A brief selection from the anecdotes of Lhardy, Madrid's historic and literary stage over the last centuries.
Testimonials (the same as on the front page):
1839
The first Spanish restaurant
Lhardy is the first Spanish restaurant created as public dining is conceived today: fixed prices, written menus and separate tables were rules introduced by Emilio Lhardy himself into the hospitality trade of the first half of the nineteenth century. In support of this thesis, one need only recall that the social phenomenon of the restaurant was born in France (fifty years before the founding of Lhardy), when, as a consequence of the Revolution, the nobility fell from grace and cooks and servants alike had to find a bourgeois application for their skill.
1847
The Queen slips out of the Palace
Around 1847, Queen Isabella II herself escaped from the Palace and went to dine at Lhardy with her ladies-in-waiting. Alfonso XII also came several times incognito, crossing paths in its rooms with friends and figures of Madrid life. The royal endorsement of the House was fundamental. The phrase “I saw the King — he was going into Lhardy” was a frequent remark. Famous, too, was the greeting that Frascuelo, the gypsy bullfighter, gave the King upon seeing him enter Lhardy: “Olé for the gypsy King!”
1885
The telephone arrives… and the first prank calls
In 1885 the telephone was installed at Lhardy, when Madrid had only 49 subscribers, many of whom thus took up the habit of booking tables and ordering home deliveries. That instrument of progress also gave rise to the first telephone pranks: “We know you have pig's trotters, tripe and a wild boar's head, but surely you have no kidneys…” (in Spanish, “no kidneys” also means “no nerve”). Once the initial irritation had passed, Agustín Lhardy reacted with his proverbial humour: “…and don't forget I also have saint's bones” (huesos de santo, a traditional Spanish sweet).
Gredos Parador
Lhardy opens the first National Parador
The first Spanish National Parador, that of Gredos, was inaugurated by Lhardy and staffed with cooks and waiters from the House for a couple of years, thus beginning the hotel prestige of the National Paradores Network.
1885
The silver samovar and ladies on their own
In 1885 the tradition of self-served consommé from the silver samovar was introduced, to great success among the ladies of the day. It is worth noting that Lhardy was the first hospitality establishment in Madrid where ladies were permitted to come unaccompanied. A true milestone in the history of Spanish women's liberation.
1916
Mata-Hari lunches at Lhardy
At the turn of the century, in 1916, the exotic dancer Mata-Hari was arrested as a spy at the Palace Hotel, shortly after lunching at Lhardy.
Zarzuela
“Tortilla al ron”: Lhardy in the chorus
Another event touching Lhardy was the premiere of the comic zarzuela “Tortilla al ron” (Rum Omelette). The establishment is named in the refrain of one of the work's numbers, which the audience was meant to repeat, and it thus became very popular among the Madrilenians of the time.
1890
“Plato del día”: food criticism is born
Anticipating modern gastronomic criticism, the master journalist Mariano de Cavia kept a daily column in “El Liberal” entitled “Plato del día” (Dish of the Day), often nourished with references to Lhardy. He maintained a close friendship with Agustín Lhardy, with whom he appears dressed as a cook in a famous photograph.
c. 1850
In Madoz's dictionary
By the mid-nineteenth century, Madrid spoke of nothing but Lhardy as the inevitable place for luxurious dining, and Pascual Madoz included it in his Geographical Dictionary.
The noted decorator Rafael Guerrero established Lhardy's new physiognomy.
Alfonso XII
The King, incognito
Alfonso XII came several times incognito, crossing paths in Lhardy's rooms with friends and figures of Madrid life.
c. 1880
The Second Empire mahogany façade
The taste of the Second Empire, endowed with that haute-bourgeoisie elegance which captivates us once more, shaped the design of Lhardy's façade, built of magnificent Cuban mahogany as a symbol of what were once Spain's overseas provinces. The shop's interior decoration, with its two facing counters and the mirror at the back, above the opulent console that holds the “bouilloire” and the fine collection of bottles, remains intact, just as Rafael Guerrero designed and executed it. The dining rooms conceived as the Isabelline, White and Japanese Rooms preserve the period wallpaper: the fireplaces, fittings and ornaments are cited in the works of Galdós, Mariano de Cavia, Azorín and Ramón Gómez de la Serna.
