After more than two weeks of eating tapas it was finally time to venture out and explore the modern culinary scene of Madrid. With a decent number of traditional tapas under my belt, I felt more than ready to explore what the contemporary iterations of the well-loved classics could look like.

DSPEAKEASY (DSPEAK MADRID), calle de Fernando VI, 6, 28004

Dinner at DSPEAK was not my idea. To be honest, DSPEAK was not even on my radar (yet). This place was suggested by my Sciences Po friend with whom we were going to have a little reunion dinner: we have not seen each other for 5+ years! He was the one who made the reservation and since I was not familiar with DSPEAK, I was very intrigued. On the outset, this restaurant sounded like an offshoot of the 2* Michelin restaurant DSTAgE by Diego Guerrero but after having had dinner here I think it deserves to be known as much more than that!

DISCLAIMER: I was more excited about catching up with my friend whom I have not seen for ages, so apart from how good the food was, I truly have no idea what most of the things we had actually were. Henceforth, you will see such descriptors as “avocado thing” and “bread thing for avocado thing”. I apologise in advance.

OK, OK maybe I am doing most of this for the comedic purpose but I am sure you will notice where my dish memory gaps are! The avocado thing was actually a complimentary appetiser of whipped avocado/butter that was very light and airy. It came accompanied by a dough pastry sphere which I would describe similar to the Brazilian cheese bread. We also got some pickled chili on the side and these three things made up a perfect bite.

This is the part where you realise that I am a total fraud and I have no idea what I am talking about 90% of the time. I am pretty sure we ordered a squid dish and that this was the aforementioned squid dish but for the life of me I do not remember and I cannot be 100% sure. Since the service was more in Spanish than in English and mostly because I was engrossed in a conversation all the time, one of my ears picked up something about this dish having a special way of preparation so as not to form a crust on the outside. This white ball of I think/hope/believe to be squid came together with a very light and airy alioli sauce and it worked great together.

I am sure all of this barely approximate information is super useful to you! If you do not feel like staying for food (what food?), stay for the comedic relief. And now, let us continue and let us see where this rabbit hole takes us.

Ha, gotcha! I actually know what this is! This was a scarlet prawn roll with jalapeños and mint (€14). This was absolutely delightful: brioche roll was sweet with a lovely nutty taste from being toasted in butter, the prawn was meaty and sweet, and the pepper with mint provided a much needed balance to the indulgent richness of this roll. 10/10 would repeat.

I do not remember much about this dish. A fried anchovy is a fried anchovy, right? Well, it came on a bed of something incredibly delicious which, of course, I do not recall what it was at the moment. Was it confit tomatoes? Was it roasted peppers? I am leaning towards roasted/confit tomatoes as I remember the sauce having a delicious mix of sweetness and acidity that complimented the fried anchovy well. (Whew, how am I doing? Does this sound legit? Do I sound like I know what I am talking about? Oops…)

Since I have no idea what I am eating here at this point, I will tell you a little funny story of how the waitress tried to steal my plate. Anyhow, all of my peers are eating like normal human beings: the food comes, someone serves it, they get about cleaning their plates. Oh no, not me! That night my mouth opened and it did not shut up for a minute to work on the food before me. I was talking and eating so slowly that I would not have had started while the other had already gone halfway through their food. So, while I yap away, the food (that I have all intentions of eating once I finish whichever story I am telling at that point) is still sitting on the plate. The waitress comes to pick everyone’s finished plates and while I am not paying attention picks mine up as well. At that point I am like “no no, please” trying to grab my plate mid-air before it reaches the tray and she is like “no no, it’s fine” thinking that I want to help her take the plate away(?) which eventually ends up on her tray after which I resign to my fate to not finish the dish. Here my friends intercede and my plate comes back to me at which point I gobble the food down before it leaves me again.

Torreznos (€13), a beautifully deep fried pork belly, came with a grilled pineapple that was drenched in a very yummy sauce. Pork belly was crispy, yet the flesh part was very tender, and the pineapple provided a gorgeous sweet and acidic balance to the bite. As I look through the pictures, I see a little salad that must have come with the dish. For the life of me I do not recall what it was but look at those green leaves – they look healthy!

Albondigas (€17) came with sugar snap peas and peanuts, and was probably the least memorable dish throughout the entire night. I remember having a bite and thinking that the taste was rather subdued and mellow. That did not stop me from stopping the waited from taking the serving plate away before I had time to dip my bread and sop up all that sauce. Those waiters probably thought that I was crazy: talking non-stop even as they come to bring the new dish, prying those half finished plates away from the waiters’ hands, I could go on…

This was our last dish of the night: maños de cerdo (€19) or pig’s feet that came with crayfish and seaweed. I honestly do not remember the seaweed part much but the rest was truly exquisite. The meat was soft and succulent. The crayfish was juicy and sweet. I was so full by the time this dish came but this was truly the best and I made sure not to leave a singe morsel unfinished.

At this point, whatever you think about this write up, please, do not take it at face value but rather as a poetic outline of what a dinner at DSPEAK could be. The food was truly beautiful and, most importantly, fresh and flavourful and tasty. Carabinero roll and maños de cerdo were two true standouts and the rest followed close by.

Ieva’s seal of approval granted. I would love to come back and try the other dishes. DSPEAK was perfect for our little reunion but I totally see the potential for a date night as well.