One think I’ve always missed in Madrid is a decent place to buy sandwiches. Most bars sell bocatas which sort of substitute but I’m really talking about custom hand made sandwiches where you chose the breed, filling, toppings, spread etc. Magasand which recently opened in Alonso Martinez/Chueca offers just that. You chose from a variety of breads, buns or bagels and add from a good selection of cut meats, cheeses, spreads, sauces and other garnishing. They also promise soups in winter.

You can eat in or take away. If you eat in you head upstairs to the very pleasant magazine area. There’s good selection to chose from and you can either sit at the long wooden table or on one of the couches. This area begs for (free) wifi, but as far as I can tell its not currently available – don’t be mislead by the picture, that fellow is using 3G networks.

I had a bagel with pastrami, sweet mustard, sun dried tomatoes and cheese for 4 euros.

Magasand
Travesia de San Mateo

Madrid , Madrid , 28004 Spain


GEO: 40.42476, -3.697447
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Another bakery, this time with an American accent. Lots of difference breads, brownies, quiche, etc. 

Cosmen & Keiless
info@cosmenykeiless.com
Plaza de Los Salesas, 8

Madrid , Madrid , 28004 Spain
+34 91 319 67 42


GEO: 40.423796, -3.694689
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This shop has an eclectic mix of gourmet foods from all over the world, wine, liquors and food related books, with a French tilt. Its nicely laid out, and fun just to wander around just looking at the large variety of things. Nothing in this shop is partucularly cheap, but prices are reasonable for what they’re selling. If you’re looking to take something nicely packaged and original to a party this would be a good place to look. The people that work there (I imagine the owners, but I’m not sure) are generally helpful and seem to know the stuff they’re selling.

Plaisir Gourmet
info@plaisirgourmet.com
calle Gravina 1, Bajo

Madrid , Madrid , 28004 Spain
(+34) 91 702 55 01


GEO: 40.423447, -3.698579
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This small italian shop sells nice fresh pasta, raviolis, gnocchi etc, along with sauces, cheeses, wines, deserts and other italian specialties

Capperi Gourmet
capperi@capperi.es
Calle Fernando VI, 2

Madrid , Madrid , 28004 Spain
+34 91 308 17 74


GEO: 40.425695, -3.697055
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I went to this very small tapas bar the other evening, and really liked it. The locale is actually an old shop and the quaint atmosphere has been maintained.  As you can see from the photos, both the bar and the menu are very small, really just tapas, salads etc and reasonably priced. I had the Salmorejo (cold tomato based soup) and the ‘Tosta’ with Ventresca, pimiento and pesto verde (that’s canned Tuna belly with piquillo peppers and pesto). Both were really good. I had beer with my tapas but there was a small but decent and reasonably priced wine list.

Not a good choice if you’re looking for a sit-down meal, but a really nice place for a cocktail, glass of wine, beer + tapa.

La Mantequeria
Calle San Bernardino 7

Madrid , Madrid , 28015 Spain


GEO: 40.425148, -3.710573
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La Vaca Argentina is a well known restaurant chain serving Argentinian beef. The beef is acceptable and the rest of the food is pretty standard-to-boring, but one of the Ribera del Manzanares branch has a very pleasant garden terrace which more or less makes up for other inadiquacies – (in summer, with a reservation).

Prices are reasonable around 20-25 euros per person with mediocre wine.

La Vaca Argentina (Ribera del Manzanares)
opinion@lavacaargentina.net
Ribera del Manzanares, 123

Madrid , Madrid , 28008 Spain
+34 91 559 37 80


GEO: 40.428758, -3.732686
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This article/slideshow proposes an excellent tour of Madrid based on the life and art of Francisco Goya. Don’t forget to also visit the Prado Museum, home to many of Goya’s best known works.

The La Carte des Vins is a nice little wine shop on the Vasquez de Mella Square, with a good selection of Spanish wines, and a few imported ones. I nice alternative to shopping at El Corte Ingles.

