It is easy to imagine what La Cigaleña looked like when it opened its doors for the first time in the centre of Santander in 1949. It still has that country-style décor which must have been there since Mariano and Moisesa moved there from Cigales, in the province of Valladolid, and which is now magnified by the hundreds of bottles decorating the ceilings and walls of this vintage style restaurant-cum-wine-museum.
The third generation of this family business, managed by brothers Juan and Andrés Conde Laya, continues with the traditional cuisine of its origins with dishes like lamb sweetbreads with onions (€19) or croquettes prepared following Moisesa’s original recipe (€13). They have included some modern dishes like Norway lobster ravioli and aniseed cream (€16) or seasonal products like vegetables (€15) and grilled octopus (€19) but don’t expect minimalist presentations or child-like portions. This is a non-nonsense place to eat and drink. Service is professional and polite, as you would expect from such a restaurant, with seasoned waiters who are good at their job.
Sommelier and winelover Andrés takes care of the cellar. He has 1,500 selections and 30,000 bottles but there is also a special wine list "for interested customers” —old vintages, mostly from Rioja and some from Jerez, ranging from the 1920s to the 1970s. Others are not even for sale: the last bottle of a valued wine becomes part of the décor.
His love for wine means that he stores bottles away to feed this museum, although he regrets that the style of wines these days does not have the character of the old days. "With a few exceptions, both in Spain and outside, wines are being pushed to their limits. They have nothing in common with the wines made in the 1950s; wines nowadays are not made to age", says Andrés.
Burgundy, Jura and Champagne are very present on La Cigaleña’s everyday wine list but there is also a rather personal selection of Spanish wines generously served on proper glassware. Most of them are fresh style wines made by small vignerons such as Abel Mendoza, José Luis Mateo (Quinta da Muradella) or “Quality Verdejos” like some from maverick winemaker Ismael Gozalo or Beatriz Herranz (Cucú) at sensible prices (around €20 per bottle), but if you want to really enjoy the experience, it’s best to let yourself go and follow Andrés’s advice. Y.O.A.