1900
The candelabra of “Tosca”
On the occasion of the premiere of the opera “Tosca” at the Teatro Real in 1900, Lhardy lent its wrought-silver candelabra for the performances and served the opening-night buffet.
Japanese Room
Conspiracies and conclaves
Of all Lhardy's dining rooms, the one that holds the most secrets of Spanish history is the Japanese Room, where conspiracies and conclaves of every kind unfolded. It was General Primo de Rivera's favourite corner for private meetings of ministers and figures of the dictatorship and, by contrast, it was here that the appointment of Niceto Alcalá Zamora as president of the Republic was decided.
But the atmosphere of this exotic room also preserves more frivolous memories, such as that of the seductive cabaret singer Consuelo Bello, “La Fornarina”, who came to be the crowning attraction of Madrid in the first quarter of the twentieth century, in whose firmament shone such dazzling stars of the light variety stage as La Goya and La Chelito.
La Fornarina, who had triumphed in a little theatre that was also called El Salón Japonés, liked to gather with friends in this Lhardy dining room to celebrate her successes.
A double banquet
Deluxe edition and budget edition
One of the most curious events of this era was the tribute banquet to the Madrid devotee Ramón Gómez de la Serna, held in two versions: one at Lhardy and the other at “El Oro del Rhin”. According to the affinities and rivalries of the organisers, the guests split between the two establishments on the same day. The chroniclers, borrowing publishing parlance, spoke of a deluxe edition (Lhardy) and a budget edition (El Oro).
Theatre
A tribute to Ermete Novelli
A tribute was also paid to the Italian actor Ermete Novelli, who performed in our country at the Teatro de la Comedia, triumphing with “Los domadores” (The Tamers), a play by Sellés.
1943
The end-of-century dinner
In 1943 the theatre impresario Conrado Bianco organised, in Lhardy's Isabelline Room, the so-called “end-of-century dinner”, a recreation of the one held in 1899, to which guests had to come dressed in nineteenth-century attire and at which it was agreed, under penalty of a twenty-duro fine, not to speak of any matter of the current century.
1901
The Madrid Philharmonic Society is born
The Madrid Philharmonic Society was born in 1901 from a letter written by Agustín Lhardy, the engineer Félix Arteta and the pharmacist Félix Borrell, during a tertulia held at Lhardy in which they declared to the personalities of the day their intention to found that society.
1903
Two banquets for Ramón y Cajal
In 1903 the First International Congress of Medicine was held at Madrid's Teatro Real in homage to the histologist and Nobel laureate Santiago Ramón y Cajal. During the congress, Lhardy served two banquets.
1944
A gala dinner for Manolete
Manuel Rodríguez “Manolete”, one of the most fondly remembered legends of bullfighting, was honoured with a gala dinner in 1944.
Sound cinema
An after-dinner chat founds the CEA studios
From an after-dinner conversation at Lhardy came the happy idea of founding the CEA film studios (Cinematografía Española y Americana). Among those present who decided to join the professionals of sound cinema were Jacinto Benavente, Carlos Arniches, the Álvarez Quintero brothers, Manuel Linares, Pedro Muñoz Seca, Ignacio Luca de Tena and others.
Letters
Baroja and Azorín honoured
Baroja and Azorín were splendidly honoured by the Spanish booksellers at one and the same banquet.
1950s
The tertulias of the fifties
From the 1950s onwards, tertulias proliferated around figures of Spanish life, most notably Enrique Chicote (on the theatrical arts), José María Sacristán (humanistic), Domingo Ortega (bullfighting), Antonio Rodríguez-Moñino (literary), Jiménez Quesada (medical), Pedro Sainz Rodríguez, Julio Camba, José María Alfaro and the Marquis of Desio (eminently gastronomic).
