Michelin stars give a lot of prestige and enhance any special occasion, but knowing where the best cheap restaurants in Madrid are will fix your most ordinary day.
Whether you’re looking for traditional Spanish cuisine or international flavors, these restaurants will offer you an affordable dining experience good enough to want to repeat. The criteria to enter the list is, in addition to not exceeding 15€ average price, that they are not only restaurants to eat on site, but there are also some designed for office days or street food.
1. Pink’s Burger
If we agree that the proliferation of smashed burgers can be categorized as a gastronomic trend, we will also agree that Pink’s Burger is, on the one hand, a pioneer and, on the other, a master. The hamburger restaurant has grown at an incredible pace (they already have four locations) and they have done it through a concept that has no equal in Madrid. They only sell 100 burgers during the day and only sell 100 burgers at night. And when they run out, they close the chiringuito.
📍 Location: Several locations
2. B13
It is one of the most mythical vegans in Madrid and it is just a few steps away from Gran Vía: at B13 you can eat delicious food, at popular prices and based on 100% non-animal ingredients. It is especially famous for its potato omelette (which we understand and share), and its menu also includes sandwiches (watch out for the calamari!), hamburgers and mixed dishes.
📍 Location: Calle Ballesta, 13 (Malasaña)
3. Kebab House
One of the best kebabs in Madrid is also the oldest. The fame of this small restaurant between Argüelles and Chamberí means that from time to time it is back in the newspapers with the already repeated headline: the best kebab in Madrid.
The success is due to two cornerstones that are not always taken into account: the quality of the meat they serve, unlike other kebabs, it is not a uniform piece of meat, but steaks stacked as in the original recipe. And the price, which has not changed much in recent years.
The owner is an unfriendly gentleman, but with a certain rebellious charm – like his place – who, although he has retired, has left his legacy to a couple of workers. He used to open when he felt like it, and when it happened the queue would go out on Menéndez Valdés street, you will see this complaint often in Google reviews, but now it seems they have been reformed, premises included.
📍Location: calle de Meléndez Valdés, 67 (Moncloa)
4. The location
A few meters away from Kebab House is El Sitio. The surroundings of Moncloa are usually crowded with students from Ciudad Universitaria looking for fast food and competitive prices, so it is not strange that cheap restaurants in Madrid proliferate here.
The claims of El Sitio are that it is the right place for fans of Estrella Galicia beer, homemade pizza and hearty desserts. In addition to menu of the day they do what they call “Crazy Tuesdays” which is the day of free pizza bar.
📍Location: Calle Fernández de los ríos, 93 (Moncloa)
5. Míguez Brothers
Among the cheap restaurants in the capital there must also be a place for homemade food, that of a lifetime (few locutions say more about a place).
Hermanos Míguez lives from what it offers: not from its decoration, not from being in a central neighborhood, but from its cocido, its torrijas, its judiones, its oxtail and whatever dishes make up a complete, traditional and, of course, lifelong menu of the day.
📍Location: Herminio Puertas Street, 10 (Alto de Extremadura)
6. Egeo
The famous souvlakis are, together with gyros, the star dish of Greek street food, and they certainly are at Egeo. This Greek restaurant in Madrid has two locations (one in Malasaña and the other in Lavapiés).
And the good thing is that besides being cheap, here you eat without leaving the Mediterranean diet. They have pitas stuffed with meat skewers, Greek sausage, pumpkin meatballs, mushrooms and many more options at less than 6 euros, most of them. They also have the most typical beers of the Hellenic country.
📍Locations: Calle Barco, 41 (Malasaña) and Calle San Carlos, 17 (Lavapiés).
7. Chun Li
Chun Li intends to continue expanding throughout the city, but the product remains the same. The gyozas are handmade one by one in the traditional Chinese way. Its menu is concise, but with options within the dumplings: there are colored, vegetarian, fried or steamed in the typical bamboo baskets. And yes, the name and aesthetics of these places refer to the video game Street Fighter.
📍Location: Calle de las Fuentes, 1 (downtown), Calle Caballero de Gracia, 22 (downtown), Calle Toledo, 28 B (downtown) and Calle de la Luna, 12 (downtown).
