A few weeks ago I heard about a place called Los Costilla that serves really authentic ribs and pulled pork sandwiches. One person came to mind: Gwildor…. I was just a toddler watching TV with my dad (not sure the movie was appropriate for my age, oops!) but I’ll never forget Gwildor drinking BBQ sauce and having ribs and chicken in Masters of the Universe. Since then, pork ribs covered in real American BBQ sauce have been one of my favorite dishes.
But back to the present. So, I went to Los Costilla on calle Ayala on a Friday night, wearing my best clothes for the occasion: shorts and a loose-fitting t-shirt. It was long enough to cover my belly—very important for a meal like this. We got there a little after 8 pm, a bit too early for Spaniards, but I just couldn’t wait any longer.
As soon as I saw the menu written over the counter, I started wondering what I was going to devour. Good thing we didn’t have to choose—Los Costilla offers a tasting menu (pictured below) that comes with four sanduches, fries, salad and a rack of fall-off-the-bone oven-baked pork ribs. And you can dip it all in a selection of their delicious homemade sauces.
It’s perfect for two people, you’ll most likely have to take some of it home.
Less talk, more food.
My first bite went to the Porchetta sandwich: Two different pork meat cuts—tender loin and rib—mixed with sweet onion and arugula. My second bite went to the pulled pork with coleslaw salad and BBQ sauce. No words.
Once my side of the table was empty, I finally got to meet my beloved ribs. Los Costilla do not play around. The meat just fell softly off the bone with a little help of my teeth.
Finally, as if that wasn’t enough, we ordered dessert: fried oreos topped with vanilla ice cream and caramel and chocolate syrup. Yeah, I walked home.
But before I did, I had the chance to talk to one of the owners, Juan. He and his friends started their adventure in 2014 in their hometown of Caracas, where they opened up a stand at a baseball stadium. It got so popular that they started expanding in Venezuela and now, lucky for us, in Madrid.
I can’t wait to go back to experience Los Costilla all over again, and have to try the fried chicken sandwich that Juan says is out of this world. I believe him.
Los Costilla:
- IG: @loscostillaes
- Web: https://www.loscostilla.es/
- Address: Calle Ayala, 81
- Metro: Goya (Line 2)
- Phone: +34 (913) 56 67 31
- Schedule:
- Sun – Wed: 1 pm – 4.30 pm & 8pm – 11pm
- Thur – Sat: 1 pm- 4.30 pm & 8 pm – 11.30 pm
