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    Chef

    Antonio Couceiro

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    Chef
    Portrait of Antonio Couceiro

    Portrait of Antonio Couceiro

    i. Biography

    Since 2020, the kitchen at Garelos in Madrid has been led by Antonio Couceiro, whose work draws on years spent moving through different settings without losing hold of a Galician frame of reference. Garelos itself carries that reference in its name, which Couceiro notes comes from Betanzos: “The name of the business comes from Betanzos; that is what those of us born there are called.” The result is a Madrid dining room where place names, regional memory, and daily service sit in the same register.

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    The Path

    Before Madrid, the craft was built in Galicia. Antonio Couceiro worked as chef at A Penela until 2008 and as chef at El Refugio de Oleiros, Galicia until 2008, two posts that established the habits of line work, repetition, and timing that define professional cooking. From 2008, he worked as a cook in Madrid, carrying that background into a new city and a different pace of service. The progression is straightforward: chef in Galicia, cook in Madrid, then a return to the lead role at Garelos since 2020.

    The Work Today

    At Garelos since 2020, the emphasis is on continuity rather than reinvention. Antonio Couceiro’s cooking here is rooted in recognizable Galician food, served with the confidence that comes from having worked the same traditions across different rooms and roles. The value is in precision, familiarity, and the ability to keep regional dishes legible in Madrid.

    Signature

    Antonio's signature dishes include tortilla estilo Betanzos, empanadas gallegas, and Ternera asada La Penela. Each one points back to a different part of the same working vocabulary: tortilla estilo Betanzos with its clear regional marker, empanadas gallegas as a standard bearer for Galician home and restaurant cooking, and Ternera asada La Penela as a direct link to one of the earlier kitchens in his career. Taken together, they show a cook working within a defined tradition and keeping that tradition visible on the plate.

    In Their Words “The name of the business comes from Betanzos; that is what those of us born there are called.”

    ii

    FAQ

    Asked of Antonio

    • Where did Antonio Couceiro work before?

      Antonio Couceiro's earlier career included A Penela and El Refugio de Oleiros.

    • What recognition has Antonio Couceiro received?

      Distintivo de embajador de la Tortilla de Betanzos (2026).

    The Sunday email

    Read about chefs like Antonio Couceiro in the Sunday email.

    Every Sunday we send a lead story and up to four more about the chefs, winemakers, sommeliers and hoteliers behind the restaurants, bars, wineries and hotels we cover.

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