Tucked away in the side streets of Sol, Bar Lambuzo is an Andalusian oasis in the center of Madrid, lovingly run by a family from Cádiz with a history in the food business that goes back to their great grandfather. This family has brought all their favorite recipes and passion from their home to the capital. In fact, the bar makes it a point to sell products from Southern regions such as Cádiz, Seville and Huelva, calling itself an Abacería, meaning a bar that sells local products.

the entrance invites you in with thousands of wine bottles decorating the walls

Opened a little over a year ago, Bar Lambuzo has already become a beloved neighborhood spot for its authentic cuisine, warm ambience and family-style service; it is a haven for Andalusians living away from home, and for anyone seeking a true taste of the South in the center of Madrid.

with friends in Bar Lambuzo’s underground cellar, tasting wines from Bodegas Barbadillo

What’s more, Lambuzo offers fun activities in the downstairs wine cellar, from football forums to wine-tastings and olive-oil-tastings. I’ve been to the tastings and highly recommend them! At the last wine tasting I went to, we had a presentation from Bodegas Barbadillo, a winery from Cádiz that is actually the house wine at Bar Lambuzo. As usual, we tried three different types–rosé, white and red–the red was really spectacular.

Owner and father Pepe serving at a wine tasting in the cellar

On Thursdays, Lambuzo also holds Microteatro: they showcase 30-minute theater performances, from 9pm-11pm. Each session costs 4€, plus you’re more than welcome to grab a drink at the bar and bring it down to the cellar as you enjoy the show, and then go right back upstairs for more when it’s over.

As far as the menu goes, father Pepe will gladly tell you about the daily specials, and you can’t go wrong with anything on the set menu. Their star dishes are from their selection of fried fish, a staple in Andalusian cuisine. And you can count on it being good–the first time I went, a guy from the South of Spain popped out of his seat and called up a friend to say: “You won’t believe it. I’m in Madrid eating real pescaito frito“.

assorted pescadito frito

boquerones fritos con limón (fried white anchovies with a squeeze of lemon) and white wine from Bodegas Barbadillo

My husband, James, and I have been going to Bar Lambuzo practically since it opened. What keeps us going back so often is the warm service and delicious food and wine (not to mention, really affordable!). Our favorite dishes are their varied croquetas (croquettes), salmorejo (a cold, tomato and bread-based soup), arroz con atun rojo y pisto (rice with tuna and ratatouille), and solomillo al whiskey (whiskey pork loin, served on delicious handcut fries). For dessert, try the tocino del cielo (similar to creme brûlée without the crunchy top), made by Ignacia.

Croquetas

Salmorejo, a cold soup or dip originating from Cordoba, made with tomato, bread and olive oil, topped with tuna and then drizzled with some more, olive oil

solomillo al whisky (pork tenderloin with roasted garlic, served on top of handcut french fries)

tocino de cielo, made by daughter Ignacia (similar to creme brûlée without the crunchy top layer)

Lambuzo’s tapas range in price from 3€-5€, and main dishes average at 11€. For lunch. They offer a menu del día (set lunch menu) for 10€ with a starter, main dish, drink, plus coffee or dessert. And they have an express lunch menu for 8€, including one dish.

If you decide to go to Lambuzo for dinner, I recommend making a reservation–the secret’s out and the place gets packed!

Info:

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Hours: Tuesday – Thursday: 13:00 – 16:30, 20:00 – 0:00
Friday – Saturday: 13:00 – 17:30, 20:00 – 1:00
Sunday: 13:00 – 17:30
Closed on Mondays
Price range: 10-20€ per person

There are currently two locations:

1. The first Lambuzo is the one with the downstairs cellar:

Address: Calle de las Conchas, 9
Metros: Sol, Callao, Santo Domingo or Opera

2. Lambuzo has just opened a second location in Chamberí which is smaller but still has the same charm and family feel:

Address: Calle Ponzano, 8
Metros: Iglesia & Alonso Cano

Goiko Grill is the kind of place I wish I had known about years ago. Owned and run by Venezuelans, Goiko Grill is a down-to-earth, young and awesome burger joint, serving, in my opinion, the best burgers in Madrid. Plus it has a fun vibe and good service.

And though I’ve never tried anything off their burger list, they’re also known for their starters, especially the nachos and teques  (tequeños, a popular Venezuelan finger food, similar to mozzarella sticks) as well as for their fresh salads, sandwiches and great desserts.

