On Carrera de San Jerónimo, a two-minute walk from Puerta del Sol, there is a dark wooden shopfront that looks almost the same as it did in the 19th century. This is Lhardy, and it has been open in the same house since 1839.
A Swiss cook with a new name
The founder, Emilio Huguenin, was born in Montbéliard to Swiss parents. Before Madrid he had worked as a cook in Paris and run his own restaurant in Bordeaux, a city full of Spanish exiles at the time. In 1839, as many of those exiles were returning to Spain, he opened a pastry shop in Madrid. He took the name of his business and became known as Emilio Lhardy. The name was probably inspired by the Café Hardy in Paris.
A favourite of royalty
Lhardy quickly became a meeting point for Madrid's high society. In 1847 a 17-year-old Queen Isabel II paid it a visit incognito. In the 19th century the elegant ladies of Madrid came here for a cup of consommé, a clear and very hot broth, served with a small glass of Tokay wine.
An interior that hasn't changed
The shop was decorated by Rafael Guerrero, father of the famous actress María Guerrero. His two facing counters and the large mirror at the back, above the console with the silver urn for the consommé, are still there exactly as he designed them. After Emilio's death his son Agustín Lhardy, a well-known painter and engraver, took over the business.
💡 Food & Tapas Tip: no time for a full meal upstairs? Step into the shop at street level and have a cup of the famous consommé, served from the silver urn. It is perfect on a cold Madrid day.
Find this place and many more in the app
€4.99 one-time · lifetime access · no ads