The world's oldest restaurant faces a challenge from another Madrid tavern that says its even older

MADRID (AP) — In the heart of Spain's capital, Sobrino de Botín holds a coveted Guinness World Record as the world's oldest restaurant. Exactly three hundred years after it opened its doors, Botín welcomes droves of daily visitors hungry for Castilian fare with a side of history.

But on the outskirts of Madrid, far from the souvenir shops and tourist sites, a rustic tavern named Casa Pedro makes a bold claim. Its owners assert the establishment endured not just the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s and the Napoleonic invasion in the early 1800s, but even the War of Spanish Succession at the start of the 18th century — a lineage that would make Casa Pedro older than Botín and a strong contender for the title.

“It’s really frustrating when you say, ‘Yes, we’ve been around since 1702,’ but ... you can’t prove it,” said manager and eighth-generation proprietor Irene Guiñales. “If you look at the restaurant’s logo, it says ‘Casa Pedro, since 1702,’ so we said, ‘Damn it, let’s try to prove it.’”

Guiñales, 51, remembers her grandfather swearing by Casa Pedro’s age, but she was aware that decades-old hearsay from a proud old-timer wouldn't be enough to prove it. Her family hired a historian and has so far turned up documents dating the restaurant's operations to at least 1750.

That puts them within striking distance of Botín’s record.

Both taverns are family-owned. Both offer Castilian classics like stewed tripe and roast suckling pig. They are decorated with charming Spanish tiles, feature ceilings with exposed wooden beams and underground wine cellars. And both enjoy a rich, star-studded history.

Botín's celebrated past includes a roster of literary patrons like Truman Capote, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Graham Greene. In his book “The Sun Also Rises,” Ernest Hemingway described it as “one of the best restaurants in the world." While Casa Pedro may not have boasted the same artistic pedigree, it boasts its own VIPs. Its walls are adorned with decades-old photographs of former Spanish King Juan Carlos I dining in one of its many rooms. The current Spanish monarch, King Felipe VI dines there, too, albeit more inconspicuously than his father.

But the similarities between the two hotspots end there.

Casa Pedro was once a stop on the only road heading north from the Spanish capital toward France. Its clientele is largely local regulars, like David González and Mayte Villena, who for years have spent every Friday lunching at the tavern.

“It wouldn't change a thing for us,” Villena said about the restaurant someday securing the Guinness title.

Botín, on the other hand, is a stone’s throw from Madrid’s famed Plaza Mayor, where any day of the week tour guides are herding groups around town — and often straight through the restaurant's front door.

Antonio González, a third-generation proprietor of Botín, concedes that the Guinness accolade awarded in 1987 has helped business, but said the restaurant had enough history to draw visitors even before.

“It has a certain magic,” he said.

The question then becomes: How can either restaurant definitively claim the title? Guinness provides its specific guidelines for the superlative only to applicants, according to spokesperson Kylie Galloway, noting that it entails “substantial evidence and documentation of the restaurant’s operation over the years."

González said that Guinness required Botín show that it has continuously operated in the same location with the same name.

The only time the restaurant closed was during the COVID-19 pandemic, as did Casa Pedro.

That criteria would mean that restaurants that are even older — Paris' Le Procope, which says it was founded in 1686, or Beijing’s Bianyifang, founded in 1416, or the 1673-established White Horse Tavern in Newport, Rhode Island — aren't eligible for the designation.

La Campana, in Rome’s historic center, claims over 500 years of operation, citing documents on its menu and in a self-published history. Its owners say they have compiled the requisite paperwork and plan to submit it to Guinness.

Guiñales and her husband couldn't consult archives from the former town of Fuencarral, now a Madrid neighborhood. Those papers went up in flames during the Spanish Civil War. Instead, they delved into Spanish national archives, where they found land registries of the area from the First Marquess of Ensenada (1743-1754) that showed the existence of a tavern, wine cellar and inn in the small town as of 1750.

In their spare time, the couple continues to hunt for records proving that Casa Pedro indeed dates back to 1702, as is proclaimed on its walls, takeout bags and sugar packets.

But even if they dig up the final documents and wrest the Guinness honor from Botín, Guiñales concedes that her restaurant's quiet location makes it unlikely to draw Botín’s clientele in central Madrid.

“To think that we could reach that public would be incredible,” Guiñales said. “It's a dream, but it's a dream.”

