It is just a great place where you can find different kind of people. Actually it is quite eclectic, great for weekends; you can spend hours in the terrace (even in winter!) reading the newspaper enjoying breakfast if you consider breakfast as Spaniards do (usually coffee or tea with whatever “tapa” you can find) until late in the afternoon if you find a table because it is usually quite crowded!

There are concerts the last Thursdays of every month and DJ’s sessions the first Sundays of the month. Sometimes there are photo exhibits as well as paintings exhibits. The food is good and drinks are good and the cocktails are great. You can have the typical “pomada” of the Balearic Islands (popular drink made out of gin and lemon), but also “mojito” or caipirinha.

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Café Mahón | Bars, Music, Snacks | Meal € 15.00
Plaza Dos de Mayo, 4 | Chueca & Malasaña | +34915324756
Mon – Thu 12:00 – 01:30, Fri – Sun 12:00 – 03:00

Just the place to go to have great cocktails and cool music! You can find many different types of people, from Cirque du Soleil actors to writers.

You can grab a bite while listening how the DJ Jaimote puts a record on… The “croquetas” are really yummy, you can have meals or grab a bite if you want.

The place is great to have an after work or after dinner drink, especially a mojito or a glass of champagne, and to enjoy a relaxing conversation with good music.

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La Turba | Bars, Music, Snacks | Menu € 14.00
C/ del Conde de Xiquena, 3 | Chueca & Malasaña | +34915221813
Mon – Fri 13:00 – 02:00, Sat 19:00 – 02:30

Breakfasts, meals, snacks, dinner, dance…… you can almost spend the day at Lolina’s….just in front of Home Burger (check the Home Burger Bar article).

The place has WIFI and you can spend hours surfing the net with a great cup of a wide variety of teas and an AMAZING cheesecake…. You are allowed to take your dog, which is not very common in Madrid (the city is not very dog friendly!). The place is decorated with vintage furniture and it is very cosy. You have also WIFI.

Downstairs you can celebrate the “guateques” (common Spanish word for a 60s and 70s party). 

The place has become quite popular and is packed on weekends.

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Lolina | Bars, Music | Breakfast € 4.00
C/ Espíritu Santo, 9 | Chueca & Malasaña | +34667201169
Mon – Fri 09:00 – 01:00, Sat 10:00 – 02:00

Aula 11 is one of my favourite places in Madrid. I do not think there is anything similar as it offers a combination of cultural events and personal growth.

Three brave partners thought about the idea during the summer of 2006 and now this unique place is located in the heart of the city, in Plaza Tirso de Molina; so it is easy to find.

Apart from the regular agenda that varies every week on their website, there are several interesting seminars that you can try. There are yoga or belly dance courses, you can try your skills in the theatre or performance, or learn about body language, positive attitude and coaching.

Concerts are mostly during weekends. Last time I went to Aula 11, there was a very relaxing Jam Session on a Friday night. The atmosphere was different from any other place. The light, the location, the staff… Trust me, you can feel like at home, sitting down on the wooden floor, enjoying your drink. Do not miss this place, try once and you will get addicted! And do not forget to experience a Hindu concert!

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Aula 11 | Art & culture, Music, Relaxing | Free
Plaza Tirso de Molina 8 | Lavapies & Latina | +34913691127
Check the website for opening times

More than just a cafe, this old staple of Madrid is a music and poetry venue. Almost every famous songwriter, musician, and poet has passed through this decadent and charming hangout.

It´s actually one of my favourites because every time I go, it reminds me all its history. The building started as a cow house, then it changed into a wine house and used to be the place where Journalists and writers gathered.

From 1975, it is a cafe. It has an “L” shape so when you first enter there´s a bar and, if you walk further, you´ll find a small stage for the shows. On this stage there is still a real “pianola” dated from the beginning of the last century. And it works!

