La Terraza

Calle de Alcalá, 15, Madrid, Spain

Chef Paco Roncero’s degustation menu at La Terraza is not what you’d expect to find on the rooftop of a 175-year-old casino. Twenty examples of molecular gastronomy in the form of a tasting menu showcase Roncero’s two decades of experience, a Ferrán Adrià friendship and his own two Michelin stars. Carrot and tarragon profiterole, and pistachio ‘nitro’, are just two of eight ‘snacks’ that introduce the menu – the latter of which is a pistachio cream, dipped in liquid nitrogen and served on a teaspoon marked El Bulli. Tapiplatos are the main plates, and Roncero favours seafood and shellfish, including soba ‘in situ’ – a king prawn and shiitake mushroom consommé, with what can only be described as a noodle injection. Finished at your table, you’ll watch as your waiter pipes a buttery substance into your dish, which transforms into perfect soba noodles as it hits the hot broth in front of you. A dessert of yuzu ravioli and frozen matcha tea powder is beautifully presented, and followed by a flurry of mini desserts, which include dark chocolate and sage tablets, and pineapple truffles.