La Castela

Rice, shellfish and the same front counter

At the pass, Paco Roncero directs La Castela in Retiro, Madrid, Spain, through tapas, seafood and rice that ask for a steady hand. The house has worked from Calle del Doctor Castelo 22 since 1989, close to El Retiro park, with a front bar for quick plates and a rear sala for the longer meal. Roncero was born in Madrid in 1969 and entered the Casino de Madrid in 1991, becoming head chef of banquets in 1996 and executive chef in 2000. His wider work at La Terraza del Casino brought Michelin stars in 2002 and 2010, and in 2019 that address evolved into Paco Roncero Restaurante at the NH Collection Casino de Madrid. La Castela belongs to another register: the old tasca made more exact, the plate moving from counter to table without losing its bar intelligence.

Manzanilla in the pan, socarrat at the edge

The method here is not spectacle. Clams meet Manzanilla sherry with ham and baby asparagus; rice arrives creamy with octopus and squid, or with turbot, carrying the Spanish preference for depth over ornament. Croquetas de Carabinero sit beside cecina croquettes and truffle versions, small plates that depend on the frying bench being awake to heat, filling and crust. Green asparagus takes garlic and honey balsamic vinegar. Tuna and red pepper are layered rather than hidden. Grilled turbot and hake tacos keep the fish at the center of the plate, while razor clams, cockles and wild red prawns give the counter its salt. The architecture is à la carte, with media raciones allowing the table to move by appetite: anchovies, Jamón Ibérico, chipirones in squid ink, then rice or beef if the meal lengthens. The wine program stays Spanish, with Rioja gran reservas, Ribera del Duero, Godello, Verdejo, Cava and Corpinnat holding their place by the glass and by the bottle.

The room splits the work in two

The front room carries the first rhythm: a marble counter, bottles along the wall, high-top seating and the kind of commotion that suits tapas because the pass can keep moving. Plates land close to the hand that ordered them. In the back sala, white tablecloths change the tempo without changing the kitchen’s grammar; the same seafood and rice take on a quieter pace. Staff move through a lively room with the confidence of repetition, balancing bar pressure with the more formal cadence of the restaurant. The setting is rustic rather than staged, warm rather than hushed, a neighborhood Madrid house that has learned how to hold both lunch crowd and celebration.

A Madrid tasca kept in service

La Castela’s distinction is its refusal to choose between the bar and the dining room. The old-school tasca remains visible at the counter, while the sala gives the same ingredients more space and linen. That is where the craft settles: in Manzanilla clams, croquetas de Carabinero, creamy rice with octopus and squid, and the marble counter at Calle del Doctor Castelo 22.