Estrella del Bajo Carrión

The passage of time and its success have defined this restaurant, one that is well aware of its location—deep in the heart of Spain—and of what it knows: home-cooked regional cuisine with style. Simple dishes rooted in noble and humble regional ingredients, to which are applied modern cooking techniques for delicate flavors and easy digestion. They bring history up to date with knowledge and in some cases excitement—there are some ingenious offerings, though they are always tempered and never break with history. Thus, at this restaurant of the Pedrosa sisters, Pilar, Paula, and Mercedes, who benefit from the invaluable help of Pilar’s son Alfonso in the kitchen, diners come to eat naturally, well, satisfyingly… and also inexpensively, all in a country atmosphere. Without question, the client has a clear idea of what awaits and is always rewarded in kind.

The restaurant has many flagships that are worth trying or retrying. In this group are the refined and creamy Cabrales cheese croquettes, made with technique and sensibility—they will make you come back for more. There is also the irresistible simplicity, for their nobility and artisanal quality, of roasted red peppers, sweet and rustic, dressed in virgin olive oil and dusted with sea salt. There are the glorious Vega de Saldaña beans, cooked simply with water, oil, paprika, bay leaf, and a little salt at the end to express their intrinsic delicacy: two orders are better than one. There are the mixed vegetables, sautéed al dente for just a moment to enhance their flavor; they combine purity, lightness and richness. There is also the scramble, or better yet, the creamy country egg soup with wild mushrooms, onion confit and foie gras. And the stewed suckling lamb shoulder, a new take on Castillian lamb that preserves its traditional identity.

Aside from some very successful creations, many seasonal proposals and recent constructions are offered: gazpacho with shellfish, ajoblanco with melon ice cream, white beans with mushrooms, sea bass with razor-shell clams and aromas of oil, garlic and parsley, fresh roasted turtledove with mushrooms and early figs with wines and brandy… formulas that provoke enthusiastic applause with the quality, precision and effectiveness that they embody. A victorious conclusion came with the euphoric foamy egg cream with sweet biscuit ice cream and cinnamon caramel – a delightful deconstruction of familiar dessert elements.

Apart from the cuisine, the restaurant has a few pleasant dining rooms in which to spend an evening; the terrace is a luxury in summer, and the owners’ treatment in the dining room is as unpretentious as it is courteous.