Nicolás Marcos is an old acquaintance of this section, of which we have already written previously when he launched the restaurant Sagrario Tradición in Madrid. After abandoning that business due to disagreements between the partners, this restless hotelier and wine man headed back to his origins, going to settle in September 2021 in the historic center of Toro.
The city of Zamora, located on the banks of the Duero River, preserves numerous monuments (the fortress, the collegiate church of Santa María La Mayor, the monastery of Sancti Spiritus el Real with its museum of sacred art…) that reveal its greatness as a center of political power. , religious and military during the Middle Ages. Once rich in pottery and agriculture, its more than 8,000 inhabitants now live mainly from tourism and wine, with a designation of origin created in 1932 that covers 62 wineries and 8,000 hectares of vineyards.
Nicolás’s paternal family were former muleteers with a small heritage of vineyards that survived the phylloxera. Starting in the 1970s, they dedicated themselves to making cured sheep cheeses (Industrial Quesera Toresana) and also acquired the Luis Mateos winery, one of the pioneers of the DO together with Frutos Villar and Fariña. Nico grew up in this environment of Zamorano cheeses and strong morapios of the local Tinta de Toro variety, soon becoming infected with his grandmother’s skills in cooking stews.
During his university years in Valladolid, our protagonist was already doing a hospitality internship at the casino in that town. And that duality between cooking and wine has always accompanied him, as he passed through the legendary Mesón La Fragua run by Jose Antonio Garrote -which since 1977 had held the first Michelin star in the northern Meseta- or when he set up the Terra winery with some colleagues. Hard.
His most daring professional adventure would come later, going to make natural wines in Cangas del Narcea (Asturias), growing old Mencía and Albarin grape vines in that mountainous area in the interior of the Principality, under the Dominio del Capercaillie label. He spent more than ten years there, preaching in the desert, until for personal reasons he went to work in Barcelona, ??as a kitchen assistant at the Dos Palillos temple of Asian fusion, run by Albert Raurich (formerly El Bulli).
After his brief stay in Madrid, Nicolás decided to return to Toro to start his own project there, forming a team with his partner, Pilar Ramírez, a florist and interior decorator who had already collaborated with him on Sagrario Tradición. The name of the new venue, Babú, is a nod to the Song of Uncle Babú: a classic of Torosian folklore, by an anonymous author with undeniable popular roots, which is usually sung at weddings and grape harvest festivals.
Babú occupies the ground floor of an exposed brick building from the early 17th century that housed the Casa Pardo regional inn for decades. Built from below, starting from the underground winery -today prepared to host private events-, the entire house was rehabilitated by Santiago Pardo, an architect based in Madrid, and Nicolás must already have something in mind -at least, in the subconscious- when, in 2005, he acquired the upper house above the restaurant.
Wooden beams, terracotta floors, antique furniture, decoration full of tasteful details, the cozy place includes high and low tables without a tablecloth and a bar to eat in front of that open kitchen from which stews made over low heat and seasonal dishes with local products as the undisputed protagonist. Respectful cuisine and little intervention, like those wines without make-up that make up the winery.
Babú’s culinary proposal is perhaps not designed to seduce the native clientele. But it has a lot of appeal for gourmets from abroad, who come to this region with harsh winters, hot summers and extreme weather in search of authenticity.
And authenticity begins with the suppliers: José Peneke, who runs a butcher shop in the Plaza Mayor and serves them a remarkable genre, from the matachana black pudding to discarded cuts such as guitar or Aliste’s sobre rib; most of the vegetables and fruits they offer come from their own garden in Villafranca de Duero; As for the fish, since there is no coast in Zamora, Nico has made use of his Asturian contacts from his time in Cangas to bring daily cuttlefish from Gijón, tuna, anchovy or whatever comes up depending on the season.
With these expectations we arrived at Babú, one midday in August, to put ourselves in the hands of the host and discover what is going on in this endearing corner of the Duero plain. In our memory we kept some of Marcos’ addictive recipes that we had the opportunity to discover in the Villa y Corte, such as those torreznos with piparras and spring onions, the pickled partridge, the artisan sausages made with tongue, veal breast or wild boar, grilled sardines with a lemon thyme parsley or some championship tripe, some of which are currently on the changing menu at Babú.
To start, one of the best cured meats we’ve ever tasted and some seasoned tomatoes, from their own garden and barely seasoned. Then, the joy of a prawn tartare from sustainable aquaculture, raised in Medina del Campo (Valladolid), bursting with flavor and freshness, happily seasoned to enliven the taste buds. Afterwards, some stewed snails with a wine reduction, take bread and dip. What a party!
When it came time for the iodized flavors, in Babú the catches from the nearby rivers (tench, carp, barbel…) are privileged and Nicolás had planned to surprise us with some stewed crabs of the native señal variety, which are one of the signature dishes of the home. But, in the absence of these, we had to settle for another must such as those Zamorana-style frog legs, prepared in this case without the mandatory green pepper and with a totally addictive background of Biscay. On my next visit, I will not miss any of the cod dishes, which is a very plateau ingredient and is never missing from the Babú menu, whether in the form of brandade, cocochas or in that typical preparation of the region that caters to the evocative name of cod a la tranca.
But it’s time to talk about the interior dishes, which in these parts are religion due to the proximity of Tierra de Campos, its mushrooms, its pigeons and its game. In the heat of heat, the boss preferred to present us with a fabulous Flori-style free-range chicken -his mother-, stewed in a cocotte as her grandmother did, who emigrated to France in the 60s and returned with that handling of iron pans . Another unforgettable bite. For dessert, a creamy Zamorano cheese cake, which honors those fantastic Castilian sheep’s milk.
Small cellar but very well selected wines from small producers with some biodynamic or natural treasures. If you trust us, try what the owner makes, who has his wine project, provisionally named Bendita Filoxera, with a fun and very gastronomic rosé petnat. Casual but attentive service. Different spaces for everyone to choose where to feel comfortable, including outdoor tables with views of the Arco del Reloj. Prices more than reasonable. A place that makes a difference with the surrounding kitchen of jack, horse and king and that fully justifies the detour.