Teques (image from www.facebook.com/goikogrill)

All of Goiko Grill’s burgers are made with 180 grams of top quality Spanish beef, the beloved carne de buey to be exact, and come with ridiculously good homemade potato wedges.  What’s more, the burger menu has a number of mouth-watering combinations and quirky names to pull you in, such as the Puchi (cheddar, bacon and grilled mushrooms), La Philly (190 grams of top quality, tender Spanish beef, topped with crunchy fried onions and cream cheese) and the Aloha (topped with a slice of grilled pineapple and cinnamon, and a slice of ham). 

With so many options,  it’s nice that the waiters are friendly and even speak English. Luís, the waiter who I met last time, is originally from Venezuela but lived in the U.S. for many years. He told me all about Goiko Grill and helped me choose what burger to order as he saw the indecision written on my face. Everything is good here, he told me, so don’t be afraid to try something new.

Aita burger del norte, topped with Arzua cheese and roasted red peppers

So far, my favorite two burgers are the M-30 Goat Cheese Burger (9.50E) and the Aita Northern Burger (12.50E). The Goat Cheese burger comes with a thick disc of  savory, crumbly goat cheese, and a warm layer of sweet caramelized onions oozing over. The Aita del Norte burger comes with Galician Arzúa cheese and roasted red peppers.

The last time I went to Goiko Grill I went with a friend of mine, Alondra, who has a passion for guacamole. Hence, she ordered the Chipotle burger which came with heaps of guacamole, chipotle sauce, and cheddar cheese. She said it more than hit the spot, and that the homemade potato wedges brought back memories of her mother bringing home a bag of potatoes, chopping them up and frying them.

Chipotle Burger with cheddar cheese, chipotle sauce and guacamole (image from www.facebook.com/goikogrill)

My husband, who’s also smitten with Goiko Grill, has a slight problem–he wants to try out all the burgers but always ends up ordering his favorite: La Pigma burger. It comes with a fried egg, bacon, cheddar cheese and Maho Goiko sauce. Apparently, this burger is the favorite among the boys, and there’s a history behind it that you’ll have to ask the waiters yourself.

In addition to succulent burgers, Goiko Grill also has great drinks. Monday through Friday from 5pm-8pm, Goiko Grill has different Happy Hour deals; 2×1 on mojitos, beers, wine and other drinks depending on the day. Since it’s located right across the street from Instituto de Empresa (IE), Spain’s most prestigious business university, the clientele is young and enjoys the casual scene.

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Address: c/ María de Molina, 16
Metro: Gregorio Marañón
Phone: +910 17 76 98

For lunch on Saturday, I went to a Bulgarian restaurant in Madrid that a friend had highly recommended to me. By coincidence, it was Mother’s Day in Bulgaria, and International Women’s Day. So we had much to celebrate.

One of my friends who was with us, Kaloyan, is originally from Bulgaria and said “Guys, I seriously feel like I’m in Bulgaria right now.” The décor, the music (albeit outdated), the company and the food were such vivid replicas of a typical Bulgarian tavern,  that all of us forgot we were in Madrid throughout the entire lunch. In fact, a group of Bulgarian women dining next to us started dancing in circles after they ate.  I felt like I had joined in on a  Bulgarian wedding.

As it was a gorgeous and sunny day, we ordered Bulgarian beer, Kamenitza, which came casually in cans, and Shopksa salad, which reminded me of Greek salad; it had freshly diced tomatoes, cucumbers, green bell peppers, onions, parsley and heaps of fetta cheese. My friend Edison ordered a brothy and delicious lamb soup, and for the table we ordered Bulgarian bread, one sprinkled with fetta cheese and one without. The bread was really incredible.

I must admit, I didn’t even take a look at the menu. Since my friend is from Bulgaria, and the waiter too, their recommendations were more than trustworthy for me. So if you don’t know what to order, go ahead and do as we did.

For the main course, we each got our own, intimidatingly huge Parrilla Mixta (grilled meat platter). It came with different types of Bulgarian sausage, shish kebab (skewered meat), hamburger patty, white and red bean salad, and fresh cabbage salad. It was also served with a delicious red bell pepper sauce. This may be obvious, but we had to take some home.

Now, here comes the best part. Dessert! Yes, we still had room for dessert, and we ordered three different kinds to share: Bulgarian Tarta (heaven), Baklava (homemade puff pastry filled with nuts and honey) and Tikvenik (homemade puff pastry filled with pumpkin). I only have photos of the latter two because my friends devoured the Bulgarian Tarta before I had the chance to snap a photo. All of the desserts were incredible, especially the Tarta and the Baklava.

To top it all off, our kind waiter gave us shots on the house!

