Top Ten Things To Do In Madrid

Glen and I enjoyed a fabulous child-free four days in marvellous Madrid back in January and I've picked out the top ten things to do if you're there for a weekend of indulgence and exploration. As always there is a bit more of a foodie slant to my list, but there are plenty of other options too.

1. Food Markets

Madrid has a ton of different indoor food markets and we visited several during our stay, which all had their own individual charm. 

Our favourite by far was the Mercado San Miguel in the Centro area, which is set in an absolutely stunning and historic building - all wrought iron and clear glass windows and doors, making it an attractive proposition before you even arrive. 

The atmosphere on a Thursday afternoon was electric - it was jam packed with tourists and locals alike; all being tempted by the many, many different types of food on offer. 

It isn't cheap, but it's super fun to hop from stall to stall trying different bites, and there are plenty of bars too offering beer, wine, cava or something stronger if you prefer. 

Our favourites here included this super creamy whipped burrata topped with jamon and cups of the most delicious jamon, that melted in the mouth. Well worth a visit and make sure you go hungry!

Burrata & Jamon at Mercado San Miguel

Jamon at Mercado San Miguel

Delicious olive, anchovy and roasted pepper morsel at Mercado San Miguel

2. Arts and Culture

You will be spoilt for choice in Madrid for galleries, museums and exhibitions - it's such a diverse and cultural city.

We enjoyed a few galleries but the absolute standout had to be visiting Museo Renia Sofia which is home to an astounding amount of fantastic pieces of art and photography from Dali to Picasso.

Picasso piece at Museo Renia Sofia

It's around 15 Euros per adult ticket - but they do have a free entry period in the evenings between 7-9pm if you're on a budget.

It's well worth the admission price especially to see Picasso's breathtaking Guernica in the flesh - the size and breadth are amazing. 

3. Chocolate & Churros

Chocolate & Churros at San Gines, Madrid

You will see dotted around the city a number of 'chocolateria'; but the oldest - dating back to 1890 is San Gines. 

We gladly joint the hoard of people queuing up to try the long doughnutty churros dipped in pure liquid chocolate - absolute bliss and a must-do for Madrid!

4. Take Your Own Walking Tour

Royal Palace, Madrid

Pack some comfy shoes or trainers as you really can see most of Madrid by foot - especially if visiting in a cooler month. 

Grab a map and make a plan of the places you're keen to see and attempt it on foot with some water on hand. 

There are plenty of bars, cafes and restaurants all over the city to sit and cool down and hydrate in and along the way. 

Places of interest you might want to nose at include The Royal Palace, City Hall, the Cibeles Fountain (where you see Real Madrid celebrating sometimes), and the many, many beautiful churches in and around Madrid, to name a few.

City Hall, Madrid

5. El Retiro Parque

Palacio De Cristal, Madrid

El Retiro Parque, Madrid

The El Retiro Parque is for me comparable to Central Park in New York as it seems to be it's own little city, with different areas and districts within it and tons going on within it's gates. 

It's an absolutely beautiful and completely green space with tons of grassy areas, playgrounds, a boating lake and of course the stunning Palacio De Cristal - or crystal palace which is beautiful inside and out. 

Within the park you'll see loads of street entertainers performing all sorts of different arts - from tai chi, skate boarding, dance, singing and many other things. It's a great, free place to visit in Madrid.

6. Enjoy Cava in the Sunshine

Cava in the Madrid sunshine

Cava is Spain's sparkling wine equivalent to Champagne, Prosecco and the like; and it is absolutely delicious and much more modestly priced than Champagne. 

It's an absolute must to enjoy sipping on a glass of cold, sparkling cava sitting outside in the sunshine of Madrid and will only set you back 5 or 6 euros.

7. Take a Tapas Crawl in La Latina

Pan con tomate with jamon, Lateral, Madrid

You can pick up good tapas all around the city when you enter a bar for a drink, however mine and Glen's favourite after four days was the little district of La Latina, especially if you're talking about after dark. 