Several dishes from the restaurant's menu are photographed at Casa Pedro restaurant in Madrid, Spain, on May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

A chef cooks at Casa Pedro restaurant in Madrid, Spain, on May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Waiters work at Casa Pedro restaurant in Madrid, Spain, on May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Irene Guinales, right, and Pedro Guinales del Valle, owners and managers of Casa Pedro restaurant, review documents regarding the restaurant's opening date in Madrid, Spain, on May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

A view shows the exterior of the Casa Pedro restaurant in Madrid, Spain, on May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

ROME (AP) — Italy's soccer federation president resigned amid political pressure on Thursday, two days after the national team failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup.

Gabriele Gravina's decision will likely lead to the ouster of Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso, too.

Italy Sports Minister Andrea Abodi called for a change in the country’s soccer leadership after Gravina oversaw two sets of disappointing World Cup qualifiers.

“It’s evident to everyone that Italian soccer needs to be overhauled,” Abodi said on Wednesday, “and that process needs to start with new leadership at the FIGC (federation).”

Italy’s chances of reaching this year’s tournament in North America ended on Tuesday after a penalty shootout loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina in a qualifying playoff.

Gravina took charge of the federation in 2018 replacing Carlo Tavecchio, who also stepped down after Italy failed to reach that year’s World Cup.

The defeat to Bosnia added more misery for four-time champion Italy after being eliminated by Sweden and North Macedonia, respectively, in the qualifying playoffs for the last two World Cups.

Italy’s World Cup struggles go back all the way to 2010 and 2014 when it failed to advance from its group on both occasions.

The Azzurri’s last World Cup knockout match was in 2006 when they won the title by beating France in the final after a penalty shootout.

Gravina did oversee Italy’s European Championship trophy in 2021.

“Soccer has been in trouble since 2006,” Italian coaches association president Renzo Ulivieri said.

Players’ association president Umberto Calcagno said new regulations promoting the use of more Italian players in Serie A were necessary: “A rapid change needs to be made."

An election was called for June 22 to elect a new FIGC president.

Gravina also announced that he would attend a hearing in Italy’s parliament next Wednesday to discuss “the wellbeing of Italian soccer.”

Gattuso took over from the fired Luciano Spalletti in June with the squad already in crisis mode following a defeat at Norway in its opening qualifier.

The Azzurri then went on a six-match winning streak before losing again to Norway in November to finish second in their group and end up in the playoffs again.

Among those being mentioned to replace Gattuso are Roberto Mancini, Simone Inzaghi, Antonio Conte and Massimiliano Allegri.

Mancini coached Italy to the European Championship title in 2021 then failed to get the Azzurri to the next year’s World Cup before bolting to take over Saudi Arabia’s national team.

Inzaghi coached Inter Milan to the Serie A title in 2024 and now manages Saudi club Al-Hilal.

Conte coached Italy at the 2016 European Championship and is currently at Napoli.

Allegri is at AC Milan.

Gravina is also Aleksander Ceferin’s top vice president at UEFA.

UEFA statutes require that executive committee members are also senior FA officials but Gravina could stay in the UEFA role as a lame duck as long as the FIGC’s new leadership doesn’t demand his removal.

Gravina was re-elected last year by UEFA so he has three more years in his current term.

“Gabriele is my first vice president and is very important to me,” Ceferin said in Thursday’s Gazzetta dello Sport after attending the playoff in Bosnia.

Besides revitalizing the national team, whoever replaces Gravina will be tasked with getting Italy’s dilapidated stadiums ready to host the 2032 European Championship.

Italy is slated to co-host Euro 2032 with Turkey.

“I hope that the infrastructure is ready,” Ceferin said. “Otherwise the tournament won’t be played in Italy.”

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FILE - A journalist stands at the entrance of the FIGC Italian Soccer Federation, where a logo with four stars (one for each World Cup won) is seen partly in the shade, in Rome, on Nov. 14, 2017. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, File)

Italy players react during a penalty shootout during the World Cup qualifying playoff final soccer match between Bosnia and Italy in Zenica, Bosnia, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)

A broken soccer ball is pictured on a street in Rome, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Italy's Gianluigi Donnarumma walks off the pitch after losing in a World Cup qualifying playoff final soccer match between Bosnia and Italy in Zenica, Bosnia, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (Fabio Ferrari/LaPresse via AP)

Italy's coach Gennaro Gattuso walks off the pitch after losing in a World Cup qualifying playoff final soccer match between Bosnia and Italy in Zenica, Bosnia, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (Fabio Ferrari/LaPresse via AP)

Italy players react after losing in a World Cup qualifying playoff final soccer match between Bosnia and Italy in Zenica, Bosnia, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (Fabio Ferrari/LaPresse via AP)