1960s–70s
Scientific eminences and the Brotherhood of the Good Table
In its more recent history, the tertulias of the sixties stand out, gathering scientific eminences of the rank of doctors Marañón, Pozuelo, López-Ibor, Rof Carballo and Jiménez Quesada, among others. In the seventies, the Count of Los Andes, the Marquis of Desio, Víctor de la Serna, Rafael Ansón and a group of enthusiasts of the pleasures of taste chose Lhardy to found the Cofradía de la Buena Mesa (Brotherhood of the Good Table).
16 January 1986
The tribute that could not be: Tierno Galván
On 16 January 1986 everything was ready for a tribute to Enrique Tierno Galván, a singular figure of Spanish culture and historic mayor of Madrid during the political transition. That very day Don Tierno passed away and the tribute had to be cancelled.
150th anniversary
A tribute to Queen Sofía
On the completion of a century and a half of Lhardy's history, Queen Sofía was honoured in its rooms with a tribute convened by Agustín Rodríguez Sahagún, Mayor of Madrid, attended by José Prat, historic socialist and president of the Ateneo de Madrid, Gustavo Villapalos, rector of the Complutense University, and numerous other academics.
30 June 1992
The restaurant “with the most culture within its walls”
On 30 June 1992 Lhardy joined the celebrations of Madrid's Cultural Capital status with a banquet attended by more than four hundred personalities of Madrid's arts, letters and journalism. Among others, the restaurant “with the most culture within its walls” (as the press put it) welcomed Antonio Buero Vallejo, Francisco Umbral, F. Vizcaíno Casas, J. L. López Aranguren, José M. Alfaro, José Prat, Alberto Schommer, Juan Gyenes, and a very long list besides.
San Isidro
The tertulias of the Fair
For three years, Lhardy revived the traditional tertulias of the San Isidro Fair, in the image of those led by Antonio Díaz-Cañabate and Domingo Ortega in the fifties.
March 2001
The 10 bullfighters of the 20th century
In March 2001 the election of the “10 bullfighters of the 20th century” was held, the finalists being: José Gómez Ortega “Gallito”, Juan Belmonte, Domingo Ortega, Manuel Rodríguez “Manolete”, Antonio Ordóñez, Pepe Luis Vázquez, Santiago Martín “El Viti”, Antonio Bienvenida, Curro Romero and Paco Camino.
The jury was composed of José L. Suárez-Guanes, Carlos Abella, Ambrosio Aguado, Juan L. Cano, Andrés Fagalde, José L. González, Carlos Ilián, Manuel Molés, Juan Posada, Julio Stuyck, Joaquín Vidal, Javier Villán, Vicente Zabala and Carmen de Esteban.
In the romantic tradition of the new dining rooms
Lhardy, Madrid's historic and literary stage over the last two centuries, has undergone, on beginning the third century of its existence, a discreet expansion, with three rooms that increase its capacity and beauty within the romantic style of the house. Preserving the evocative atmosphere that miraculously survives at Lhardy, intact after so many years, has been a labour of acute sensitivity. These are spaces recovered from former auxiliary areas of the same building, and others developed on an adjoining floor.
I wish to make clear that nothing has been altered in the intangible realm of the Lhardy of always. A respectful decoration has created settings difficult to distinguish from Lhardy's other classic dining rooms, with “boiserie” friezes and fin-de-siècle plasterwork ceilings.
All the paintings displayed in these new rooms, except two by the master Palermo, are originals by Agustín Lhardy, the excellent Impressionist and owner of this house, a disciple of Haes and as remarkable a landscape painter as his friends Beruete and Regoyos.
With very good judgement, these dining rooms have been given names that recall the musical passion of Emilio and Agustín Lhardy, dedicating them to Sarasate, Gayarre and Tamberlick, regular companions of the romantic restaurant's gatherings. This musical nuance, removed from other partial associations with protagonists of history, lends great character to the old collections of Lhardy.
