Pedro Gallego Gallego
Chef and co-founder of Casa Mortero, a traditional Castilian restaurant in Madrid recommended in the Michelin Guide and by the Guía Repsol.
- Restaurants
- 1
Pedro Gallego Gallego is the chef and co-founder, with Carmen Pereda, of Casa Mortero, a Castilian home-cooking restaurant he opened in Madrid's Cortes neighbourhood in 2020. Named after his grandmother, La Iluminada, the restaurant reworks her traditional stews and escabeches with modern technique and is recommended in the Michelin Guide and by the Guía Repsol. Gallego, from Salamanca, spent roughly 15 years working in Madrid kitchens (including Sin Sombrero and Las chicas, los chicos y los maniquís) before founding Casa Mortero.
From @pgallegogallego on Instagram
Hoy recibimos la placa #bibgourmand de @michelinguide en #madridfusion2022 ✨ para @casamortero - Felices de volver a los eventos presenciales y disfrutar de este momento con el resto de compañeros 🥂 Gracias por recibirnos @mahou_es
🔥 GUISOS COMO LOS DE TU ABUELA EN PLENO CENTRO DE MADRID 🔥 Se llama @casamortero y es una auténtica casa de comidas cuya carta se se inspira en la cocina tradicional española, utilizando técnicas de cocción lentas y una materia prima de calidad. Detrás de este proyecto están @pgallegogallego y @car
Biography
Early years
Gallego is from Salamanca. Before opening his own restaurant he spent about 15 years working in Madrid restaurants, including Sin Sombrero (part of the TriCiClo group) and Las chicas, los chicos y los maniquís, and later completed a master's degree in gastronomic advisory and restaurant management at Universidad Rey Juan Carlos.
Career
In 2020, with Carmen Pereda as co-founder, Gallego opened Casa Mortero on Calle Zorrilla in Madrid's Cortes neighbourhood. The project began with location scouting in late 2019; the lease was signed on 1 February 2020, just weeks before pandemic lockdowns halted construction, and the restaurant finally opened that September. The restaurant takes its name from his grandmother, known as La Iluminada, who sold escabeche made from barrel-cured fish in the inland village of Aldeadávila de la Ribera around 1950; Casa Mortero recovers her Castilian recipes (stews, escabeches, cures, marinades and grilled preparations) with standardised modern technique.
Philosophy
Gallego describes the food as "recetas que ya tienen solera" (recipes that already have history), cooked with traditional methods: "a fuego lento, a la brasa" (slow-cooked, over the coals). He has said the goal is for the experience to feel like "eating at grandmother's house," with no fixed rules for how a dish should be eaten.
Restaurants
Pedro Gallego Gallego in our guides
Editorial guides featuring Pedro Gallego Gallego’s restaurants.
Accolades
- ·Michelin Guide recommendation: Casa Mortero
- ·Repsol Recomendado: Casa Mortero
Frequently asked
Does Pedro Gallego Gallego have a Michelin star?
No. Casa Mortero, the Madrid restaurant he runs, is recommended in the Michelin Guide and holds Repsol's Recomendado distinction, but has no Michelin star or Repsol Sol.
What restaurant does Pedro Gallego Gallego run?
He is chef and co-founder of Casa Mortero in Madrid's Cortes neighbourhood, which he opened in September 2020 with Carmen Pereda.
What kind of food does Casa Mortero serve?
Traditional Castilian home cooking (stews, escabeches, cures and grilled dishes), based on recipes from Gallego's grandmother, reworked with modern technique.
Where did Pedro Gallego Gallego train before Casa Mortero?
He spent about 15 years working in Madrid restaurants, including Sin Sombrero and Las chicas, los chicos y los maniquís, and holds a master's degree in gastronomic advisory and restaurant management from Universidad Rey Juan Carlos.
When did Casa Mortero open?
In September 2020. Gallego and Carmen Pereda signed the lease in February 2020, just weeks before pandemic lockdowns halted construction on the space.
What is Casa Mortero named after?
Pedro Gallego Gallego's grandmother, known as La Iluminada, who sold escabeche in the village of Aldeadávila de la Ribera around 1950.