Spanish actor’s restaurant to close in Madrid

Javier Bardem’s family restaurant, La Bardemcilla in Madrid’s trendy Chueca district, is to close.

Jointly owned by Bardem and his sister, Monica, his brother Carlos, and his mother, Pilar, the restaurant opened 14 years ago serving tapas dishes named after the actor’s most famous roles and was decorated with film posters and family photos.

Monica Bardem, who managed the restaurant, announced this week it would close permanently ‘after two years of prolonged losses’.

The decision immediately sparked off criticism when it emerged the restaurant’s staff would only receive the redundancy package introduced under the new labour reforms by Spain’s conservative government of Mariano Rajoy, that Bardem had strongly criticised and spoken publicly against.

Now the 11 workers will receive a more generous redundancy package, the family announced.

‘They will exceed the amounts currently fixed in law in light of the long working relationship between the Bardemcilla and their employees,’ Monica Bardem said in a statement.