Marzipan
Toledo’s culinary scene is likely most well-known for its marzipan! Marzipan is a dessert made with sugar or honey, egg whites and almond meal, and is used as the base for a dessert, as a filling, or as a stand-alone that can be shaped and colored to look like miniature fruits!. Many cities across Europe claim marzipan as a specialty, with Toledo among them. The legend of marzipan in Toledo dates back to the invasions of Spain by the Almohads (who were Berber Muslims from North Africa). Many people in the southern Castilian region took refuge in Toledo, where they faced famine due to an existing food scarcity and the large increase in the population. However, the Church there had large swaths of land that grew large reserves of almonds. The population thought to mix the almonds with the fruit and sugar they had, creating marzipan and alleviating their hunger.
Marzipan is so important to Toledo that there were three separate clauses dedicated to it by Toledo’s Confectioner’s Guild in the 1600s! Santo Tomé is one of the original manufacturers of marzipan in Toledo, still going strong since its establishment in 1856, and has kept records of the history of marzipan (all accessible on their website)!
You can get brunch (even if you’re gluten-free!), purchase boxes of marzipan carefully crafted to look like miniature fruit, learn more about the history of marzipan, read the marzipan clauses, and visit the largest marzipan Don Quixote in the world (measuring over 11 feet in height and weighing over 1,300 pounds) at the Santo Tomé confectionery.
Carcamusa
Carcamusa is a specialty of Toledo: it’s a pork stew with vegetables such as tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, garlic, and peas, and the tomato-based sauce in it is typically made moderately spicy from the chorizo. It is usually served as a tapa with crusty bread. Though it is a popular dish, the origins of the stew are unclear: most sources attribute it to the restaurant Bar Ludeña in the mid-20th century, but the name of the dish is still speculated about. Bar Ludeña is still a very popular place to eat, and with affordable prices, it’s a favorite for any visiting student—but be sure to show up early, because its popularity often means that the restaurant is jam-packed!
Manchego cheese
Manchego cheese is a delicious cheese made from sheep’s milk, aged from 60 days up to 2 years. It has a firm, buttery texture, with a developed, distinctive flavor and nutty undertones. The Manchego Cheese Museum in the heart of historic Toledo is dedicated to the history and production of Manchego cheese. There’s also a tasting room in the museum, where you can taste the best Manchego cheese varieties on offer, paired with the best wines of the Mancha region!
Where to eat?
Toledo is also home to many food markets, with Mercado de San Agustín one of the most well-known. The Mercado de San Agustín is a 23-stall multi-level market that offers a variety of cuisines, both local and foreign, from Manchego cheese salads to Japanese food. This market offers quality food, products, and even tastings, cooking classes, and guided tours of the marketplace—you can’t miss out, it’s a perfect place to grab a bite to eat between classes, sit down for a longer meal, or stock up for the week!
One of the premier restaurants in Toledo is the Restaurante Victor Sánchez-Beato, founded and operated by Chef Victor Sánchez-Beato after he returned, inspired, from a trip to Japan. The restaurant is so small that it can only fit 16 diners (by design), leading to a very personal dining experience that the chef describes as the diner being the “protagonist” of the experience. It is on the pricey side at 62 euros per person, so while it may not be possible to eat there every day, it is definitely worth going once for the experience!