Madrid is one of those unique places. It puts a whole new meaning to the real estate saying ‘Location, location’!
Delegates to this year’s Property Portal Watch Conference in September are in for a huge treat, including a social event at one of the city’s top spots Platea Madrid, care of Gold Sponsor the Mitula Group.
According to Maxim.com, Platea is the hippest place to grab a bite. Not exactly a restaurant but more of a cafeteria, Platea boasts a theater and a bar, making it “possibly the most interesting eateries in Europe”.
Of 1165 reviews on Trip Advisor 78 per cent tout Platea Madrid as excellent while 75 per cent rate it as very good. That says it all.
The Maxim.com report says the cinema-turned-food court is spread out like a tapenade on pan rustico – over four floors and 60,000 square feet.
“No, it isn’t just a specialty food store with copious seating and a marketing team,” the review explains.
“The experience on offer is both more and less cohesive than anything available in New York. Gourmands can arrive together and have completely different experiences.
“Inside the airy confines, roughly two dozen establishments vie for the attentions of visitors’ taste buds. The dishes on display hail from Italy, Peru, Mexico, and Japan. The jamon comes from Salamanca and Seville.
“Not to belabor the point, there is a lot of jamon. It’s still Spain after all and this is – if you drill down on it – tapas taken to its logical extreme.”
The review also describes Platea as “a sort of battle royale between culinary heavyweights”.
The chefs operating businesses in the Serrano Street destination, including Paco Roncero (famous for Casino do Madrid), Marcos Morán (famous for Casa Gerado), Pepe Solla (famous for Casa Solla), and Ramón Freixa (famous forRamón Freixa), have six Michelin stars between them.
Diego Cabrera, the best known cocktail theorist on the Iberian Peninsula, serves elaborate drinks from behind the La Cabrera bar as aerialists perform and a live band plays on the stage overlooking the group debauch.
Platea is intended to be a spectacle.
Another review in Australia’s The Age newspaper, quotes Platea director Gonzalo Hurtado as saying “When you come inside, you think ‘wow’, but then what?”
He’s making the point that the dim-lit glamour of the interior – with its triple-deck of bars and restaurants stacked around a stage where the screen used to be – wouldn’t count for much if it wasn’t worth eating and drinking in.
“The ‘patio’ is lined with individual units specializing in oysters, crab, assorted pintxos, and cardboard cones of bite-sized snacks such as chorizo iberico with chocolate shavings,” the Age review elaborates.
“The upper level, El Foso has six separate restaurants, including a sushi bar, and a high-end steakhouse called Vuelta Y Vuelta, where Hurtado himself likes to dine when he can.
According to this review, Hurtado sees Platea as the kind of idea that might help put Madrid on the world map as a city of gastronomy “like New York or London”.
“It’s only been open for two years but it’s drawn more than 6 million visitors in that time, filling all 900 seats on busy Friday nights. They don’t just come for the food, Hurtado says.
“It’s also about music, the atmosphere. It’s a great place to meet people. We are selling an experience.”
And for Madrid’s Property Portal Watch Conference delegates, this is all on the house, thanks to Gold sponsors the Mitula Group. be there from 6pm on Thursday 29 September.
Don’t miss out, tickets are selling fast for the Madrid Conference. Register now.
