In his enigmatic, unclassifiable and unforgettable book, El Cómputo del ocho (The Computation of eight), the Samoan writer Albert Hanover refers to the Callejón del Gato (the Cat’s Alley) as one of the three essential points of the triangle, in whose heart is inscribed the magical heart of Madrid. Not for nothing, according to legend, the birthplace of the grotesque was there, popular voice brought to speech that took the form of a new rhetorical term fundamental to understand the Spanish literature and culture from the day in which the almost hundred year old Valle-Inclán appointed with him a new art, a new way of look, inspired by the distorting mirrors that characterize even this small and narrow passage to the center of Madrid.

According to the most famous definition offered by Max Estrella in Luces de Bohemia, “Classical heroes have gone for a walk to the Cat’s Alley. Classical heroes reflected in concave mirrors are the grotesque. The most beautiful images in a concave mirror are absurd. “

These mirrors, which graphically illustrate the idea that what is tragic about the Spanish reality can only be expressed through aesthetics based on a systematic distortion, are still there, holding the traveler in a hurry, unable to overcome his disturbing and abysmal power of complaint, but despite the plaque, which serves as a reminder, it is more than possible that most locals do not associate the fundamental role they have played in contemporary culture, but to the bar where, according to another legend, the best patatas bravas (fried potatoes in the form of irregular plated given a spicy tomato sauce) in the city are serve, the bar-restaurant  is called Las Bravas.

Madrid is famous for its patatas bravas, one of the favorite tapas for their inhabitants and it is hard to choose the best places to try them, but surely in any list the famous Cat’s Alley will be in the top five.

It’s more than possible that the Cruz Blanca Brewery in Olavide Square, was another prominent place, as well as the Bar-Restaurant Docamar (http://www.docamar.com/) which has been very famous since its opening in 1963. Despite being somewhere outside the city center, everyday a lot of its clients come from different parts of the capital to consume the potatoes with the secret sauce they use for their preparation.

Magerit, in the Plaza Mayor, is another favorite restaurant, placed in an unbeatable location, making it in a double pleasure.

Something similar happens in the very traditional winery La Ardosa (http://www.laardosa.es/), famous for its excellent selection of wines and beers, as well as its more than 200 years in the market.

 

Paul Oilzum

Despite the suggestions here contained, when you rent apartments in Madrid you will see that Las bravas tradition is so entrenched that probably the best places are kept strictly secret, so be sure to enter to any bar that for whatever reason that inspires your confidence.

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Translated by: Hans
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