La Carte des Vins
madrid-infantas@lacartedesvins.com
Calle Infantas 16

Madrid , Madrid , 28004 Spain
+34 91 522 85 17


GEO: 40.420643, -3.699785
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I strolled by Tepic today, saw the menu which looked good, and the atmosphere looked very chueca-modern. I didn’t get a chance to try it, but if you have, I’d be interested to hear what you thought about it.

Update: I finally managed to go to this place and here’s my verdict: the food was pretty good, closer to real mexican food that most of it competitors, including decent real corn tortillas, friendly service and a pretty extensice tequila menu. My main gripe is the price. Sure its a step up from the usual mexican joint, and a more elegant etc, but its also more than twice as expensive.

Tepic: urban mex restaurant
calle Pelayo 4

Madrid , Madrid , 28004 Spain
+34 91 522 08 50


GEO: 40.421803, -3.699034
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The sign on the door says ‘Drink, Eat and Take Home the Furniture’. The idea is that you do just that, by buying the table you’ve eaten at or the copy designer chair you sat on during your meal. This place is conceived to make you feel your in a trendy restaurant in NY. Bare brick, bare wooden/metal beams, the menu written in chalk on blackboards and the staff ann dressed in black. It works pretty well, the space is very open, large windows, which are open in summer, and tables on the plaza Carlos Cambronero mean you can sit comfortably inside or out. The bar is a nice place for a drink if that’s all your after. As far as the furniture, I thought some of it was quite nice, but I’ve no idea if the prices are reasonable or not. Still it’s a nice idea you actually get to try a chair or table before buying it.

Where this place falls a little short is the food itself, which was a little disappointing. The menu’s a little too eclectic including things like thai soup, nachos, burghers or filet steak with french fries covered in truffle oil. More importantly the food wasn’t as good as I felt it could be. There’s a decent and not too expensive wine menu and a few wines which can be had be the glass. Our meal, in which we shared 2 starters and a main course, had a couple of glasses if wine each, 1 desert and coffee came to 25 euros per person.

Overall I’d reccommend this place. I suspect the food could improve, as it’s only been open for about a month, and in madrid getting even decent food in a terraza is worth recommending. If your a tourist looking for the authentic spanish-tapas experience, this is not the place but if you’re looking for a decent place in a pleasant modern atmosphere including the possibility to sit outdoors then this is a good choice.

Restaurante Lamucca
info@lamucca.es
Plaza Carlos Cambronero 4

Madrid , Madrid , 28004 Spain
+34 91 521 00 00


GEO: 40.423853, -3.703637
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The 33^rd edition of the festival that livens up Madrid’s summer season will take place between July 1 and August 24.

Patio del Centro Cultural Conde Duque, the Sabatini Gardens, Teatro Fernán Gómez, Teatro Español, Teatro Circo Price or Naves del Español at Matadero Madrid, as well as the capital’s streets and squares, will once again accommodate music, theatre, dance, circus, zarzuela, puppets or films.

See program

From June 4^th to July 27^th, Madrid will be hosting 69 photography exhibitions as part of PHotoEspaña PHotoEspaña is back in Madrid. With the theme “El lugar” (The Place), this Festival of Photography and Visual Arts will once again turn the city into a living celebration of photography. All participating photographers, both in the Official Section and the Off Section will face, one way or the other, their visual idea of a “place”.

Amongst the most awaited exhibitions is the one by Bill Brandt. The Home, at Sala de Exposiciones AZCA (Paseo de la Castellana, 81) at the BBVA building. For the first time in Spain, this mythical photographer is showing the series of portraits of the British working class that he took during the 1930’s and 40’s.

Fundación Banco Santander is hosting an exhibition at Teatro Fernán Gómez (Plaza de Colón, 4) with the photographic work by W. Eugene Smith, much of which has been published in Life magazine. The works by this American author show a sincere social commitment.

The ghetto in Lodz, during the Nazi invasion of Poland, is the place chosen time and again by Henryk Ross’s objective, as can be seen in the photographs in the exhibition held at Museo de Arte Contemporáneo (Contemporary Art Museum, Conde Duque, 9 and 11) under the title Buried Memories.