Taberna Bulgara is a bit of a journey from the center of Madrid, but well worth it. Take metro line 1 to Puente de Vallecas (a 15-min ride from Sol), and walk up Avenida Peña Prieta for a good ten minutes and you’ll see it. And with all the food we ate, we paid 20E each.

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Address: Avd. Peña Prieta, 82
Telephone: 91 551 56 00

An Asturian cider house serving traditional, simple and exquisite rotisserie chicken since 1888, Casa Mingo is the real deal–no frills, no fuss, just the good stuff. The high walls are lined with bottles and barrels, making you feel as though you’ve been immersed in a sea of cider. And although the wooden floors are holding up, the wear and tear are evident. Be sure there’s no intention of refurbishing this wooden tavern. Its notable use and warm simplicity is what makes it so special.

image from casamingo.es

Even the menu is simple: roasted chicken, croquettes, chorizo, chistorra (similar to chorizo but thinner and spicier), cheese (manchego which is cured, or de cabrales which is very, very blue, a.k.a. it’s just mold), roasted red  peppers with tuna, and empanadas. They have two types of cider: sweet and natural, and you order them by the bottle. Although there are a few more items on the menu, that’s pretty much everything. And no matter how much you order, your bill is likely to come out to less than 15E per person.

The first time I went to Casa Mingo I had already been living in Madrid for a few years, though I’d never seen anything like it. It was love at first sight (an American who had been living in Madrid for twenty years let me in on the secret). Since then, Casa Mingo has become my spot whenever I want to show off Madrid to family and friends.

I’ve even brought my “foodie” friends with the harder-to-please palates, some who are chefs and some who have even opened up their own Spanish restaurants outside Spain. Casa Mingo has never failed to delight them.

My favorite dishes are the roasted chicken and the roasted red peppers with tuna. And for dessert, try the tarta de sidra or tarta de santiago.

rotisserie chicken and endless cider at Casa Mingo

a whole roast chicken at Casa Mingo

No reservations, but the place is enormous so the wait won’t be long. In addition to the main dining room, they have outdoor seating and a rooftop as well. The last time I sat outside there, it was Spring and our table was showered with little flowers falling off trees all around us. It was lovely.

my friend Ryan’s attempt to pour cider the Austurian way

And if you’re feeling up for the challenge, get a table outside and try pouring the sidra from above your head (spilling is completely accepted, but ask for a nozzle to help). The correct word for this is escanciar, and it’s the traditional way to pour cider in Asturias.

Here’s a photo I took of a professional pouring cider at a Spanish gourmet food fair. Feel free to ask any of the waiters at Casa Mingo to show you how it’s done.

a professional showing how to pour cider the right way, a.k.a. “escanciar”

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Address: Paseo de la Florida, 34
Metro: Principe Pio
Telephone: 915 47 79 18

Consider The Cocktail Room your one-stop shop for anything cocktail-related in Madrid, offering all the skills and tools needed for the art of mixology. Here you can delve into adventurous workshops on classic gin & tonics and luxurious aphrodisiac cocktails (better than couple’s therapy!), partake in daring sake and bourbon tastings, or try a three-hour course on how to make the 10 Best Cocktails in History. And for  any aspiring star mixologists out there, The Cocktail Master course offers 51 days and 153 hours of hands-on professional training.

If that doesn’t quite cut it,  The Cocktail Room also sells a wide collection of rare liqueurs, drink-making gadgets and recipe books. They even boast a showroom, professional testing-lab and space for private events.

The Cocktail Room‘s chic style blends effortlessly into its home on calle Castelló, 98, in the heart of Madrid’s upscale neighborhood. Run by a dynamic and international team who share a common passion for the craft of mixing the perfect drink,  The Cocktail Room is often called upon to host some of Madrid’s most stylish events, such as Madrid Fashion Week. Their creative mixing talents, hip themes and extensive knowledge put The Cocktail Room on top of Madrid’s burgeoning cocktail scene.

I was invited to The Cocktail Room on Valentine’s Day with my husband, James, to their first Aphrodisiac Cocktail Workshop, created and delivered by Max Vázquez. By the sound of it, I imagined I was going to attend a tasting, where I’d be sipping chocolate and cherry cocktails while listening to the ingredients for how to make the perfect mood-boosting concoction. Little did I know, the theory part was going to be brief. As I entered the candy and heart-decorated room with just a handful of other couples, Max and his assistant explained what was in store for us.