Take a stroll along the Calle Cava Baja and you'll soon understand the appeal - even on a cold wintery January evening, the whole stretch of road which is adorned with bars and restaurants was absolutely heaving with happy Madrilenos and tourists alike. Spilling out of the bars into the street tons of people were enjoying plates of tapas, ice cold beer, wine and cocktails too. It's a buzzy atmosphere and the food along here was some of the best we had in the four days. 

In the bars you'll be presented with a plate of tapas 'gratis' or complementary with your drinks, but there are some cracking restaurants along the Calle Cava Baja too. 

We really enjoyed some spectacular dishes in Cava Baja 17 and they were completely different to what we'd had elsewhere too - a little cheesy empanada was a nice beginning but then we had soft, flavourful Iberico pork topped with goat's cheese on fresh crusty bread which was great; and our favourite dish which was so unusual and so delicious was the bread again but this time topped with cod fish and then a honeyed aioli - it was stunning. 

Cod & Honeyed Aioli and Iberico Pork & Goat's Cheese, Cava Baja 17, Madrid

You don't have to limit your tapas choices to this area though; we didn't have a bad meal anywhere in Madrid - we enjoyed a fairly fancy tapas meal in a more up-market setting at Lateral Castellana 42, some lovely authentic tapas in Alahambra in the Centro district washed down with Fino sherry, and a relaxed but delicious array of tapas in Downtown Madrid at Aceytuna on Calle Fuencarral for only 40 euros with beers included. 

Blistered Padron Peppers at Aceytuna, Madrid

However my favourite dish of the four days was an inexpensive 'gambas al ajillo' - succulent juicy prawns in sizzling garlic oil cooked to absolute perfection and served with bread to mop up the juices in a very casual little cafe in the Sol area, called Las Bravas. We'd walked for a couple of hours and stumbled upon this little gem, full of locals and couldn't resist after seeing that being delivered to another table. Well worth a visit.

Gambas al ajillos, Las Bravas, Madrid

8. Enjoy a La Liga Game

Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid

Views from Wanda Metropolitano

As a pair of football fans, Glen and I were lucky that a local derby took place during our stay and we we managed to source a pair of tickets for around 70 euros for the pair. 

We watched Athletico Madrid versus Getafe CF at the incredible Wanda Metropolitano stadium. We've both been to some of the UK's best football stadiums between us but both agreed the Wanda Metropolitano was something special. The structure, layout, the fact there was no queuing once inside as there was ample bars, food stalls and most importantly staff - making the visit super easy. 

The structure also has huge (intentional) gaps so you are able to look out over stunning scenes of Madrid. We travelled on the Metro with tons of passionate Madrilenos on the way to support their teams and it was fabulous to soak in that atmosphere.

9. Go Dancing

As a rare few days without our two children, Glen and I indulged in plenty of beer, wine, cava and cocktails during our four days in Madrid. On the weekend evenings, I was keen to go dancing and for that we found the Chueca area to be the best bet. Known for being the LGBTQ friendly area of Madrid, Chueca is home to tons of bars and a handful of clubs, pretty much the Soho of Madrid for me. 

We enjoyed a few drinks in different upmarket bars such as D'Mystic and then ended up in a gay club called Black & White which I thoroughly enjoyed. I danced the night away while Glen was propped up the bar. Great stuff.

10. Start the day well

Breakfast at The Cappuccino Grand Cafe, Madrid

With most city breaks we tend to pack in a lot during the day and in Madrid, we did 90% of that on foot. With that in mind, we made sure to have a hearty breakfast each day to set us up for the day and there are some really good breakfast spots in Madrid.

Pan con tomate is a common breakfast item - sometimes with a fried egg on top, and you'll pick that up almost anywhere, as with a tortilla. But there is a fairly new breakfast and weekend brunch scene emerging in Madrid and we found a really great spot. 

The Cappuccino Grand Cafe opposite El Retiro Parque was home to our favourite breakfast of the stay. Despite being January, it was warm enough to sit out on the terrace to have our breakfast and I enjoyed delicious thick and creamy yoghurt topped with soft fruit and Glen had Egg's Royale - with smoked salmon, a rich Hollandaise sauce and a whole avocado - absolutely winning. This was a great people watching spot too.