Most of the very popular Spanish singer-songwriters as Pedro Guerra, Rosana, Tontxu or Kiko Tovar started here. Nowadays, it´s a very well known cafe in Spain and Latin America. Not only that: right now you can enjoy storytelling for adults, photography and painting exhibitions or poetry reading, as the selection varies depending on the day. Its owner, Ricardo del Olmo, is promoting new talents and wants to consider this place as a cultural reference. I think he´s doing a great job!

Café Libertad 8 is located close to a lot of bars, in the Chueca district, so it could be the beginning of a long night out in the city! Enjoy!

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Libertad 8 | Art & culture, Bars, Music
C/ Libertad 8 | Chueca & Malasaña | +34915321150
Mon – Fri 17:00 – 02:30, Sat 18:00 – 03:00, Sun 15:00 – 00:30

Thomas Price was an Irish horse-breaker descendant of an acrobat family who arrived in Madrid in 1847 and founded a circus in this city.

The second Price circus was inaugurated in 2007 in his honor. It’s the only circus installed in a building in Spain that offers spectacles all throughout the year. And not only circus shows, whether traditional or avant-garde, but also music concerts, expositions, workshops, dancing, private events…

The main hall (there are three) is very spacious and attractive with a great ring. There’s also a café.

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Teatro Circo Price | Art & culture, Music, Theaters | Entrance adults € 25
Ronda de Valencia 35 | Lavapies & Latina | +34915288122
Daily

The first time I entered in La Flauta Mágica, it seamed to me some kind of antique, old-fashioned English pub. Mirrors and dark green colors dominate the interior. But now, I really enjoy this pub.

I think it is pleasant, close, and entertaining for all the activities that take place along the week. Story tellers, concerts, stand up comedy, Mus (a very popular Spanish card game) championships…

The pub is divided in two parts. On part is the long bar and the other is a dark seating space for a drink, where you can enjoy performances. It’s too bad the noise of the people in the bar area sometimes disturbs the artist and audience.

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La Flauta Mágica | Bars, Music | Beer € 3.00
Alcántara 49 | Salamanca Area | +34914012896
18:00 – 03:00 daily

In Lavapiés’s heart, the most ethnic and bohemian neighborhood of Madrid, La Escalera de Jacob (Jacob’s ladder, like the film) is located.

La Escalera de Jacob is a space dedicated to the artistic creation out of the conventional circuits. Every day you can find an extensive programme of activities there, especially, small format theatre (from 5 to 12 euros) and concerts, but also films and workshops.

There are two rooms in the low floor where these acts take place. But you can also go there simply for a drink on the terrace (when the weather allows it) and in the upper floor, you’ll find a young and good ambient, warm and with a magic and dark touch. Now, there is another Escalera that maintains that personality in La Latina neighborhood, in Mancebos Street.

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La Escalera de Jacob | Art & culture, Bars, Music, Theaters | Cocktail € 8
Lavapiés 11 | Lavapies & Latina | +34649423254
Mon – Wed 19:00 – 01:00, Thu – Fri 19:00 – 02:30, Sat 11:00 – 02:30, Sun 11:00 – 01:00

Just in the city center, very close to Gran Vía, we find this bar with nice ambient, for relaxing and listening good and not always very comercial music (rock, soul, funk of yesterday and today) while drinking a beer or cocktail. This happens on the upper floor where there’s a bar and a chill out area for seating or laying down comfortably on cushions.

But Costello was born in 2005 under one premise: being something more than a pub. For this reason, it supports new artists and talents, whatever the creative field was. Almost everyday in the evening/night, it celebrates concerts of emergent bands in the lower floor and DJ’s sessions on weekends.

Also, there are humoristic sketches, theatre, expositions, DJ’s, languages meetings where Spanish and foreign people meet for speaking in both languages to practice the one that each one wants to learn. I think this activity is very interesting for foreign people that are interested in speaking Spanish.

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Costello Club | Art & culture, Bars, Music | Cocktails € 8.00
Caballero de Gracia 8 | Gran Via & Princesa | +34915230174
Sun – Thu 18:00 – 02:30, Fri – Sat 18:00 – 03:30