Museo Reina Sofía (Santa Isabel, 52) also brings two classics: Leonardo Cantero, member of the school of Madrid, whose series Dehesa abulense is a beautiful testimony of the rural world in the 1960’s, and Robert Smithson, one of the most significant figures of Land Art, through which he transforms natural spaces.

Furthermore, PHotoEspaña 08 becomes a springboard for emerging photographers. Descubrimientos PHE will be showing, at Complejo El Águila (Ramírez de Prado, 3) 70 portfolios selected amongst the participants of this contest for young up-and-coming artists. On the other hand, on June 13^th La noche de la fotografía (Photography Night) will flood the streets with Canon’s PHotomarathon, Camper Photo-Tours, night screenings in the Literary Quarter and activities organized by Captura.org, a group which makes use of the Internet to spread their creations. This year PHotoespaña places special emphasis in the Programas para los Públicos (Programmes for the Public), a series of guided tours of exhibitions and children’s workshops

27th and 28th of June and 4th, 5th and 6th of July
www. Rock in Rio
One of the biggest music festivals in the world is coming to Spain next month. The event will take place in Arganda del Rey (Madrid) with a staging of more than 70 national and international artists in a 200.000 m2 esplanade.
Rock in Rio took place for the first time in Brazil in 1985 with more than 1 million people audience. Since then it has become a reference for everyone who likes music and is compromised “For a Better World” (the event’s slogan).
This new edition will take place in Lisbon and Madrid during the months of May, June and July (the last 5 editions took place in Brazil and Portugal) and is aimed to make people aware of the effects of the climate change. The Rock in Rio organization will donate from 2% to 5% of the tickets rate to educational projects about this problem.
You will be able to enjoy Rock in Rio in Madrid in two consecutive weekends, on the 27th and 28th of June and 4th, 5th and 6th of July. Among other artists you will be able to listen to Lenny Kravitz, The Police, Jamiroquai or Amy Winehouse.

Leire Fernandez

I find myself returning quite a bit to this restaurant, which is at the same time bar, then later on a ‘gin-club’. What I like about it is that its serves quite well prepared basic food that you dont get bored of too quickly. Its also got a pleasant atmosphere, depending on your taste – might be a little too trendy for some, or too informal for others.  The restaurant, as its name suggests serves Spanish ‘market food’.

Dished we like include:

- Raff tomatoes by themselves with olive oil or with tuna: Raff are a deliciously flavored spanish variety of tomato which is a great change from the all too common and tasteless ones normally found these days.

- Pimientos de Padron:  These are small green pepper and are normally fried and served with salt

- Baked hake in the ‘bilboa’ style – on a bed of potatoes with some slighly hot dried chilies on top

- There are all sorts of egg dishes – with chips, blood pudding, spicy sausage, jamón etc

- Meat dishes and stews. 

The Mercado de La Reina has a pleasant bar in the front, where you can order many of the dishes as tapas with a glass of wine of beer but I’d recommend trying the Spanish vermouth (on-tap), which I think is far superior to the usual varieties. 

The location, on the Gran Vía, is very convenient for visitors, and they have english menus.

Mercado de la Reina
manuelmercadodelareina@gmail.com
Calle Gran Vía, 12

Madrid , Madrid , 28013 Spain
+34 91 521 31 98


GEO: 40.419533, -3.698868
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The Aloque holds a special place in my heart. It’s one of the first wine bars in Madrid, dating back to long before wine bars became trendy and numerous in the city, and it still has among the best selection and most carefully chosen cellars – by Paco Parejo the owner and enologist. Its located in Lavapies, an area more known for its multicultural and ethic diversity than for its wine bars. The menu is excellent but simple, with a list of 10 or so ‘Raciones’ (plates of food for sharing) and another 10 or so ‘tostas’, pieces of toast with delicacy on it. It doesn’t change that often, some of the items have been there for since I first tried the Aloque 12 years ago, but thats partly because in this bar the food is chosen to accompany the wine and not vice versa. We’d recommend almost anything, but are particularly find of the iberico pork fillet, the jamon (thats an easy one) and the croquetas. Most items on the menu are under 20 euros, and the tostas are usually under 5 euros.

