Restaurant in Madrid, Spain
Handmade pasta, no theatre required.
Gioia is one of the few places in Madrid where traditionally made Piedmontese pasta, built on a family recipe, is the actual focus. The Michelin Plate (2025) and a 4.6 Google rating across 1,000-plus reviews confirm consistent quality. At €€€, with two tasting menus including a truffle-centred format, it is the right booking for food-focused diners who want Italian with real sourcing depth.
Yes, and here is the direct answer: if you want handmade pasta built on a Piedmontese family recipe, Gioia is one of the few places in Madrid where that is actually what you get. This is not a generic Italian restaurant drawing on convenience suppliers. Chef Davide Bonato has built the menu around traditionally produced pasta and, for the explorer who cares where ingredients come from, that sourcing commitment is precisely what justifies the €€€ price point. Michelin awarded the restaurant a Plate in 2025, a recognition that signals consistent cooking quality rather than theatrical ambition, and Google reviewers back that up with a 4.6 rating across more than 1,000 reviews.
Gioia sits on Calle de San Bartolomé 23 in Madrid's Centro district, a neighbourhood that mixes residential blocks with late-night bar streets. The name translates as happiness or joy in Italian, which is either charming or a little on-the-nose depending on your tolerance for that kind of thing. What matters more is the physical experience: the restaurant is positioned as an intimate dining room rather than a large-format operation, which means you are unlikely to feel processed through a high-volume service. There is no seat count in the public record, but the scale of the space reads as suited to couples and small groups rather than large parties.
The à la carte is the entry point for most diners, but the real depth is in the two tasting menus. The first, called Tuber, focuses entirely on truffle and is framed as a sensorial and interactive format built around that single prized ingredient. The second, labelled Vuela (which roughly translates as fly or soar), moves outward from the Italian core and brings in flavours from other cultures, offering a more expansive, global-minded progression. If you are an explorer who wants context and layering rather than a standard three-course Italian meal, Vuela is the stronger choice. If truffle is your primary interest, Tuber delivers that with focus.
The distinction Michelin draws attention to is the pasta itself: traditionally made, based on a family recipe, and executed in the Piedmontese tradition. Piedmont is one of Italy's most ingredient-serious regions, home to white truffle, Barolo, and a pasta culture built on egg-rich doughs and slow technique. Finding that lineage faithfully reproduced in Madrid is not as simple as it sounds. Most Italian restaurants in the city, even good ones, treat pasta as one element among many. At Gioia, the pasta is the technical foundation around which the menu is designed. That specificity is what makes the €€€ pricing defensible: you are paying for a supply chain and a craft tradition, not just a plate of food.
Tuber menu reinforces this sourcing logic. Truffle-centred menus live or die by the quality of the ingredient, and a restaurant that has built an entire dedicated menu around it is making a public commitment to sourcing standards. If the truffle were mediocre, the menu would not exist.
Gioia works well for a food-focused couple looking for a special dinner that does not require the full theatrics of a four-star tasting menu. It also works for anyone specifically seeking quality Italian cooking in Madrid, a category where the competition is thinner than you might expect in a city of this size. For restaurant explorers interested in regional Italian traditions rather than generic pan-Italian menus, the Piedmontese focus gives the evening a clear identity. It is also a reasonable choice for a special occasion at a price point that sits below the €€€€ tier occupied by Madrid's headline fine-dining destinations.
It is less suited to large groups wanting a lively, informal dinner, or to diners whose priority is Spanish cuisine. Madrid has excellent options in both those directions. For fine Spanish cooking at the leading level, Coque and DiverXO operate in a different category entirely, both in format and investment. Gioia is for diners who specifically want Italian done with precision and provenance.
Booking difficulty at Gioia is rated Easy. You do not need to plan weeks in advance or set an alarm for a reservation release window. That said, booking ahead is still sensible for weekend evenings, particularly if you want the tasting menu format rather than à la carte. Hours and booking method are not listed in the public record, so check current availability directly through the restaurant. The address is C. de San Bartolomé 23, Centro, Madrid 28004, which places it in a walkable central location.
| Venue | Price | Booking Difficulty | Format | Pearl Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gioia | €€€ | Easy | À la carte + tasting menus | You are here |
| La Piperna | – | – | Italian | View |
| Manifesto 13 | – | – | Contemporary | View |
| Ozio Gastronómico | – | – | Contemporary | View |
| DiverXO | €€€€ | Hard | Progressive tasting | View |
| Coque | €€€€ | Moderate | Spanish creative tasting | View |
If the Piedmontese pasta tradition at Gioia appeals to you, it is worth knowing how this style sits in a broader context. At the leading end of Italian fine dining internationally, restaurants like 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana in Hong Kong and cenci in Kyoto demonstrate how Italian sourcing discipline travels. Gioia operates at a different scale and price tier, but the underlying commitment to provenance connects the same lineage. For context on Spain's wider fine-dining scene, the country's Michelin-recognised restaurants range from coastal destinations like Aponiente in El Puerto de Santa María to the Basque powerhouses of Arzak and Martin Berasategui, and the Catalan landmark El Celler de Can Roca. Gioia occupies a quieter lane in that national conversation, but it fills a genuine gap in what Madrid's restaurant scene offers.
