Have you ever been in Madrid if you haven’t had a drink in the bars of Malasaña? If you know the Madrid nightlife, at some point you have started or finished the party in one of the mythical bars of the neighborhood.
If between tourists and newcomers you don’t know where to sit down for a drink in its cobblestone streets, here’s a little guide to get around like a local on any Friday night.
1. Josefita
Josefita reproduces the logic of what is a bar of a lifetime adapted to modern times. Would a traditional bar offer truffled mortadella, arzúa cheese and salted butter sandwiches? (It’s a rhetorical question, no need to answer from home).
In any case: no, I would not put them, but Josefita puts them. And it also serves croquettes of the day and red tuna tacos and many other things that make this little bar an essential visit if you want to dine in Malasaña. By the way, she is the granddaughter of Bar la Gloria.
📍 Calle de Valverde, 42
Around 15 to 20€ per person
2. Malos Bar
The Malos card retains the essence of the classic Melo’s (not in vain is his younger brother) with his homemade croquettes and his celebrated loaf bread, lacón and tetilla cheese slippers. But there are also other very attractive options such as bravioli (with an elaboration based on that of the Parador de la Moncloa “our way”, with a roasted garlic aioli) and homemade cheesecake. The quality-price ratio is, as one would say about a steak, unbeatable.
📍 Calle de Velarde, 13
About 15€ per person
3. Bolivar
Bolivar, which has been feeding the residents of the Bolivar neighborhood for more than 50 years Malasaña and curious people from other zones who come to try its competitive menus, has a clear concept that vertebrates the restaurant.
If our recommendation doesn’t help you, the Michelin Guide recommends Bolívar as a restaurant Bib Gourmand -quality cuisine at reasonable prices- and defines its mere presence as “one of the most interesting dining options in the heart of Madrid”.
Calle de Manuela Malasaña, 28 (Metro San Bernardo).
Seasonal menus for a price ranging between 35 and 45 €.
4. Limbo
Limbo Asador, with an industrial aesthetic and at Hostal Bastardo since 2018, is one of the places that best brings together the tastes of a whole group of friends. An ember who is like King Midas and turns everything he touches into gold (that’s a metaphor, please).
The charcoal-roasted chicken and brisket (beef brisket smoked for 9 hours) are a must. The menu varies a lot and includes seasonal products such as a smoked tomato salmorejo.
📍San Mateo St., 3
Around 20€ per person
5. La Colmada
La Colmada is half bar, half store. This wine bar with the spirit of an old grocery store is the perfect bar for an aperitif in Malasaña, accompanied by an vermouth. It is the closest thing to a neighborhood bar, but with the aesthetic filter of the area.
The preserves decorate and accompany the vermouths, although the portions of cold meats and cheeses that they serve (and that they also sell by weight) are also very good products.
📍 Calle Espiritu Santo, 19
Around 15€ per person.
6. La Manuela
Café Manuela is known as La Manuela and although it has been open since 1979, it has the air of a 19th century Parisian bistro. On velvet corner sofas you can have a coffee or a cocktail, depending on the mood of the evening. Although probably one of the most privileged places in the neighborhood are their tables at street level when the weather permits and they open the doors completely. There are usually book presentations, artist meetings, or even DJ’s playing.
📍 Calle de San Vicente Ferrer, 29
Around 12€ per person.
7. Camacho House
Casa Camacho is the living history of Madrid’s tapas and vermouth. It has been located in Malasaña since the 1920s, and retains visible reminiscences of its antiquity, such as its red façade with classic typography or the taps of the typical taverns of Madrid.
It is impossible to talk about it without referring to its “yayos”: its own elaboration based on soda, vermouth and gin, which can be accompanied by any of its tapas and portions. A good night out in the neighborhood starts (or ends) here.
📍 Calle de San Andrés, 4
Around 15€ per person.
8. Pepe Coffee bottle
Pepe Botella is a classic of the Dosde -as Dos de Mayo square is popularly known- since 1992. It has two spaces that could be said to have different personalities. On the one hand, the terrace is part of the life of the square, the beers, and spending the afternoon chatting without much more expectation; and on the other hand, there is its interior of wood and antique mirrors with a bohemian air where you can have a coffee or a drink telework and where dogs allowed to pass through.
📍 Calle de San Andrés, 12
About 10 € per person.
This article has been written by Alberto del Castillo and Elena Francés.