Aloque
Torrecilla del Leal 20

Madrid , Madrid , Spain
+34 91 528 36 62


GEO: 40.410514, -3.699592
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I went for lunch today to the SushiOle in Chueca, and for 10 euros, incluing beer and desert, what a pleasant surprise! There’s a choice of 4 starters and 4 main courses all of which fall into the category of Japanese-fusion. I don’t think I’m going to try and describe the food, since the website (http://sushiole.com/) has a full menu with great pictures and all the prices (the 10 euro lunch menu only seems to be provided on the Spanish version of the website). This restaurant is a chain and there are currently 4 locations for it, all provided on their website.

SushiOle
info@sushiole.com
C/ Valgame Dios 4

Madrid , Madrid , 28004 Spain
+34 902 022 592


GEO: 40.422252, -3.696535
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El Teatro Fernán Gómez. Centro de Arte de Madrid, ofrecerá a lo largo del mes de abril la continuación de la muestra de “Músicas del Mundo en Madrid”con el siguiente programa:

19 de abril – 21:00 h. Chico César “Dúo”
Chico César es la estrella con más proyección de la música pop brasileña desde 1996.
>> Comprar entrada <<
20 abril – 19:00 h. Transglobal Underground
Transglobal Underground son un grupo de productores y músicos británicos de origen indopakistaní, precursores de la fusión de la música world con los ritmos más urbanos y bailables.
>> Comprar entrada <<

26 abril – 21:00 h. Trilok Gurtu & Arké String Quartet
Arkeology es fruto de la unión entre dos mundos aparentemente diferentes, el ritmo y la vitalidad del músico hindú Trilok Gurtu, uno de los percusionistas más destacados del mundo y el sonido clásico de un cuarteto de cuerda reinterpretado por los italianos Arké String Quartet.
>> Comprar entrada <<

27 abril – 19:00 h. Toumani Diabate (Solo)
Presenta su nuevo disco “The Mande Variations” (2008). Toumani Diabaté es indudablemente uno de los maestros de la kora y al mismo tiempo uno de los más conocidos en Occidente.
>> Comprar entrada

An article in the NYTimes with lots of recommendations and feedback: Madrid Hostals as an Alternative to Hotel

you can also see our accommodation section for Madrid in Softguide Madrid with user reviews, comments and maps for a large range of hostals: アイウエさたちつてねぬ

• Madrid hostals
• Madrid cheap hostals or pensions
• Madrid youth hostals

La Sala started out as a small bar which became famous for its shrimp, and has grown into a large restaurant that’s something of a local institution. The menu is mostly seafood, but there are salads and a few meat dishes as well.

The shrimp, served in 1/2 or 1 kilo portions, are the cold-water north atlantic variety which are far superior in both taste and texture to the more comment and larger warm-water farmed ones. I also had anchovies, which are made on site and excellent, cockles done on the grill, also recommended, and croquetas which were a little disappointing.

The plate of shrimp shown in the picture (1/2 kilo) cost €35, the anchovies €16, the croquetas €10, and I don’t remember what the cockles cost. The whole meal for 4 with a bottle of Albariño and shared deserts cost about €30 per person.

The location 50 km outside madrid is probably not on most visitor itineraries but if you’re traveling north, and in a car, its a good choice – if you like shrimp and seafood.

Reservations are essential on weekends. Family friendly with lots of space for buggies.

La Sala
Carretera De Los Molinos (M-614) 2

Guadarrama , Madrid , 28440 Spain
+34 918 542 121


GEO: 40.684397, -4.0786
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From 7th to 29th April, enjoy dance in different spaces in Madrid.

See full information on Madrid official site.

Download the complete program pdf.