Places to eat and drink in Madrid

When you arrive in Madrid… where do you go next? Well, apart from your class on Monday morning at Inhispania, (obviously)… here are a few watering holes we have come to know and love, handily organised into categories:
Firstly, for food:
Obviously the Spanish are famous for their tapas. My favourite place for tapas would have to be Lateral, a chain which has a few restaurants around Madrid but my nearest one is in Plaza de Santa Ana, just up the road from Puerta del Sol, in a beautiful busy plaza with lots to see and do and a nice evening atmosphere. My recommended dishes are: the brocheta de verduras, always impeccably seasoned; the croquetas, a typical Spanish delicacy; and solomillo con salsa de mostaza. Lateral is perfect for a cheaper, light meal as you can order as many or few dishes as you like.
The other obvious place for tapas would have to be the famous El Tigre. Located just a couple of streets from the main road Gran Vía, El Tigre is always packed and full of life. The practice here is often to order a drink, and with it you receive various plates of tapas. The quality of the tapas generally improves with the price of the drink - order a beer or a Coke and you'll get patatas bravas or various pinchos with bread, jamón, paprika etc, upgrade to a mojito (served in a pint glass - recipe for disaster) and they treat you to croquetas, the occasional albondigas, choicer cuts of meat etc. In any case, whatever you order is inevitably delicious and perfect for sharing.
For a more upmarket meal for those feeling slightly flush, my personal favourite would have to be La Taperia. Handily situated at the end of my road on the corner of Paseo del Prado, this one is reserved for birthdays, visitors and other such special occasions. Recommended dishes: ensalada de pollo, lasagna vegetariana, la hamburguesa (absolutely gourmet - with the excellent addition of a smooth mushroom sauce but no actual mushrooms, perfect for those strange few like myself who adore mushroom sauce but abhor the things in their whole form) and to finish, the aptly named éxtasis de chocolate whose praises I cannot sing loudly enough. Utter heaven.
Next: for the perfect hangover food, if your suffering body will let you drag it this far, head to Restaurante Orient, C/Leganitos 37 (near Plaza de España). An all-you-can-eat buffet, this costs 7.80€ on weekdays or 9.95€ on weekends and is quite simply just bloody good food. And somehow the ice cream offered for dessert provides the perfect complement. Another excellent place to get Chinese food is in the carpark underneath Plaza de España, whose name I'm not quite sure of, but due to its popularity there is always a huge queue snaking outside and their policy of service is along the lines of "get them in, serve them, get them out". Not a place to go if you want to savour your food but otherwise tip top.
I couldn't forget another personal favourite, Phuket Thai at the bottom end of C/Atocha. Order the tallarines con ternera al curry - you won't regret it. They also do a mean Pad Thai.
The next one is literally my favourite place to grab a bite to eat, especially as it is open till 6.30am and is without exception my drunken downfall on my stumbles home. Tako Away is on C/de la Cruz, just off Sol and they make the best burritos in the world, at just 3.50€. My favourite filling is patatas con chorizo or on the sad occasion that they run out of that one, carne mechada.
Next, on to drinks. Try El Imperfecto, just off the buzzing C/Huertas on Plaza Matute. Not only do they provide the smashing deal of two mojitos for 10€ (the most beautiful mojitos I ever did taste) they also do a number of remarkably tasty non-alcoholic fruity cocktails. I recommend the Imperdonable. This bar is ideal for the day time too with coffees coming at just 1.80€ or you can have hot chocolate, literally melted chocolate, which is an extravagance the Spanish seem to be very fond of. The decor is a treat for the eyes as well, with a number of movie posters and random ornaments adorning the walls and hanging from the light fittings. An absolutely delightful atmosphere and perfect for a few evening drinks which may or may not turn into something a little messier.
Just around the corner on C/León is Lamucca. Their rich and varied food menu is absolutely cracking but their cocktails, in particular the Wild Berry Martini and the Black Caipiroska (at 6.50€ a pop an extremely generous price for Madrid) are also divine. And by divine I do literally mean they could have come from the gods. Check it out.
For a really classy experience, nip up to the rooftop bar of one of Madrid's Roommate hotels, my favourite being the Óscar. This really is one of the most beautiful settings, with cushions and mattresses dotted about the terrace, a swimming pool and a view encompassing the whole of Madrid. The perfect place to go either before a night out to see Madrid lit up at night or to watch the sun come up, depending on its opening hours.
And my absolute favourite, in the trendy zone of Chueca and mainly for the reason that its soundtrack specialises in deep house, is Areia Colonial Chillout on C/ Hortaleza 92. The cosy yet chic atmosphere is the ideal place for a few chilled drinks with friends.
And finally - for anyone looking for some little slices of home, Dr. Pepper and Vanilla Coke can be found in a little shop called Francis' Bakery on C/Huertas 1. After they stopped selling Vanilla Coke in England about 7 years ago I have been lusting after it ever since and to find it on the street parallel to my flat in Spain is just an absolute dream. Well done Spain.
So there you have it, a little insight into where to find me lurking around Madrid and where to spend time with your new friends. I hope any visitors find it useful, and come to enjoy these places as much as I do!
photo via: Picture from Lamucca.es