8. Takos al pastor
There is always a queue to eat one of these tacos for a reason: price and quality are not always at odds. Years go by and the level of their famous tacos is maintained, although the price has gone up, but it is still very economical. Yes, just two euros for one of the best tacos in Madrid. You should not leave without trying the cochinita pibil and, of course, their specialty, the tacos al pastor with the classic adobe of achiote.
📍Location: Calle de la Salud, 13 (downtown)
9. Focacciamo
The market is like that, suddenly something that had always been there takes a new form and turns out to be the key to success. Focaccias have long been that new something, and Focacciamo (along with Divorare), specifically, the trendy place. A minimalist design and concept, many choices of ingredients and a reasonable price have made this small place a hot spot in the city.
📍Location: Calle de San Bernardo, 29 (Malasaña) and Calle Murillo, 8 (Chamberí).
10. Revuelto
In Revuelto the space to eat there is fair, but there is, although the truth is that their Korean sandwiches are more designed for take away.
The brioche of these sandwiches is as fluffy and sweet as it is consistent, and the fillings add volume and flavor, with several vegetarian options among the six types of sandwiches they serve, always topped with sweet mayo sauce.
📍Location: Calle de Víctor Hugo, 5 (Chueca) and corredera Baja de San Pablo, 49 (Malasaña).
11. Gyoza Go!
Fans of gyozas (or jiaozis or dumplings, as you prefer) have a place of pilgrimage in this place. Gyoza Go! is the place to try authentic Chinese dumplings. 10 units of gyozas cost just 6 euros and the best thing is that they are handmade and cooked on the spot. You can even watch them being made live. They come in many flavors: chicken, pork, vegetables… and you can ask for them to be grilled or steamed. A pretty good fast food restaurant where neither the price nor the quality disappoints.
📍 Locations: Calle de Carranza, 4 (Trafalgar) and Plaza del Comandante las Morenas, 5 (downtown).
12. Don Oso
It is one of the classics to eat at a much more affordable price in Madrid. In Don Oso you will find hamburgers for less than 4€ and, from there (and paying a supplement) you can customize it with the ingredients you want: cheese, bacon, mushroom… In their menu they also offer, of course, fries, and have other options such as hot dogs and sandwiches.
📍Several locations.
13. The Sky
“It’s like you’re going to buy a táper of mom’s home cooking.” That’s the definition we usually resort to when talking about El Cielo to those who haven’t tried it yet. In this small take-away place it is difficult to choose from the variety of homemade dishes they offer: stews (lentils, chickpeas or pork stew with plums), potato omelette (delicious), stuffed eggplants, quiches, rice dishes, hamburgers? You can choose between taking a whole or half portion (they are generous) and we assure you that if you try them, you will repeat.
📍Location:Calle de Fúcar, 4 (Las Letras)
14. Kibey II
Bar Kibey is the proof that you can eat well and at a good price next to Plaza de Olavide. Their sandwiches are spectacular, especially the loin with cheese, which only costs 6 euros.
Our recommendation if you go with two people is to order a portion to share and a sandwich split in half accompanied by two huge doubles of beer perfectly poured. When the tables fill up, the windows overlooking Palafox street become improvised bars. People stand using the window sill as a table to enjoy the square, but above all a good sandwich.
📍Location:Palafox street, 31 (Trafalgar)
15. Vira Vira The Gyro’s – Street food
Vira Vira The Gyro’s can be found on the Alta de San Pablo street, right next to Plaza de San Ildefonso in Malasaña. A street food restaurant with a product quite similar to a kebab, but more elaborate. They prepare the tortilla bread on the spot. After that they fill your gyro with the products of your choice – from feta cheese to pomegranate. They have a vegan and vegetarian version (also delicious).
The space is open and modern. It is also important to note that they are open until 3 in the morning, so you can go to satiate your appetite at night or to revive after a night of partying.
📍Location: corredera Alta de San Pablo, 1 (Malasaña)
16. Puccias
Surely you know focaccias, but puccias are their less famous sisters. Wrapped in pita bread, this is the latest version of fast food, but with good product, coming all the way from the south of Italy.
The price of the puccia is 8.95 and there are 8 different versions of filling, although the Italian one, with salami, tomato, cheese and arugula, is the most classic. It’s a very cheap and novel option to eat cheaply in Madrid.
📍Location: Calle de la Libertad, 9 (Center)