- » hole in the wall
- » immigration
- » inter-cambio
- » languages
- » law
- » movies
- » music
- » news
- » Phil's favorites
- » photo of the day
- » photography
- » politics
- » residency
- » salsa
- » shop
- » site updates
- » SPECIAL REPORTS
- » sport
- » suggestions
- » tapas & raciones
- » teach english in spain
- » TEFL articles
- » TEFL Jobs
- » TEFL Lesson Plan
- » television
- » theater
- » uncategorized
- » videos
- » visas
- » weekend
- » wine
- » yikes, parents are in town!
- » architecture
- » art
- » articles
- » audio IDs
- » bar/pub
- » blogs
- » books
- » business
- » cheap
- » clubs
- » coffee
- » community
- » concerts
- » CONTESTS!
- » contribute
- » culture
- » dance
- » dj
- » drink
- » eat
- » economy
- » escape
- » exhibitions
- » fashion
- » features
- » festivals
- » flamenco
- » food
- » gay and lesbian
- » gifts
- » guiri dispatches
- » health
- » history
Travel in Spain: The Feria de Sevilla (Seville)
Travel in Spain: The Feria de Sevilla (Seville)
by Sean McNamara
The six-hour southbound bus ride passed quickly, as my anticipation for Sevilla’s famous spring Feria (Fair) grew and the monumental silhouettes of Andalusian bulls floated over the hills. Socibus, the company that shuttles travelers...
Terrazas in Madrid: Argumosa, "Café Street"
Terrazas in Madrid: Argumosa, "Café Street"
In Madrid, when does spring officially begin? For optimists it’s the budding of delicate leaves, for pessimists it’s the banging of annual construction. For the vast majority, however, spring is the beginning of terrazas (sidewalk cafes)...
Photo of the Day
Argumosa, the Street of Many Cafés
Calle Argumosa is lined with terrazas cafes serving juice, coffee, beer, wine and sangria. A couple of hours on this magical street will cure whatever ails you.
Shopping and Food: Intercultural Spring Market in Madrid
Shopping and Food: Intercultural Spring Market in Madrid
If jostling through the crowds on Gran Via has lost its charm and you are feeling a bit on edge, before you do something drastic, take a “time out”. Just behind this tourist trodden avenue is a little secret, Plaza Luna, a square that has...
photo of the Day
The Intercultural Spring Market in Madrid
Roberto Wonka and the Chocolate Facory? Yes, that is a fountain of chocolate you are looking at. If you're seeking a quick lunchtime or evening escape in Madrid, try the current market in the Plaza de la Luna just off Gran Via. Roberto and his molten chocolate are waiting for you. For more information on Roberto's company, Chocolate Fondue (weddings, parties, conferences...), call 619 928 242.
Tapas and Raciones - Spain's Little Dishes
Tapas and Raciones: La Poza
When you're roaming the streets of Madrid late at night and looking for some cheap bar food, kebabs are often your only option. Well, not anymore, my fellow MAPistas! A drunken staple of the...
Bars - beer, tapas and raciones
Palentino - In U2 & Manu Chao's Favorite Madrid Barrio - Cheap Food and Drink
“You’re in for another type of experience,” says Ana. These were the last words I heard before I entered the mythic Bar El Palentino . Ana is...
March in review
Check Out All Events in March
March was a busy month full of tapas bars, restaurants and flamenco.
For a peek into the real flamenco scene, see our feature, Flamenco 101- A Lesson in Life . For suggestions on where to catch a bit of flamenco action, see our flamenco page.
...
photo of the day
The Cheapest Tapas in Town at Casa Tortilla
Casa Tortilla, with it's unlimited food and alcohol, is a magnet for merry-makers like those pictured. After sufficient sangria, you too might be inspired to reappropriate that checked table cloth and use it as a fashionable headband. See review.
food - Cheap Tapas in Madrid
Another Madrid Secret: Casa Tortilla, Unlimited tapas and drinks for 12 Euros!!!
by Andrew Poole
Believe it or not, tackiness is actually an admirable quality at Casa Tortilla. In a world...
Spanish Fusion
Basque-ing in the Glory of Spanish Cuisine
by Ben Dornan
Sometimes Madrid can get you down a little. Sometimes you think what the hell am I doing in this locura of a city where the stress and the daily grind seem so familiar from back home but being an expat and dealing with it all is just that little bit more...
food - Brazilian
In Search of the Ultimate "Hole-in-the-Wall"
In spite of several frustrated buzzes, no one answered the doorbell. Why? Although it looked like an ordinary housing block, I was sure I had the address right – was there a secret knock? a password? a hidden video camera? Discouraged ...
Art Spaces - Caixa Forum
Caixa Forum: Corporate Responsibility or Long-Term Publicity Stunt?
By Andre Nakazawa
Any recent stroll down the Paseo de Prado has surely been interrupted by the sight...
Restaurants - African Cuisine
Senegalese Food - Check it Out!
