San Lorenzo de El Escorial Restaurants

We were hungry after our tour of the monastery and decided to walk around and look for a place to eat. As the snow began to pick up and the temperature continued to fall, we decided that we just needed to get out of the cold, so we ended up at El Candil.

Andrew and I sat down and decided right away that the restaurant was a bit too quaint and romantic for two guys, but what the heck, we were starving! We entered El Candil downstairs where there are a few tables and a counter bar. A middle-aged lady welcomed us in with a pleasant smile and immediately led us upstairs to a quiet room with white tablecloths and soft tones painted on the walls. After seating us at our table next to a window and handing us the menus, the lady left us all alone in the warm room with the snow gently falling on the sidewalk below. A moment passed. I tried to fill the next moment by fiddling with my camera bag and readjusting my coat hanging on the back of my chair. Finally, Andrew cracked the silence with a chuckle and we quickly struck up a conversation that focused solely on women and sports!

Favorite Dish: Between the two of us we had sopa castellana, paella, pescadilla, croquetas de jamon y queso, and of course, bread, wine and coffee. Andrew said his soup and paella were great and the ham and cheese croquettes were great. My fish was done like fish should be done. Very simply with a drizzle of Spanish olive oil and some herbs. It was indeed a great meal.