Chef Toño Pérez and his partner José Polo opened Atrio in 1986, overseeing its eventual transformation from a bourgeois French-style joint in an ugly downtown block to a hyper-chic restaurant-with-rooms in an old-town palacio. The accolades for Atrio’s stunning redesign by architects Tuñón + Mansilla, to house José Polo’s immense wine list (rated best in the world by the Wine Spectator for several years running), and for the rooms above the restaurant (doubles from €280 room-only), hung with original artworks by Tàpies and Warhol, have been unceasing.

In Cáceres, I’m greeted by José Polo and Toño Pérez, the owners of Atrio, one of 13 restaurants in Spain (and the only one in Extremadura) with three Mich­elin stars. Ask locals about the couple, both in their early 60s, and you’ll hear about the attention that their establishment has drawn to the city since it opened in 1986. The ­restaurant has rooms, too, but the pair have now spent £6 million on a new hotel in the Paredes-Saavedra palace, a 15th-century nobleman’s home across the road.

Lighter—and more refined—fare can be found at Atrio, the two-Michelin-star restaurant by Toño Pérez that single-handedly put Cáceres on the culinary map with its artfully composed plates and planetarium-like bodega, an architectural stunner complete with a backlit Château d’Yquem wine cave.

Located in the heart of the Old Town, Atrio Cáceres has a rich heritage. Recognized for its Michelin-starred dining and curated art collection, it presents an excellent stay for travelers seeking sophistication in a historical setting.

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Finding a local restaurant with creative modern cooking had been a challenge, too – despite the towering presence of Atrio, Juan Antonio Pérez and José Polo’s two-Michelin-starred restaurant with rooms in Cáceres, which for three decades has been a beacon of fine- dining in Extremadura. The region’s traditional food is honest-to-goodness rustic stuff, which stands or falls on the exceptional quality of the local beef and lamb; Ibérico hams, cheeses such as the gooey Torta del Casar and smoked-pepper pimentón, the signature Extremeño spice. If you’re after rib-sticking plates of migas (fried breadcrumbs) or caldereta (a rich goat or lamb casserole), you’re spoiled for choice.

To be fair, there was already plenty to rave about: The city is home to one of Spain’s most exclusive design hotels, Atrio, presided over by Cáceres-born partners (in both business and love) Toño Pérez and José Polo. Atrio’s rooms are dramatically lit and bear original works by Warhol, Tapiès, Ruff, and Saura. Downstairs, Pérez runs a two-Michelin-star kitchen where Extremaduran delicacies like lomo doblao (Ibérico pork loin confited lard) and torta del Casar (a creamy, grassy ewe’s-milk cheese) are woven into tasting menus that will have you crunching on a tapioca “butterfly” filled with salmon mousse one minute and braised partridge draped with black truffles the next.

But it is also a hotel which we call La Casa; it is an Eatery in Torre de Sande; and now we have added a Casa Palacio: Paredes Saavedra. It is a journey that has lasted for more than thirty years in which past, present and future are woven together, beating in the historic center of the city of Cáceres, among stones, silence and culture. It is a commitment to the conservation and development of the environment based on the pleasure of receiving all those who visit us.

After a brief siesta, I head to Atrio, a three-Michelin-starred restaurant inside a 15th-century palace that’s been on my bucket list for almost a decade. Dinner begins with an egg poached with olive oil, served with wild mushrooms and asparagus. Next is the main dish I’ve been dreaming about: lomo doblado, a regional specialty of Ibérico pork loin folded in half and then cured, the compression of the meat lending a buttery texture that melts in my mouth.

At Atrio, a 14-room hotel carved from another former palace and home to its Michelin-two star restaurant run by Jose Polo and his husband, chef Tono Perez, create stunning dishes. Atrio also boasts what’s hailed as the best wine cellar in all Spain: 3,400 labels, including 50 astronomically-priced Mouton Rothschilds and a whole room of Chateau d’Yquem, perhaps the most-coveted wine in the world.

One of the most surprising and well-hidden finds in Cáceres was Atrio, a three-Michelin-star restaurant, and its sister restaurant, Torre de Sande Eatery. Tapas (small plates) are famous in Spain, but dining happens very late by American standards. Extremadura’s highlights include Iberico ham from pigs that feast on sweet acorns and fabulous cheeses, especially Torta del Casar.

