Restaurante El Almendro

Restaurante El Almendro is considered the best traditional restaurant in Plasencia, a historic cathedral city in northern Extremadura's Ambroz valley where the quality of local cooking relies on the pastoral produce of the surrounding sierra. Located on Calle Trujillo, it draws a consistent local following that includes families from the city and visitors from across the province who make the journey specifically to eat here. The kitchen's strongest suit is braised and slow-cooked meat: chanfaina de arroz, the Extremaduran rice and offal preparation specific to this northern corner of the region, is one of the most accomplished versions in the province. Cordero asado — whole-roasted lamb — is available on Sundays and with prior request, representing the full pastoral tradition of the sierra: animals raised on surrounding hillsides, cooked for several hours until the skin crisps and the interior becomes yielding and fragrant. Migas de pan con pimentón, the breadcrumb preparation with Extremadura's distinctive smoked paprika from La Vera, arrives as a starter that is deceptively simple but technically demanding — El Almendro's version, with properly dried breadcrumbs fried with chorizo and pimentón de la Vera, is a benchmark. Plasencia's position in the north of the region, close to the La Vera valley and the Sierra de Gredos, means its cooking has a slightly different character from Cáceres or Mérida: more influenced by mountain ingredients, richer, and with a strong cheese and charcuterie tradition from the northern sierra producers.