"Commanding a waitlist longer than most of Madrid's Michelin-starred restaurants—bank on at least three months—Cruz Blanca de Vallecas is a modest tavern on the outskirts of town. It's also the improbable home of Madrid's most iconic dish: cocido madrileño, a boiled dinner of chickpeas, vegetables, and assorted sausages and meats. Chef Antonio Cosmen's rendition is downright transcendent, with creamy garbanzo beans from Arévalo—he buys the town's entire crop—smoky chorizo, and a jamón-scented broth so rich it jellifies at room temperature. (Another famed version can be found at Sylkar.)" - Benjamin Kemper