There are tons more things you could pack into a mini break to Madrid but these were our favourites. Please do share any top tips as we will certainly return. 

Copa de Cava, Blackfriars

After visiting Gizzi Erskine’s organised Spanish Fiesta themed Street Feast with my brother and some friends back in August, my brother’s name got pulled out of a hat by Copa de Cava as the winner of a meal for two at their Blackfriars venue.

Happily Dan asked me to join him, and so we went one cold, wet and dreary Friday evening in September and had a lovely night.

We were welcomed by a team of super friendly staff, one of which absolutely made our evening, so attentive and warm was she in detailing items from the menu and matching us with a Cava that she thought we would both enjoy according to our palates. She was fantastic and this experience really brought home the fact to me, that good staff really can make or break a place. A very good start.

We enjoyed an array of tapas style dishes and continued to be impressed throughout the evening. We started with some Spanish olives in a dressing of Cava vinegar, thyme, rosemary and lemon zest. The olives alone would have been succulent, plump and juicy and full of flavour but this simple marinade truly elevated them.

The second dish was another simple but addictive dish– ‘Pimientos de Padron’ or sautéed green Galician peppers. These were small bite sized peppers coated in coarse sea salt and a drizzle of olive oil after being lightly charred. They were a delight and an intriguing one at that – one bite was never the same as another, some had a much deeper chilli heat than others – all were divine.

We had a board of charcuterie that was superb. It comprised of chorizo, lomo Iberico, Teruel D.O. Jamon and something I had never tried before but instantly fell in love with – fuet. Fuet is a Catalan speciality, cured pork sausage meat in a pork gut (this concept reminded me a little of a faggot). The meat was so soft and tender that it literally melted in the mouth and whilst it was quite salty, the flavours were just amazing. The charcuterie came with a selection of little bready bites – it would be a great plate of food to enjoy with a friend or two over a few drinks if you were only looking for a snack.

Patatas Bravas came in an unusual way – little cyclinders of fluffy potato in a crisp, delicious coating – I’m not sure how they were cooked, they didn’t taste as if they had been fried, so I’ve no idea how they had such a glorious outside, but I would love to find out. The sauce was smoky with paprika, smooth and velvety – my only complaint would be that in the interests of keeping the dish looking dainty, not enough sauce was given – I could have devoured much more of it.

The next two dishes were our final ones and they really had saved the best two till last. We had octopus with an olive oil mash and I just don’t know where to start. I’m a big fan of octopus anyway, but often it can be too chewy and have a rubbery texture from being overcooked, not so at Copa de Cava. I would hazard a guess that this had been slowly braised on a gentle heat, so tender and wonderful was the final result with just a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkling of paprika over it to complete it. Served on gorgeously soft mash which had a pepperiness from the olive oil and just the right amount of salt to complement the octopus perfectly. An absolute triumph. The photo is unfortunately not giving this dish justice, due to the lighting and my keenness to start eating the dish.

Our final plate was the favourite for both of us – Presa Iberica, shoulder of rare Iberico pig, with pearly barley, Iberico ham and Manchego. The pork was cooked rare and as with the octopus it was soft, tender and melt in the mouth. It was quite a strong flavour, with an almost game-like quality to it. Personally I loved the accompaniment which was basically a risotto of pearl barley instead of rice – or at least that’s how it both appeared and tasted. Creamy pearl barley that still had a slight crunch or bite to it was flavoured with salty Iberico ham and topped with a generous grating of Manchego cheese – fantastic.

We chose a bottle of the Reserva Aria Segura Viudas after a helpful chat with the waitress. We loved its almost smoky yet light and delicate flavour – it was selected as I said how much I love wines flavoured with peach and apricots, and this fitted the bill perfectly. We also had a glass of the Semi Seco Valarnau Demi Sec ‘Barceona’ to start off with, which was also enjoyable, yet a little drier than the bottle we had.

