Discover the Best Tapas Bars in Madrid

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Madrid is in style. The Spanish capital welcomes more and more visitors every year who come to enjoy cultural tourism, exploring the city’s most iconic buildings, museums, and art galleries. However, 20% of visitors come to Madrid for its gastronomy. That percentage has not stopped rising in the past few years. Without a doubt, Madrid is a focal point of Spanish cuisine. 

These tapas bars in Madrid offer everything from traditional to international dishes, including interesting fusions. This wide and exquisite variety, however, features common elements: Spanish omelettes, torreznos, Iberic ham, calamari and patatas bravas are always around. Up next, we leave you with our guide with a selection of bars where you can enjoy some of the best tapas in the city. Try to read the whole thing without your mouth watering. Let’s daydream together! 

El Brillante

El Brillante bar is one of the most iconic places serving tapas in the city. Here you will find some of the most typical dishes from Madrid’s gastronomy. It’s famous for its fried calamari, which is served both on a sandwich and on its own, covered in its classic batter. You can have it for breakfast, lunch or dinner. El Brillante is in a very busy area in the south of Madrid, the glorieta de Atocha, right next to the Atocha metro station. You can reach Atocha station on line 1 of the metro.

The Box at Domo Abascal

The Box is a tasting menu at Domo Abascal. It is located at NH Collection Abascal, right in the heart of Chamberí, a district that has become well-known in the last few decades for its extraordinary gastronomic offer. This space will leave you stunned with its décor and the gastronomic offer from Paco Rocero. Without a doubt, it is a must-visit. The service starts in a unique way, in a special box format (yes, box format, you read that right!). It will surely surprise you! 

The chef presents different combinations of avant-garde and innovative dishes. Foie ingot, oxtail stew with boletus and quail eggs are some of the many surprises that can come in the gastro box. The pairings are also a must in this experience and two choices are available: a selection of magnificent cavas by Anna Codorniú and another choice that includes vermouth, beer and a glass of wine. Which one will you choose? 

Bodega La Ardosa

The Spanish omelette has been a traditional dish throughout the country’s history. It can have different flavours—it can be done with or without onions—and textures—varying by how well the eggs are done. Bodega La Ardosa, in the city centre, is a great tapas bar in Madrid where to try this dish. The bar remains linked to the past through its décor, featuring tiles and photographs of Madrid from the fifties and sixties. You can’t miss out on the cod croquettes, the Madrid omelette (filled with tripe), and its home style dishes. Non-industrial wines are also served. To get there, take metro lines 1 or 10 to the Tribunal station.

Restaurante Paco Roncero

As the song goes: “Look at it, look at it, look at it… the Puerta de Alcalá…” Our next recommendation offers views of this iconic monument in the Spanish capital. It is the Restaurante Paco Roncero, located just a 7-minute walk away from our NH Collection Madrid Palacio de Tepa. It is a space where the avant-garde, creativity, and innovation come together against a backdrop of blue, green, golden, and white colours and where your imagination will take flight from the very moment you set foot on its terrace. 

The creations from Paco Roncero will leave you with your mouth wide open. Top quality products wait for you with a unique background: the stunning sights of some of the most iconic historic buildings in Madrid. We recommend trying their latest desserts: their presentation and taste will take you to another dimension. They also have a sommelier service that, with their pairings, will put the perfect finishing touch to the spectacular experience.

La Casa del Abuelo

La Casa del Abuelo, which has been going strong since 1906, exudes old-world charm with a well-groomed staff that will whip up succulent seafood and garlic dishes right in front of you. The house specialties usually involve shrimp or prawns; however, you can also try anchovies in vinegar, cuttlefish, and calamari. The restaurant’s concept has always been serving seafood tapas with sweet wine. La Casa del Abuelo is located in Calle de la Victoria, very close to the Sol station, which you can reach on lines 1, 2, or 3 of the metro.

Suite and Tea

If you are a tea enthusiast, this place will become your favourite spot in all of Madrid. Enter a magical world with the best selection of this classic beverage at Suite and Tea, at the NH Collection Paseo del Prado. This charming, intimate and cozy English tearoom features the delicious infusions from the JING brand, along with small treats from master chocolatier Rubén Da Silva. The cherry on top is the Agua de Flor perfumery and its scents, the perfect companion to elevate the experience.

Casa Labra

If you are looking for croquettes, the delicious and iconic dish made by battering and frying bechamel sauce, Casa Labra will be one of the best tapas bars to visit in Madrid. It boasts of a historic location, which opened in the nineteenth century and used to serve host to political gatherings. When there’s good weather, the outside seating is just lovely. The portion sizes of the croquettes are generous enough to satisfy all guests. They are available for many tastes, filled with meat or fish. This restaurant and tapas bar is located near Puerta del Sol, on Calle Tetuán.

Estado Puro

If you are in the mood for a new and different way of eating tapas, you must not leave Madrid without trying the tapas at Estado Puro. Its cooks provide haute cuisine reinterpretations of traditional tapas. You must try their croquettes and their Iberian ham. But we also recommend their “originals”: Parmesan cheese ice cream with lemon jam, a paprika-cured Iberian pancetta sandwich or their 21st-century Spanish omelette (filled with brandade). It is, without a doubt, one of the must-try tapas bars in Madrid and happens to be located right in front of the famous Fountain of Neptune.

Casa Dani

Known for having some of the best omelettes in Spain, this legendary tapas bar is located in the Mercado de la Paz in the Salamanca neighbourhood of Madrid. It offers one of the most iconic Spanish omelettes in Spain, right in the centre of Madrid. It also offers delicious Iberian ham, torreznos, ham croquettes, and much more. Casa Dani was awarded the 2019 Bar Award by the Academia Madrileña de Gastronomía. Furthermore, the quality of its cuisine has transcended to such a degree that Phillip Rosenthal, the famous writer and TV producer, filmed the fifth episode of the fifth season of his Netflix show “Somebody Feed Phil” at Casa Dani.

Tablafina

Another great option to keep getting to know the typical tapas is Tablafina, located at Paseo del Prado 48, in the NH Madrid Nacional hotel. This restaurant offers a menu based on quality products with designation of origin and counts with the expertise of Abel Valverde, who won the National Gastronomy Award for best room manager in 2008. 

Standout dishes include a great selection of Iberian cold cuts, a fried calamari sandwich with black garlic mayonnaise and Madrid’s own tripe stew—known as “callos”, it includes beef tripe, stewed and served in a traditional clay dish with chorizo and blood sausage—and cocido, the city’s traditional chickpeas and pork stew, which is served in three parts.

Saona

At the NH Madrid Balboa hotel, Saona brings Mediterranean cuisine to the center of Spain. It opts for a healthy style, based on homemade dishes with high quality ingredients. Its interior is decorated with colours and textures inspired by the Levante coast. You will surely come back. 

Visit the best tapas bars in Madrid during your trip, it will be an unforgettable culinary experience. 

You surely won’t be hungry after all these quality taps, but if you are the type that always needs something else, we propose more original and varied gastronomic options in this culinary tour of Madrid.

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