Madrid

Areia

Very cool chill out bar decorated with deep colours in a Moroccan style. Dark and inviting. The seating includes cushions on the floor, traditional tables and chairs, or if you’re lucky, grab the four poster bed at the back.

Mon-Fri 16:00-03:00, Sat Sun 14:00-03:00·Drinks: €7 before 22:00 and €8 after 22:00

Café Comercial

Opened in the 1880s, this is the oldest cafe in Madrid, and has been run by the same family since the early 1900s. There's a modern internet café upstairs, but the downstairs remains traditional.

Café Gijón

A historic literary cafe. The outdoor terraza is nice in the summer.

Café Restaurant El Espejo

El Pabellón de El Espejo

Opened in 1978, but looks much older. Has two divisions: a more casual café and a restaurant. Good food and very crowded during lunchtime.

Daily 09:00-01:00 (café); daily 13:00-24:00 (restaurant)·Café: €14-15 (midweek set menu), €19-20 (weekend set menu); Restaurant: set menu €11-17

Café Ziryab Tablao Flamenco

A Flamenco venue with daily shows at 21:30 by first line artists, in an intimate ambiance. Kind staff, nice drinks and tapas, personalized attention and the artists right in front of you.

shows at 21:30·€22

Café de Oriente

Overlooks the Plaza Oriente and faces Palacio Real. Outdoor tables in summer, cozy indoor rooms in the cold months. Basement banquet room with a glass floor over ancient remains. Excellent food.

Calle Cava Baja

This narrow street in La Latina is by far the most famous and popular place for tapas.

Calle Cava Baja

This narrow street in La Latina is by far the most famous and popular place for tapas. It is also the place to go for the traditional Sunday-noon "Vermouth Hour" (after mass or shopping on El Rastro flea market).

Dubliners

An Irish bar in the centre of Madrid near Puerta del Sol. The bar has televisions and is one of the places where sport can be seen.

Daily 11:00-03:00

El Junco Jazz Club

Smallish venue, starts the night with live jazz, later on morphs into relaxed night club. Not cheap (once inside, beer still €5.50, mixed drink €8.50), so attracts older crowd than others nearby.

From 23:00 to 05:30AM weekdays, to 06:00AM weekends·€6 with beer, €9 with mixed drink

El Sol

Popular with the 20-30 age group. Plays a mix of 70s, funk, and bossanova sounds. No dress code, but people do tend to look cool.

Tue-Sat 00:00-05:30·Entry including 1 drink: €9

El Tigre

Probably the most well-known tapas bar in Madrid, a must do. Don't get frightened by how crowded the bar is and go in anyway. This is one of the most lively places in the city! Get beers, big glasses of wine or un mini de mojito and get free big plates of tapas every time you order. Very affordable.

Sun-Thu 12:00-01:30, Fri Sat 12:00-02:00

FoggBar Birras & Burgers

El Rincón de Fogg

You can have 2 litres of sangría in a self service dispenser from just €14, or €13 for 2 litres of beer, and you get a free plate of patatas bravas. They also have a delicious selection of bocatas from €2.45. Big TV to watch the football matches while enjoying eating and drinking. If you say you've read this, they'll invite you to a glass of rosado wine.

Sun-Thu 07:00-22:00, Fri Sat 07:00-24:00

Joy

Well known across Europe. Attracts at multi-national crowd. Popular with tourists as well as locals. It plays a mix of popular dance music. Every Thursday there is a Students Party.

Kapital

Enormous club with 7 floors. However, despite its popularity this club is usually not worth visiting. The owner has a policy to try to limit the number of foreigners in the club so if you are from anywhere except Spain, you will likely get bad treatment.

€10-20

L'Orangerie & Creperie

Café, crêperie (place making crepes), sweets and very friendly staff – a good place for lovers of desserts and the sweet.

La Corolla

Specializes in delicious ‘tostas’ (small pieces of toast with different toppings) and avocado (aguacate), along with cañas (small beers).

Tostas + 2 cañas: €10

La Esquina de Eusebio

Trays of tapas are passed from one person to another in this typical bar of Madrid, absolutely not touristy but really worth it! And it's not so far from the centre.

La Esquina de Eusebio

Trays of tapas are passed from one person to another in this typical bar of Madrid, absolutely not touristy but really worth it. And it's not so far from the centre.

La Mallorquina

Famous for its pastries. Peaceful upstairs room where you can linger undisturbed over your café con leche and napolitana de chocolate (chocolate croissant).

La Pecera del Círculo de Bellas Artes

Café del Círculo de Bellas Artes

A soaring hall on the ground floor of Madrid's art center combines atmosphere, excellent food and good coffee at reasonable prices. A wonderful place for lunch not far from Madrid's shopping or museums.

Mon-Thu 09:00-01:00, Fri Sat 09:00-03:00, Sun 09:00-00:00

La Via Lactea

A swingin' bar where you can twist the night away with local hipsters.

Sun-Thu 20:00-03:00, Fri Sat 20:00-03:30

Museo Chicote

Voted the Best European Bar 2004 by MTV-Campari. Extensive cocktail list. Claims to have served drinks to many famous celebrities, including, Ava Gardner, Frank Sinatra, Lana Turner, Gary Cooper, Orson Wells, Yul Brynner and Ernest Hemingway, Catherine Zeta Jones, Hugh Grant and Tim Robbins. They only serve drinks.

Mon-Thu 19:00-03:00, Fri Sat 19:00-04:00, Sun 16:00-01:00

Ohm

Popular Commercial House club with a mixed young straight/gay crowd.

From 00:00 to 07:00·€10-20 with mixed drink

Pastelería La Duquesita

Long-standing confectionery (established 1914), offering excellent tartlets that are not only delicious but also look picture-perfect. They are also sold to take away.

Mon-Fri 8.30AM-8.30PM, Sat 9.30AM-8.30PM, Sun 10AM-8.30PM·Tartlets €5–6 a piece

The Sherry Corner

Sherry-tasting available in 8 languages. Commentary by knowledgeable oenologists explaining the details of the history, elaboration methods and tasting notes for each of the wines, while inviting guests to combine them with tapas served at different market stalls.

Viva Madrid

Opened in 1856, this Madrid institution is known for its old-world charm and its creative takes on tapas and cocktails. José Rizal, the Philippines' national hero, was a regular patron, with a plaque hanging above the door in his honor.

Tue 18:00-02:00, Wed Thu 13:00-02:00, Fri 13:00-2:30, Sat 12:00-02:30, Sun 12:00-01:00

Xaloc Bar de Copas

Discopub in the core of Barrio de las Letras. Great place with excellent prices but a good quality. The bar includes nice music, a DJ, and a moderately large dance floor.

Tue Thu-Sat 21:00-03:30

Libertad 8

Libertad 8 is an iconic coffee shop and bar located on Libertad del barrio de Chueca, in Madrid. Opened as a coffee shop in 1975, ever since then it's served as a stage for artists and singer-songwriters (known as cantautores). It's become one of the most important spaces for songwriters, with frequent concerts by Pedro Guerra, Rosana, Ismael Serrano, Luis Pastor, Tontxu, Andrés Suárez, Lichis, Carlos Chaouen, or Kiko Tovar.

Café Central

Café by day, live jazz music at night.

Mon-Thu 12:30-02:30, Fri 12:30-03:30, Sat 11:30-03:30, Sun 11:30-02:30