Copa de Cava is pitted as more of a Cava bar than a restaurant, but there are some seriously good dishes on the menu and I would certainly return. It’s a particularly good spot for catching up with friends. The downstairs section or ‘cave’ where we sat was cosy, warm and busy with a great atmosphere – in short a great venue.

If you’re a fan of Spanish food and Cava then this place is just waiting for you.

Chicken and Chorizo One Pot

Aside from a little pre-frying and chopping the majority of the cooking for this is all done in one pot which is always a winner.

Most butchers and supermarkets sell thighs in a packet, sometimes along with drumsticks and they are usually more economical than breast meat – not to mention fattier, hence filled with far more flavour.

This is a warming, casserole packed full of flavour and is lovely on cold winter nights. I served it, this week, with some simple plain boiled rice and salad, but you could have it alone with fresh bread or with potatoes.

The chorizo gives a Spanish hue and with that end, I added a splash of Cava, purely as I had some in the fridge, but any dry white wine will do.

Serves 4:

Here’s how:      

8 chicken thighs or drumsticks

200g chorizo

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

1 courgette

Tin of cannellini beans

2 tbsp Cava or dry white wine

1 tin of chopped tomatoes

2 tbsp dried thyme

1 red chilli

½ cup of chicken stock

Salt and black pepper

2 tbsp hot paprika

Firstly slice the onion and chill and crush the garlic and add to a casserole dish. Chop the courgette into small cubes and add to the dish. Drain the beans and add to the dish with the chopped tomoates and the cava or wine.

Next chop the chorizo into small chunks, and add to a pan on a medium heat – no oil is needed here. While these are cooking, pour a couple of tablespoons of olive oil onto a chopping board and season liberally with the salt and pepper. Then add 1 tbsp each of the dried thyme and the paprika and coat each of the chicken pieces in the oil.

Once the chorizo is seared, use a slotted spoon and add to the casserole dish.

In the same pan, sear the chicken pieces 2-3 at a time, ensuring to sear all over. Then add each piece to the casserole dish.

Finally add the ½ cup of stock to the dish and stir through to ensure each piece of chicken is covered with the liquid and stir through the remaining herbs and spices, salt and pepper.

Place the lid on top and cook for 45 minutes to an hour at 180 degrees. If you prefer a thicker consistency you can add a little cornflour in towards the end, but it is a lovely juicy consistency perfect with rice or bread. Enjoy!

Fino

A Spanish SensationAfter an incredibly glutinous week of celebrating my own birthday, it was time to pass the birthday baton over to someone else - my wonderful Dad. He's long been a fan of Spanish fare since his and my Mum's very first trip abroad together to Majorca nearly 30 years ago and has even gone to the trouble of purchasing an authentic and very large paella pan from a catering supplier. He has perfected a mixed meat and seafood paella which is only for special occasions and which I can vouch is quite sensational.
Fino on Charlotte Street was the allotted venue for our celebratory meal and we were booked in early last Saturday evening, 630, the earliest and in fact the only table we could get.
We were led down to the smart basement restaurant and invited to begin with a drink in the bar. We ordered a jug of their Cava Sangria and this was a refreshingly fruity and colourful affair, very pretty to look at and the kind of drink that would go down well all evening.
We were also brought over two little ramekins of plump, firm and very tasty green olives. They were divine and as two amongst our 6 detest olives, I'm slightly embarrassed to admit the other four of us demolished these in a couple of minutes flat. Happily these were soon replenished by the friendly Spanish barman.
We had ordered one of the specials, half a suckling piglet, prior to our visit, so our plan was to get a few little dishes or tapas to whet our appetite for the main event. However we found it difficult to resist ordering a lot of dishes, so many sounded great.
We began with a platter of cold Spanish meats, prawn croquettas and red pepper croquettas with bread and oil. The meats were all tasty, particularly the Serano and chorizo. Both croquettes were good but the red pepper ones won my flavour vote by a margin, these were sweet, hot and extremely moreish, I could have easily eaten a whole portion.

