Madrid is culture, leisure, a great atmosphere and fantastic weather. It is all that and much more, but above all, Madrid is delicious.

Madrid is wonderful with any sauce, grilled or barbecued. Madrid goes well with everything, combining and pairing with anything. Madrid is delicious.

If you are someone who immerses themselves in the cuisine of the place they visit, this is for you. We bring you the typical dishes of Madrid cuisine, the most authentic food you can cook on the stove.

But we’re not going to leave you hanging. We’ll give you a complete list of the best things to eat and where to go to eat the best of the best. All that’s left is to treat you to a meal, and you’ll be complaining.

Typical Madrid dishes and the best restaurants and bars where you can eat them

Cocido madrileño

We start strong, we start where we should start with Madrid’s cuisine: cocido madrileño. Its three courses have been a hallmark of traditional cuisine since the mid-17th century.

Of all the places we can visit to enjoy this little piece of Madrid, we must highlight two above the rest for their quality and history.

First, Lhardy. One of the most traditional and oldest restaurants in the capital. Open since 1839, it continues to exude an aura of elegance and class that few places can match.

Malacatín is another name synonymous with Madrid’s restaurant scene. Its history is that of the city, and its star dish is a cocido madrileño that is considered one of the best in the capital.

Run by the fourth generation of the family that opened it over a hundred years ago, it remains true to tradition and the authentic flavours of Madrid. Remember that we are talking about truly legendary places, so book before you go, because being part of Madrid’s history is no easy task.

Callos a la madrileña

Another great success of local cuisine, a dish without which Madrid’s cuisine cannot be understood: Madrid-style tripe. One of many dishes with its own surname: ‘a la madrileña’ (Madrid-style).

This is a true statement of intent; here you have a dish that may not be 100% Madrid, but we have adopted and moulded it into the perfect blend of tradition, roots and flavour.

We cannot fail to mention Lhardy and Malacatín. How boring, you might say, but they are a true mecca for traditional Madrid cuisine.

Now that you’ve been warned and we don’t want to repeat ourselves, here are some other places where tradition and Madrid-style tripe are an institution. Right on Calle Mayor is Casa Ciriaco, another of those places where a love of simplicity and good workmanship has earned it prestige and respect throughout Madrid.

Where time seems to stand still, and literary culture has been nurtured, is at Café Gijón. Believe it or not, in addition to having a coffee in a place that is part of Spanish history, you can also enjoy a wonderful meal.

Choose any dish from their extensive menu and you can’t go wrong, but if we had to highlight something, we would definitely recommend their Madrid-style tripe. Is there anything they don’t do well here?

Bocadillo de calamares

You can eat fast food without losing an ounce of your Madrid authenticity. And to prove it, here’s a sandwich. The super Madrid dish that everyone loves, that brings together backpackers and big executives in the capital: the calamari sandwich.

The Plaza Mayor and its surroundings are the perfect place to enjoy this delicacy, which, although it may seem simple and less mysterious than the mechanism of a pacifier, actually has a secret to achieving its excellent flavour.

But if you can’t decide between all the restaurants, bars and taverns serving calamari sandwiches, we’ll give you one name that stands out from the rest. But remember that any bar in the Plaza Mayor area is fantastic.

We dress up a little more and head to TerZio Bar, the most informal of the formal, the most sophisticated of the traditional. That’s what chef Saúl Sanz brings us. The traditional with a new vision. And if you go, take advantage and don’t leave anything on the menu untried.

Gallina en pepitoria

A classic dish of Spanish and Madrid cuisine awaits you in Madrid’s most traditional restaurants. And among them, which are many and very good, we highlight two. And only two because we can’t be here all day, but the centre of Madrid would need an entire book just to talk about the best restaurants to eat chicken in pepitoria sauce.

Firstly, Viuda de Vacas. A mixture of restaurant and tavern, it has been open for over a hundred years and specialises in traditional dishes made with top-quality ingredients. And its chicken in almond sauce is a real treat for the palate.

That’s not all, the entire menu is a declaration of love for Madrid’s cuisine. And if we have to give a second option, if you’re still hungry, which I doubt but just in case, we return to a familiar place.

Casa Ciriaco, which we’ve already mentioned, has also been offering the best Madrid dishes for over a century, and the chicken in almond sauce is served just as it was a hundred years ago, staying true to the ingredients and the way it’s cooked. A tribute to gastronomy and to the customers.