We would be making elixir-like cocktails from scratch, customized for our partners who were blindfolded. Yes, blindfolded! There was a table filled with all the different cocktail components; aromas, citrus, syrups, liqueurs, fruits, different-sized cocktail glasses, and more. After Max gave us a 20 minute introductory example, it was time for us to jump in and start mixing.

With our blindfolded partner waiting patiently beside the bar, our job was to pick out the five ingredients we thought they’d like, have them smell each one, and guide us based on their senses. Once we decided on each component, we helped our blindfolded partner to put the cocktail ingredients into the shaker, and then shake it up and pour it successfully into the glass (which we also picked out for them), without spilling all over themselves or the person sitting next to them. We topped it off with the fruit of our choice and voilá. Then the tables were turned.

an example of how to help your blindfolded loved one to make an aphrodisiac cocktail. much better than couple’s therapy…

my husband, James, tasting the white chocolate liqueur I picked out for him

Some couples got it right, some couples didn’t. James got it right. He made me a cocktail which I named Orange Delight. I, on the other hand, didn’t fare so well. I mixed way too much sweet amaretto, with way too much sweet white chocolate liqueur, then added too much chocolate aroma, and well, let’s just say it took plenty of post-attempts and tweakings to make it drinkable.

the cocktail my husband made me :)

The Cocktail Room offers a variety of different courses. Since G&T’s are my drink of choice, my next workshop will have to be the Gin Tonics workshop that they offer on Saturdays. Which one do you want to try?

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Address: c/ Castelló 98
Courses

Founded by Ignacio Segovia, Wine Bus takes groups of up to 20 people on day trips to wineries around Madrid every Saturday. And as its name entails, passengers are welcome to drink as much as they like, because someone else is driving.

Owner and passionate guide, Ignacio Segovia, or Nacho, fell into the wine business as “a way to reinvent himself”. He worked in marketing for many years, but started to write about wine on his website, Vende Vinos, in 2008. As he began visiting wineries around Madrid, he soon discovered the magic that was being kept secret. He got to know the men and women who ran the wineries, saw the land where the vineyards lay, and the surrounding towns that have been preserved in time. Ignacio knew that’s where he wanted to be. He’s been organizing tours to these wineries since 2011.

What makes Wine Bus special, according to Ignacio, are the stories that the winery owners tell. Ignacio has contacts with around 30 different wineries in Spain, enough so that Wine Bus can visit a different winery each Saturday. Even if Ignacio has visited some wineries on a number of occasions, he says that each time is different; each group of people is different, and the memories that the winery owners bring to life are always different. Ignacio says that he loves going on these tours so much that he doesn’t feel as though he’s working at all, and feels lucky that he’s been able to turn his passion into reality.

For the first time one week ago, I went to visit a winery with Wine Bus in a town called Adrada de Haza in Burgos. As soon as we piled into the bus, Ignacio was already explaining the ins and outs of the wine industry. An hour into the bus ride, Jesus Lazaro hopped on. Jesus is the owner of Bodegas Kirios de Adrada, the cellar he opened with his father in 2001.

Our first stop was the vineyard itself. Then we entered the winery. Then the main cellar. And then the other hidden cellar that used to be the town’s nightclub!

Finally, at 2pm, it was time to sit down, try some wines, and eat. We tasted three different wines: a rosé, white and red. My favorite was the red, but perhaps that’s because Ribera del Duero is my favorite wine hands down.

We munched on roasted red peppers and the best morcilla de burgos I’ve ever tasted (and the group of Spaniards I was with said the same).

All the while, Jesus went outside to make the chuletas (pork chops). He lit a pile of vines, and as it burnt down, he laid out the pork chops onto the grill. With the help of Ignacio, the pork chops cooked to perfection.

Ignacio, or Nacho as his friends call him, holding up a glass of Ribera while awaiting the pork chops

After we ate and had a few too many glass of wine, we hopped back on the bus and went to a nearby town called Aranda de Duero, which is very famous for its wine culture and history. There we visited the Ribera del Duero Museum where we had a guided tour through astonishing underground wine cellars and caves. Let’s just say that this town is chock full of wine history. Even the bar, La Casona de la Vid, has a treasure chest below it.

All in all, it was an awesome day organized by Wine Bus. Every Saturday they offer trips to different wineries around Madrid, so I highly recommend it, especially if you go with a group of friends!

Price:

The price for the entire trip was 59€ for the tour and trip, and 20€ for the meal!

Booking info & Discount with Naked Madrid

If you’d like to go on a tour with The Wine Bus, you will get a discount if you enter the promotional code “Naked”

You can book the tour through The Wine Bus’s website.