Casa Julián

Walking into Casa Julián for the first time is a small piece of theatre, and that is before any food has arrived.

The room is exactly what you want it to be: tiny Tolosa room, three tables, decades of cooks. We were seated near the back, given menus we hardly needed, and brought a small bowl of olives without being asked.

We started with a small dish of marinated white anchovies, which set the tone — generous, unfussy, and confident enough not to crowd what was coming. With it we ordered Rioja gran reserva, decanted at the table, and were glad of both.

Then the main event: chuleta of buey, the dish that puts Casa Julián on every short list. The seasoning was simple — salt, pepper, restraint — and it was the right call. The signature touch — the salt-crusted bone-in rib, charred over coals — is not a gimmick; it is the reason to come.

For sides we asked for grilled radicchio with anchovy butter and potato gratin with a dark crust. Both arrived hot, both arrived early, both were exactly large enough to overdo it. We overdid it.

Dessert was a wedge of chocolate cake to share, fork divided, mostly because the waiter raised an eyebrow when we hesitated. He was right to.

Some places earn their reputation. Casa Julián earns it twice over.