Good spot really. Cred: Chuck’s Insta
Wait wait wait but I actually do need that receipt!!!! I say to the lovely waitress. Ah, she says. I’m sorry. Anything you can do? I ask. I’m not a magician, it’s not a rabbit, she says.
She didn’t say that, but it would have been cool if she had. It was my fault anyway, my motorprogrammed dimwittery destroying all economic motivation to review Chuck’s.
But I’m going to. Because it was banging.
I actually did a pre-review, drunk on the metro, 11:30pm, San Bernardo station (line 2, the best line), and being drunk it came out quite pure:
It almost didn’t happen as well. Booked out? No issues, I say to my friends. Let me have a word. Thank God I’m (That Dickhead Who Says They’re) On The Scene, otherwise we’d have been stranded, supperless and reservationless in the culinary purgatory of a Madrid Thursday night.
And there were no issues – the Fates delivered me divine providence in chef form, and I bumped into Gerardo Bracho (Chef, Chuck’s, Venezuelan) at TonTon (Ca’Va) post shift. Any chance of Thursday? I asked. Yeh probably, he said, and the next day we had a slot.
I got there like 10ish and found the girls sitting on the terrace. It wasn’t really a terrace evening but come Summer that place will be a Proper Spot. I loved the stools. Plastic and red – if I were from Cuba they’d remind me of my childhood (I imagine?).
Chuck’s is technically a Burger and Wine place, which seems like an unfair advantage on most other places. It’s traditionally incoherent but presently right on – completely at home on its corner of Chamberi.
Our table wasn’t quite ready, so we chilled outside and started a bottle. First an orange wine because, well, fuck it why not? We did that thing that people who don’t know anything about wines do where we got Local on Location, and Pragmatic on Price. So: something from Spain (when in…), something Catalunyan (Revolution Feeds The Vines), and something about 35€. We drank outside and everything was quite nice.
After not so long our table came and everything got even nicer. The space was tight and white and bluey/black, checkerboard floor, no signage, and soft white orb lights. Basically a Clean American Aesthetic, but better obviously because this is Europe and there are fewer Americans. The lights really were proper orbs – the sort a 10th century peasant would have followed until he found God. The kitchen was quasi open and quasi fused with the bar (marble? I think?), backed by lines of natural wines, their purpose first aesthetic then practical, soon, they hope.
And it was Warm! Already being 10 it was as if we’d skipped the undercard and arrived ready for the main event. The imaginary DJ had already worked her crowd, moulded it, manipulated it, pulled its strings like a tender puppeteer to leave us with an atmosphere. The (significant) windows felt it too, condensing in recognition.
We ordered with precision, two of us on a budget, the other three in a good moment. To start: pork dumplings (chillied, 10€). Four come, so they added a fifth for our fiveness. They were beautifully rubbery but also soft and crunchy. On top were chives (don’t quote me), crunchy chilli and Kewpie which needed googling. Turns out it’s Japanese mayonnaise. Think of a texture and these had it – we loved them unanimously.
Dumplings. Cred: Chuck’s insta
Then to share between three: the house smashed burger (16€) , sriracha rabbit (conejo, 20€), and the thai chicken wings (alitas, 12€). If this sounds eclectic it’s because it was. Fantastically. I can only agree with my drunk self – I LOVE the menu. The burger’s a good burger, and the alitas were tasty but haven’t aged as well in my Mind Palace. The rabbit however is still kicking about. It came like a pie of sorts, with gravy (jus) and grilled rapini (spring greens x broccoli) which were just incredible. Tender but sharp, almost sour and then totally integrated with the rabbit, lathered in its jus. Then finally on the side two HUGE things of lime chips. Get them, they’re great.
Great menu, great cutlery
Amongst it all we had another bottle, this one more Orangey, and several friends rocked up. It wasn’t me who’d invited them, so the overall effect was one of playing out a script. One of them had just been on a (refreshingly) bad date. We should have more bad dates, we decided.
But not at Chuck’s. That’d be a waste.
- Food: 8.2/8.5 (long story)
- Space: 8
- Vibes: 9
Price: about 40€ a head. Could get out full for 25€ without wine, easy.
C. de la Santísima Trinidad, 6, Chamberí, Madrid, Spain 28010