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You have the opportunity to taste the best of Spanish cuisine in Madrid. Here, I will list a few restaurants and cafes that you shouldn’t return from Madrid without stopping by. Here is Madrid restaurants guide!
Spanish cuisine
I want to start with Spanish cuisine first. Wherever you go to Spain, there are some dishes that you should not return without trying!
Food
Before starting Madrid Restaurants Guide let’s have a short look at the cuisine:
- Paella: A rice dish cooked with seafood, chicken, vegetables, rabbits or a mixture of these.
- Tapas: This is the name given to the appetizers generally served on bread. You can find dozens of varieties in a tapas bar.
- Tortilla: Spanish omelette with potatoes. They eat it at every meal 😊
- Bocadillo de calamares: Squid sandwich. It is consumed quite a lot especially in Madrid.
- Empanadas: this is a pastry stuffed with vegetables or meat, baked or fried.
- Huevos rotos: this is fried egg on baked potatoes. Eggs and potatoes are important in Spanish cuisine 😊 This dish is generally consumed for dinner, not breakfast and is very popular.
- Cocido Marileno: This completely Madrid-specific dish is served only in restaurants that exist for this purpose 😊 Generally You have to order as a 3 course menu; starter, main course and dessert, and these restaurants are only open at certain times. So you need to reserve your place in advance. The main dish is a meat stew with lots of chickpeas.
- Patatas bravas: a mild spicy sauce on fried diced potatoes
- Pimientos: tiny peppers fried in oil and sprinkled with sea salt. Simple but very tasty.
Dessert
- Churros: fried lightly sweet dough. It is a tradition to eat it by dipping it in hot chocolate.
Drinks
- Sangria: wine with sugar and fruits. I find it very enjoyable.
- Rioja: a wine made from local grapes.
- Cava: sparkling wine of Spain.
- Mahou: My favourite Spanish beer 😊
Paella
Paella is the first Spanish dish that comes to my mind 😊 So I did some research on where to eat it. My decision, Arrocería Marina Ventura, was definitely the right choice. Almost all customers were already Spanish and they all ordered paella without exception. So I confirmed my selection again before I placed the order 😊
Tapas
I didn’t eat bad tapas in Madrid 😊 But my favourites were in Cava Baja 17 and Lamiak on Cava Baja Street. Apart from these, you can find many varieties in Spanish markets (Mercado in Spanish).
Boccadillo de calamares
The best address for this is definitely Bar la Campana. You will understand already from the queue in front of you when you are ther once 😊 It might be the best squid I’ve ever eaten!
Churros con chocolate
Churros is usually ordered with hot chocolate and eaten dipping in it. The name of the duo is Churros con chocolate 😊 Of course you can order something else to drink 😊 Chocolatería San Ginés is the right address for Churros con chocolate. You can also notice this place from the queue in front of it 😊 It is open 24/7!
Sangria
You can find this in almost every bar. All of them are good but my favourite was again in Lamiak. They make it by mixing wine with some other drinks at the bar. They explained me half English and half Spanish so I drank without understanding what in it was 😊 But I liked it more because it wasn’t as sweet as at the other bars.
Huevos Rotos
For this dish our host, our tour guide and Google strongly recommended Casa Lucio on Cava Baja. I didn’t have the opportunity to try, because when you go without reservation, they throw you out of the door. It was necessary to make a reservation in advance, I didn’t bother 😊
The oldest restaurant in the world
Sobrino de Botín in Madrid, is the oldest restaurant in the world. A Guinness Records certificate hanged at the entrance. It was opened in 1725 and is still active! Of course it is very touristy and crowded. You shouldn’t go without reservation.
Other places to try
The top floor of El Corte Ingles, the shopping center at the exit of Callao metro station, is a gourmet market. Do not leave Madrid without having a drink here with the wonderful view of Madrid.
Santa Eulalia is a pastry shop with great desserts. When I got tired of walking, I tried it by chance and was very satisfied.
Spanish market culture
You can also try the markets in every neighbourhood to have a snack in Spain. There are quite a lot of options. Mercado de San Miguel is the most famous one in Madrid, but I must say that the prices are just as high because it is very touristy. This place is a paradise, especially when it comes to tapas. Even if you don’t eat, get inside to get some ideas 😊
I tried Mercado de San Anton, which was said to be less touristy. I think the prices are high here, but the atmosphere was quite enjoyable.
If you’re in Toledo …
If you find yourself in Toledo, you should definitely try the marzipan cake at El Café de las Monjas. Although the place itself is not very nice, this dessert is great.
Also, olives and marzipan of Spain is really delicious. I almost hated them until I was 30, Spain made me love them both! I was rebelling when they didn’t give olives with beer in Madrid 😊
Last word
Before you travel to Madrid, accept that you will gain some weight there and enjoy all these wonderful dishes! Madrid Restaurants Guide!