Any gourmet visiting Cáceres, indeed Extremadura, will probably head for the renowned two Michelin-star hotel-restaurant Atrio. An unashamedly Modernist building in Cáceres's atmospheric medieval centre, Atrio has been at the heart of the town's gastro-economy for almost 30 years. A tasting menu brought us plate after plate of colourful confections with intriguing flavours.

There's Atrio, with its two Michelin stars and three Repsol Guide suns. The restaurants Torre de Sande and Javier Martín in Cáceres and Marchivirito and Galaxia in Badajoz have also been awarded with one Sol. Then there is the recognition for Cáceres as Spanish Gastronomic Capital in 2015 and Mérida as Ibero-American Capital of Gastronomic Culture in 2016.

Atrio Restaurante Hotel is conveniently located in the heart of Cáceres, just a short walk from the impressive Cathedral. This 5-star hotel consistently receives excellent ratings from guests for its exceptional service and facilities. The hotel offers a range of comfortable and well-appointed rooms, including suites with separate living areas.

If you are looking for another splurge dinner, Michelin star-recipient Atrio* offers an upscale, date-night atmosphere and yummy Mediterranean cuisine. **El Figon de Eustaquio* is a long-standing restaurant in Plaza de San Juan and has been operating since 1947. Bring serious cash to all these places, because they are not cheap.

Se ha ganado su excelente reputación a lo largo de los años y, hoy por hoy, es la bandera culinaria de la milenaria ciudad extremeña. En la actualidad puede presumir de contar con tres estrellas Michelin y tres soles en la guía Repsol. Este templo del buen comer y del mejor beber ha sido reconocido por su diseño y su paisaje.

At Atrio (two Michelin stars) in historic Cáceres, we sampled the highest of haute cuisine with a 13-course, three-hour tasting lunch. The dishes here were a combination of creativity, art, taste and even humor. One dessert featured a rich custard, yogurt ice cream and coconut foam looking a lot like a fried egg.

Atrio (Avenida de España 30) is the most well known and lives up to its Michelin stars. Torre de Sande (Calle de Condes 3) has large round tables, a courtyard lorded by the resident peacock, and Extremadurian classics. Start the meal with a plentiful cheese plate and skip the overblown desserts.

Now with three Michelin stars, Atrio is by some stretch the region’s finest restaurant. Chef Toño Pérez marries the techniques of avant garde cuisine with hyper-local ingredients and traditional Extremaduran flavors. There is no à la carte, just a tasting menu that evolves with the…

We have reservations at a local hero, the two Michelin-starred Atrio, a serene beauty with a remarkable wine cellar. It’s a oenophile’s fantasy with 50 vintages of Mouton Rothschild, a dizzying 75 of Yquem stored in its own special room and every single Burgundy Grand Cru.

The restaurant Atrio (Plaza San Mateo, 1) deserves special mention in any guide to eating in Cáceres, as it has been an important point of reference both in the local and national culinary scene since it was opened by the culinary couple Toño Pérez and José Polo in 1986.

More sophisticated fare is available in the city’s most famous restaurant, the Michelin-starred Atrio. And if you want to try the famous convent pastries, the sweets from the Convent of San Pablo are very well-known. Cáceres also has an interesting cultural life.

Spending a Monday at Atrio can be one of the best ways to start the week. Its tasting menu revolves around the Iberian pig, which is present even in the desserts, assembling the ham with the chocolate. Dining at this award-winning restaurant

Atrio is centrally located, 200 metres from Cáceres Cathedral. It features a seasonal alberca swimming pool, free Wi-Fi and a 2-Michelin-starred restaurant. Its chic, air-conditioned rooms are soundproofed and heated.

The two-Michelin-starred restaurant and Relais & Châteaux hotel is worth not only a detour (in Michelin speak), but also a bucket-list trip—at least for lovers of food, wine and architecture.

That’s it – buen provecho folks – until you find out about Atrio, the two Michelin star restaurant in the hotel of that same – an absolute jewel, pure indulgence, not to be missed.

Firstly it's the only restaurant on this list that holds Michelin Stars (two of them), and secondly because in terms of price it's a fair distance above the others.

For it is here in the kitchen at Atrio under the masterful alchemy of chef Toño Perez, that Spain’s ubiquitous jamon iberico is elevated to heavenly dimensions.

The two Michelin starred restaurant Atrio, in the Plaza San Mateo not only boasts incredible cuisine, but their wine cellar is unrivalled.