Vanessa, our impeccable waitress, was an excellent source of knowledge, she gladly advised us on the specials, her favourites, and explained what certain things were on the menu that we hadn't before experienced. Also when the bread arrived and we requested some aioli as well as the oils, she obliged quickly and approvingly.

Our next course was a medley of seafood, and if the first course was good, this was incredible. My family are real fish and seafood fans and this did not disappoint. We had clams, razor clams, sardines and squid and it is fair to say that when they arrived our mouths were collectively watering, not only did it look great, the smells were enticing too.

The clams were frankly the best I've ever had. They were slightly salty, but this was complemented by the rich and creamy garlicy butter that they'd been cooked and served in, it was an amazing taste and I'm not ashamed to admit I dipped bread straight into that sauce as if I were eating in the comfort of my own home, it was too good not to.
The squid was also good, it was crispy in a light batter and we agreed we thought it was very similar to the way squid is often prepared in Chinese cookery - with salt and pepper and a little chilli heat. These also had the hint of paprika which gave a lovely smokiness. They were great dipped in the aioli too.
I must confess sardines are one of my Dad's favourites, however I've generally found them to be far too bony and fiddly, with not very much meat on them to bother with, and never carrying much flavour. I've decided they deserve a second chance after tasting the juicy, garlicy wonders we were presented with. They were very easy to de-bone and quite big compared to others I've had - to be honest even if they were tiny the flavour of them would have been well worth the effort. As well as garlic there was a little parsley and some citrussy lemon and lime to. The simple flavour combination worked perfectly and this was yet another dish that didn't last very long at all.
Finally on the sea-front, we had razor clams. I'm afraid these were not for me, but I've never enjoyed these whenever I've had them before, despite them being a bit of a favourite in my family, especially in Chinese food. I find them too rubbery a texture to enjoy. General agreement around the table was that they were in fact excellent, so don't be deterred if you're a fan, its more personal preference than anything else.

Next up was our piece de resistance, the star attraction of the meal, our suckling piglet. At risk of sounding like an advert for the restaurant, this too was just fantastic. The crackling was gorgeously crispy - I always feel crackling's such a naughty indulgence anyway it almost adds to the enjoyment, like a guilty pleasure. The meat was pierced with sprigs of rosemary and there was mint and parsley present too which gave the tender meat and the beautiful juices it was cooked in some truly wonderful taste sensations. The mint was subtle enough to just enhance the flavour without overpowering as it can easily do.
Alongside the meat we had some olive oil mash - creamy and delicious if a little cooler in temperature than we'd have liked, some 'Fino Chips' which turned out to be just chips, nothing to write home about, a mixed green leaf salad which had a fabulously simple citrussy dressing on and some kale, which like the chips was a bit of a non-event. It was a good main course, although the half (£75), recommended for up to 6 people, was still quite large, and it's probable we'd have enjoyed more of it had we not had quite so many dishes leading up to it.

Only the ladies managed dessert and between us we had a crema catalina, a chocolate shot and chocolate soup. Mum had the crema catalina, and it was large enough for two people, which was good as we all got to try some. It was lovely with an orangey, Grand Marnier flavour. The chocolate soup was just that; dark chocolate, warm, runny and heavenly with a good dollop of vanilla chantilly cream for good measure. I'd opted for the white and dark chocolate shot, and while it was a taste treat to say the least, it was a mere mouthful and greedy me was left slightly disappointed and wanting more - nothing new there.

Some deliciously dry Spanish Moscatel sherry completed the superb meal for the men.

Fino is the rare London gem, a restaurant that is expert in one area and doesn't deviate or try to juggle too many balls. The food throughout was exceptional, and as I mentioned our waitress was a dream compared to many of her clueless contemporaries I have encountered in the capital.

The meal came in at just under the £300 mark, including a £31 service charge, so isn't cheap at around £50 per head, but we did order in excess of what was essential, after all this was a celebration. And Daddy picked up the bill - as I stated at the beginning of this post, he is wonderful!
Fino, 33 Charlotte St, London, W1T 1RR. 0207 813 8010

www.finorestaurant.com