Archetypically “hole in the wall”, this non-descript African restaurant doesn’t draw your attention from the street. Aside from the fact that the entire Senegalese population of Madrid seems to be...
cafes in Madrid
Cafe Estrella - One Star that Keeps it Real
El Café de las Estrellas Calle Martín De Los Heros, 5. Don’t let the name fool ya. El Café de las Estellas (Café of the Stars) isn’t the place of Hollywood pomp. It does happen to be located in Banco de España, the cinema neighborhood, but, in spite of this, it maintains a humble presence: relaxed and arty. This small café sits beneath the street level, and, with “not-too-dark-not-too-bright”...
food - culture, history
Spain - Land Of The Rabbits
No doubt about it, Spain is getting pricey. According to Que!, a local newspaper in Madrid, since the change from pesetas to euros the cost of daily items has increased significantly–most notably the price of bread, which has shot up 100% in cost. Of course, nothing hits the pocket harder than the holiday season; but above stuffing stockings...
Christmas - Turrón
Turrón or not Turrón - That is the Question!
Christmas in Madrid means many things to many people, for some, it’s tons of LED-lights in the streets accompanied by conversations about carbon footprints and tourist attractions. For others, it’s signified by a particular Friday evening on which every company seems to organise...
La Latina - bars
Dragons in La Latina Bar?
Recently MAP Magazine discovered a rather awkward looking animal in a place where it was least expected. Apparently, a green dragon has managed to set up its home in a tiny, La Latina bar that’s already a contestant for the ”smallest place to drink your caña” prize. Experts are now investigating how the beast succeeded in wiggling...
Our Suggestions
Let the (MAP) Force Guide You!
The following will read like a crash course in Madrid culture. No matter what your concerns, questions or proclivities, we think you’ll be able to find something to suit your lifestyle in our medley of suggestions. As you read through the items, if you don't find what you need, check the search box at the right. If you still can't find what you are looking for, go ahead and drop us a line and we’ll try to help you out.
cafe/bookstore
Bacchus International Bookstore: Snug, Simple and Sociable
Named after a wine, there is nothing…umm… to whine about at Bacchus. A second hand bookstore and coffee shop, the place is warm, friendly and just plain comfortable. With its earth tones, cozy sofas, dim lights, great coffee and home-made (vegetarian) tostadas, its one of those places you just...
Get down!
Laydown Rest Club Madrid
It’s an age-old conundrum: should I languidly lie in bed or head out for a night of revelry? For many, too tired to go out but too restless to stay in, this constitutes a genuine conflict. Fortunately for the indecisive masses, there is now a brilliant compromise: a venue called “Lay Down” - or should that be “Lie Down”? Anyway, usage aside, this club/restaurant – provides an opportunity to do just that: relax in bed with friends while dining out and enjoying live performances and DJs...
Chinese Food Madrid
El Chino De Plaza España
So, when you hear speaking about the famous "Chino De Plaza España;" literally "The Chinese Dude Of Spain Square," be assured that they are not talking about an obscure Kung Fu film...
Food - Pan-Asian Vegetarian
Asian Food with a Trendy Twist
At lunchtime do you often find yourself stuck in the Center desperately searching for a restaurant that is quick, inexpensive, healthy and relaxing? Add this to your list of culinary options: Shi-Shang...
Markets - The Rastro
The Bloody History of the Rastro
The Rastro, Madrid’s largest outdoor market can only be described as “a universe unto itself”. With origins that stretch back nearly five centuries, one can only imagine the plentitude of traditions surrounding this massive Sunday event...
Cocktail Bars
The Penthouse - The Top of the Top!
Do you ever get that urge to reach new heights? To be above the fray? To transcend Madrid’s marcha-madness? If you have this urge, and enough pocket changes to pay up to 14 euros per cocktail, we have a suggestion for you...
Cafes - Historical Teterias
La Teteria de Tu Abuela: The Teahouse of Your (Revolutionary) Grandmother
Here is reason 5,212 to fear the Starbuck’s revolution – beautifully authentic and genuinely historic cafes like this one could easily be driven to extinction. La Teteria de tu Abuela, started in the 1950s...
food
Cheap, Caliente and Chilean
One of the little joys of living in a cosmopolitan Spanish city is the availability of authentic local food from other Spanish speaking countries. Hidden on a quiet little street in Lavapies is Pasteleria Obrador De Rosi which serves traditional, home-cooked Chilean baked goods .
Food
Moroccan Cuisine: Love at First Bite?
Of all the cuisines to come in and out of vogue – Japanese, Mexican, Thai, Indian, Ethiopian, etc, – it seems like Moroccan food has been sadly overlooked. Perhaps it’s time has come.
Super Hard Hitting News
Punk Rock Extremists Threaten Destruction of All “Discotecas”
“Death to disco” seems to be the new mantra of an “extremist” group promoting punk rock culture. To this end they have organized a pair of concerts this weekend – Friday and Saturday.
Restaurants
Are You Lazy, Poor And Kinda Fat? Don’t Fret! We Have Just The Restaurant For You!
"Health Food" looks great on the menu; after all, everyone likes food, and, presumably, we all like to be healthy. Yet, so many of us still find ourselves getting lured into Burger King, McDonald's or other peddlers of gut rot. Why is that?
From our former site
Maoz Vegetarian - A (Mostly) Pun-less Review
Don’t worry even though most people pronounce the name of the restaurant “mouth” we will avoid such bad puns as “It’s maoz watering!” - we simply aren’t that sort of publication. This non-pun-oriented restaurant is almost more of a hybrid restaurant/kiosk, but think cozy not cramped. It’s the place for every frazzled, Madrileño who’s short on time and money, but wants to eat healthily on occasion. If you are from a city that has entered the vegetarian realm a little more deeply than Madrid (for example, any place where “ham” isn’t classified as a vegetable)...