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From the very famous La Viña to the author versions or the favorite of the Real Madrid players
The level of cheesecakes in Spain is tremendous. It seems that we do not give importance to it, accustomed as we are to try, day in and day out, pluperfect versions of this recipe. Server was able to verify it a few dates ago: in New York, where they have been making a noise for decades with their famous ‘cheesecake’, the versions found lacked the delicacy and flavor of those made here. There is many to highlight -in the dessert menus it does not fail-, but here we have selected seven that seem to us creamy works of art.
Self-taught, he began making cheesecakes at home and taking orders on Instagram. The fever was such even the Real Madrid players began to ask for them. Now, from its premises in the Burgocentro shopping center in Las Rozas, it serves all of Spain its prodigious cakes, with the interior always on the verge of sprawl. Prepare traditional cakes, with a biscuit base with butter, but also cheese with white or dark chocolate. The price is €28.60 for the medium and €39.60 for the large.
La Vina (San Sebastian)
The cheesecake at La Viña restaurant (August 31, 3, San Sebastián) has been made since the 1990s, but in recent times it has become a myth. Its style, which dispenses with any base and trusts everything to its ‘extremely creamy’ texture and superior toasting, has even won over ‘The New York Times’, which chose ‘basque burnt cheesecake’ as one of the flavors to be try yes or yes in 2021. It is the model that everyone wants to imitate: all you have to do is type “La Viña cake” into Google and see all the recipes that try to emulate it. The cake can be eaten in the restaurant but it is also served to take away: its price is €45 or €25 if we only want half.
Cris’s mother’s cake (Granada)
The first time I tasted this cake was after bingeing on tapas -and beers- in Granada. It tasted like heaven but the next day I wanted to try it again, my head a little cooler… The second piece confirmed what I suspected: that Cris’s mother’s cake (Pescadería, 7, Granada) was pure ambrosia curd in the oven. In case anyone doubted it, indeed, the maker of the original recipe is Pilar Molina, Cris’s mother, Cristina Orta, who decided to start the business so that everyone could try the incomparable recipe of her father. She sends it to all of Spain in three sizes, from 800 grams to a kilo and a half, and prices range between €17 and €27.
In 2019, the last pre-pandemic Madrid Fusion was held with a contest for the best cheesecake included. The winner was the Kava restaurant (Avenida Antonio Belón, 4, Marbella). Its chef, Fernando Alcalá, presented a version with a alliance of Philadelphia cheese and Flor de Guia canario, organic eggs and creamy cream. A cake 1.0 that has been mutating in subsequent versions based on blue cheese, butter, ‘labneh’ and cream… all sheep. A cheesecake in perpetual evolution. It can be tried as a dessert in its two tasting menus (€55 and €85).
There are times when you want a cheesecake all to yourself. Or for him and a friend (well, you already know who the friend is…). To satisfy all those reluctant to share according to what pleasures, Madreamiga, the Madrid wonderland workshop, has an individual version of the impeccable cheesecake. Her secret from him? The Galician cream cheese that they employ and the good hand, as always, of Begoña San Pedro. The price is a gift: only €5.50 for a cake, although in this case it’s time to go get it (they have several addresses in Madrid) because they don’t deliver it to your home. ‘Spoiler’: the ride is worth it.
Essentia (Tarancon, Ciudad Real)
With the cheesecake craze, contests have also proliferated. Beyond distinctions, what is undeniable is that some of the winners in the different contests, such as the Essentia restaurant (Tarancón, Ciudad Real) are at a very high level. Made with a local cheese, chef Toño Navarro assures that he had been perfecting it for years until he decided to incorporate it into the menu. With a powerful flavor and fluid texture, it is the perfect dessert for those who avoid excessive sweetness. Its price is €6.95.
Estimate (Barcelona and Madrid)
In the restaurant of Rafa Zafra and Anna Gotanegra (Sant Antoni del Sombrerers, 3, from Barcelona, and Marqués de Cubas, 18, from Madrid) there is no better climax to the fish and seafood festival than their famous cheesecake. After a menu that should not miss the Cantabrian anchovies, the red prawns from Roses or the marinated skate from Sanluqueño, it is a joy to try a cake like the one served here, always accompanied by a jar of homemade strawberry jam, so that each diner prepares it to their liking. It can also be found at the recently opened Mar Mía (Plaza de Isabel II, Madrid), at a price of €14.