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Salmon Guru

Madrid

High energy bar with boundary-pushing fusion cocktails

Owner Diego Cabrera is often asked to explain his bar's name. While Guru was inherited from the previous tenant, Salmon was chosen because the fish swims upstream to spawn. Cabrera wanted to create a bar that pushed boundaries under the motto, "Only dead fish go with the flow." This guiding philosophy has proved successful: Salmon Guru is now a global brand with outposts in Dubai and Milan, where the latter was named the best new bar in Italy at the Roma Bar Show. The Madrid flagship, however, remains the salmon's natural habitat.

This particular kind of fish thrives in strange waters – the hallmarks of Salmon Guru are a high-energy atmosphere, loud music and very bold visuals. The main room plunges clients underwater, while the walls of the second room explode with comic book and manga-style illustrations. The last room has a louche Chinatown feel, reflecting Asia's significant influence at Salmon Guru. Unsurprisingly, the bar's inventive spirit is evident in the drinks.

Many of the cocktails emerge from Guru Lab, Cabrera's nearby research and development department. The Jardín de Dos Mundos, served in a heart-shaped double vessel, represents Madrid as a meeting place of cultures. It allows you to share a pickled onion and fried quinoa dirty martini and a pisco and pesto gimlet. For more cautious patrons, the iconic Old School Funny, an Iberian negroni aged for five years in a dynamic solera, remains a must-try. 

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