A chuletón is a large ribeye steak with the bone still in. These steaks are massive—over a kilo—and meant to be shared. In Spain, going out for a chuletón is much more than just dining out. It’s a social event, something to enjoy together with friends. Since the beginning of this year, ‘the guys’, Dani, Diego, and I have been going to El Chuleton from time to time. We’re all in the same boat, with kids around the same age (which is also how we know each other). The children go/went to the same school. They play soccer together, attend the same volleyball class, and we’re members of the same swimming club. We spend quite a few weekends together.

About once a month, we follow the same ritual. We leave from the square near where we all live and drive to the restaurant. We start with a beer and choose a huge cut of meat, anywhere between one and two kilos. The steak is prepared, and then served to us with a hot stone so we can do the final touches ourselves. Naturally, it’s accompanied by a good bottle of red wine. Then it’s time to eat and above all, to enjoy. We always go on Thursdays, because there’s always space and we don’t need to book or wait.

Finally, a coffee to wrap things up, and that’s it again. We usually spend around 50/60 euros per person, but oh, it’s worth every cent. Sometimes we talk about trying a different restaurant, just to see what the chuletón is like elsewhere. But we haven’t dared to make the switch yet, and we stick to our trusted tradition at ‘our’ restaurant. I suspect the atmosphere and quality we’ve found at El Chuleton would be hard to beat, and that changing locations would almost certainly be a letdown.