For a broader view of where to eat, stay, and drink in Madrid, see our full Madrid restaurants guide, our full Madrid hotels guide, our full Madrid bars guide, our full Madrid wineries guide, and our full Madrid experiences guide.
Booking difficulty is Easy, so you do not need to plan weeks out for most nights. A few days ahead is sufficient for midweek; book a week in advance for Saturday evenings or if you specifically want a tasting menu slot. Specific hours are not in the public record, so confirm directly with the restaurant.
The restaurant reads as an intimate-scale venue suited to couples and small groups of up to four. Large party bookings are not confirmed as a standard offering, and the tasting menu format favours smaller tables. If you are planning a group of six or more, contact the restaurant directly to check availability and configuration.
Yes, particularly if the occasion calls for an Italian dinner with a clear sense of craft. The Tuber truffle tasting menu is the stronger choice for a celebratory meal: it has a focused, interactive format that gives the evening a distinct identity. At €€€, it costs less than Madrid's top-tier Spanish fine dining, which makes it a solid option when you want something considered but not a four-hour production.
The pasta is the reason to come, specifically the Piedmontese tradition behind it. If you book à la carte, prioritise the pasta courses over everything else. The two tasting menus, Tuber and Vuela, give you a more structured experience of what the kitchen does leading. The restaurant holds a Michelin Plate (2025) and a 4.6 Google rating across more than 1,000 reviews, which indicates consistent quality rather than a single outlier evening.
At €€€, yes, if Italian cooking with sourcing depth is what you are after. The Michelin Plate recognition and the consistently high Google score suggest the kitchen delivers reliably at this price tier. It is not a budget Italian dinner, but it is also not asking for a €€€€ commitment. If you are comparing value with other Italian options in Madrid, the Piedmontese pasta tradition and the truffle menu are specific differentiators that most competitors at this price do not offer. Restaurants like Azurmendi and Cocina Hermanos Torres operate at higher price tiers with broader ambitions, but Gioia's focused lane makes the comparison less direct.
For Italian in a similar register, La Piperna is the most direct comparison. For contemporary dining at a similar price, Manifesto 13 and Ozio Gastronómico are worth considering. If your budget extends to €€€€ and you want Madrid's headline Spanish creative cooking, Coque and DiverXO are in a different tier entirely. Gioia is the right choice when the specific requirement is Italian with provenance and craft, not just Italian as a category.
| Venue | Awards | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gioia | Gioia, which translates as “happiness” or “joy” in Italian, comes as a pleasant surprise as it is not easy to find traditionally made pasta (based on a family recipe) of the type made by Piedmontese chef Davide Bonato. The à la carte is complemented by two tasting meus: Tuber, dedicated to the truffle and offering a sensorial and interactive experience based around this prized ingredient; and “¡Vuela!”, which induces a sense of freedom and invites guests on a global journey to explore the flavours of other cultures.; Michelin Plate (2025) | €€€ | — |
| DiverXO | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| Coque | Michelin 2 Star | €€€€ | — |
| Deessa | Michelin 2 Star | €€€€ | — |
| Paco Roncero | Michelin 2 Star | €€€€ | — |
| Smoked Room | Michelin 2 Star | €€€€ | — |
How Gioia stacks up against the competition.
Booking difficulty at Gioia is rated Easy, so you do not need to plan weeks ahead or chase a release window. A few days' notice should be enough for most dates, though weekend evenings at a €€€ Michelin Plate restaurant in Centro can fill faster. Booking online or by walk-in on quieter midweek nights is a reasonable approach.
Gioia suits small groups well, particularly for a food-focused dinner where the tasting menu format works. For larger parties, confirm directly with the restaurant — at €€€ with two structured tasting menus (Tuber and ¡Vuela!), coordinating a group around a set format is simpler than navigating a large à la carte order. Groups of four to six are the practical ceiling for a cohesive experience here.
Yes, particularly if the occasion calls for dinner rather than a full-production event. The Tuber truffle tasting menu offers a structured, interactive format that gives the meal a clear arc without requiring the formality of a four-star room. At €€€ with a Michelin Plate recognition, it sits at a price point that feels considered rather than casual, which suits a birthday or anniversary dinner well.
The name means happiness or joy in Italian, and the kitchen is led by a Piedmontese chef whose pasta is built on a family recipe — that is the core of what you are booking. The à la carte runs alongside two tasting menus: Tuber, focused on truffle, and ¡Vuela!, which takes a broader international approach. Come for the pasta first; treat the tasting menus as the upgrade option.
At €€€ with a Michelin Plate and a genuine Piedmontese pasta tradition behind it, Gioia delivers honest value for what it charges — especially given how rarely this style of handmade pasta appears in Madrid at this level. It is not a bargain dinner, but it is not trading on atmosphere or brand; the food justifies the price. If you want a lower spend and are flexible on cuisine, there are cheaper Italian options in the city, but not with this pedigree.
For a bigger-budget tasting menu in Madrid, DiverXO (three Michelin stars) and Smoked Room (two Michelin stars) are the city's highest-profile options, though both operate at a different price point and format. Coque and Deessa offer high-end Spanish cuisine if Italian is not the priority. Paco Roncero sits in a similar prestige tier for contemporary Spanish cooking. None of these replicate Gioia's Piedmontese pasta focus, so if that specific style is what you want, there is no direct swap.
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