishes we had. I may update this later but it seems like it was about 40 euro per person for salad, entrée, dessert, wine and beer. read more