Federica By Chef Oswaldo Sanchez

My partner, Adam, and I were invited to accompany his brother and wife to this wonderful restaurant recently and it truly lived up to our expectations. It was our first visit to Federica’s in Madrid. The restaurant is situated on Calle Conde Duque and has an unpretentious exterior but is very cozy and warm inside (We were in Madrid during 5 days of chilly spring rain). The staff welcomed us like old friends and Chef Oswaldo Sanchez arrived promptly to see what he could tempt us with for dinner. We’d had a large lunch earlier in the day as we were attending family gatherings, so we chose lighter options. On this occasion my partner had salmon on a bed of smokey tomato sauce. I had the squid done to perfection and the best squid I’ve ever tasted. It was juicy and seasoned very delicately. The fish dishes were enhanced by the crusty patatas braves along with delicious pine nut salad. My partner also ate his salmon with enthusiasm and relish. After conversing among ourselves, amid other contented Spanish diners, Chef Sanchez came over and talked with us, about what deserts we might want. He clearly enjoys his work. He told us how the food was prepared and about his approach to his cuisine, which we decided is Latin American fusion, although, in truth his ingenuity stretches across the Mediterranean as well! We finished the meal with three desserts which we shared as each was so different. We had the Tarta Tres Leches, (three milk pudding) gently flavoured to taste almost like ice cream with hints of vanilla, sugar and spice; the Delicia De Chocolate, was firm enough to hold together as a cake but was soft and crumbly in the mouth with a modest taste of sweet apple with cinnamon and a favourite for us was the upside down lemon tart, Pie De Limón Inverso. It defied the usual chef’s habit of over-sweetening the lemon and left a fresh tang of citrus, blended with meringue, in the mouth. This was the perfect accompaniment to the aguardiente with which we finished our selection of wines. I will not comment on the surprising loo as it would spoil the fun, but, it too, reveals the generous graciousness of our host. We want to commend Federica Restaurante for a genuinely wonderful meal out in Madrid.

We were 5 minutes from putting my daughter in the hospital due to food poising after eating their nachos. I was sick for only one night. I have no other reason to post this other than this restaurant poisoned my family.

We came on a Saturday lunchtime intending to eat at Restaurante Gabriel, which has closed. We decided to try this new place Federica instead. Our meal was OK but nothing special. We started with the gulas en el nido (elvers in a nest) which looked beautiful but tasted of very little. Just a texture really. For our main course we had the fish of the day, which was salmon a la plancha. There was nothing wrong with it, but it was dull. The other early reviews are good, so perhaps it was a bad day. Was it the chef's day off?

Resaltar la atención personal. comida exquisita y muy original, hermoso lugar. ¡Totalmente recomendado, repetiremos!

Carta muy original en un coqueto local con detalles sorprendentes tanto en decoración como en la carta, el ñoquis a los 4 quesos, me maravillé, muy bueno también el risotto, la oferta de postres con una gran variedad de pasteles, que por desgracia no fue completamente cerrado un encuentro muy agradable con el deseo de explorar el resto de platos.