O Palleiro do Pé do Forno Restaurant

The restaurant of O Palleiro do Pé do Forno is in Orellán, the village above Las Médulas, about 2 km from the viewpoint. It is the dining room of the rural hotel of the same name, seating about thirty, with large windows onto the Bierzo valley. It is run by Isabel, the cook, who mixes Bierzo cooking with French technique and a nod or two to the place's Roman past.

Bierzo, Rome and France on the same menu

The base is Bierzo cooking, market-based and seasonal: vegetables from nearby gardens, local mushrooms, game, artisan bread and home-made desserts, with wines from the Bierzo D.O. The house also works with recipes from Apicius's Roman cookbook, which it has taken to fairs such as the Roman Gold fair in Vila Pouca de Aguiar, in Portugal; lomo a la romana (loin Roman-style) is the dish from that side of the menu.

What to order

The starters are generous and for sharing: local appetisers, a board of Veigadarte cheeses, leek salad, mushroom baskets or peppers stuffed with salt cod. The dishes customers order most are lacón (cured pork shoulder) with Bierzo peppers, scrambled eggs with cecina, pickled partridge, roe deer stew and the house-style salt cod. For a main, oxtail or pork knuckle.

Three dishes are made only to order, when you book: botillo del Bierzo, oven-roast lamb and free-range chicken. The desserts are all home-made: cheesecake, walnut tart, tiramisu, chocolate or lemon mousse and chestnut pudding.

The average price of the menu is around €30 to €35. The menu changes with the season.

The wine

The cellar leans mainly towards Bierzo: mencía reds from Raúl Pérez, Martínez Yebra, Dominio de Tares or Losada, and godello whites, with a Ribera and a Rioja for those who prefer them.

Lunch and dinner, with booking

Lunches from 13:30 to 15:15 and dinners from 21:00 to 22:15. The website does not publish closing days. The house recommends booking in advance, especially at weekends and in the season of visits to Las Médulas: call 649 711 439 or write to [email protected]. If you need gluten-free or lactose-free food, say so when booking.

Before lunch

The Orellán viewpoint and galleries are in the same village: go up in the morning and come down for lunch. For the afternoon, the Valiñas trail takes you through the landscape from the inside. If you stay overnight, the O Palleiro hotel is in the same house.