If you’ve ever gone searching for a truly Madrid part of Madrid—with a bit of history, a decent serving of grit, and lots of character—look no further than the heart of Malasaña. There you’ll find the storied Plaza del Dos de Mayo, which, from its tumultuous beginnings two centuries ago to its infamous recent history, [...]

The mindless graffiti and affable goths seem a lukewarm legacy of La Movida Madrileña (the capital’s post-Franco wild years) which kicked off in Malasaña in the Seventies. However, some of Spain’s cultural revolutionaries (the ones who didn’t die of heroine overdoses) are still to be spotted slinking around the barrio, ensuring that the party spirit [...]

If the name inspires visions of cashmere-clad beauties sipping White Russians, think again. The only kind of glamour Pub Prada exudes is that of a washed-up pimp, whose prime coincided with the death of Franco. Still, the place has a certain charm. The leatherette seats and the framed watercolours make for an atmosphere that’s half-American [...]

Taking the camera everywhere is definitely a good idea. This shot (large version here) comes from Malasaña. Many new building projects are forced to maintain original facades, gutting the middle of an old building, and building from the inside out, temporarily revealing these fascinating empty shells. The question is, did this portrait artist have a [...]

Zinc bar top and vermut on tap. Marvelous. How long can this sort of place last? As long as the owners I suppose, and it looks like this lot have a few years behind the bar in them yet, thank goodness. Get down to Calle San Andrés 4 (map) ASAP and order that vermut. Oh, [...]

I’ve noticed an increasing amount of graffiti all over the capital recently. I don’t even know if the tags scrawled all over every bare surface can be dignified with the term ‘graffiti’ – there certainly isn’t any art to most of it. The worse cases are found in the barrio of Malasaña (as in the [...]

Madrid has more suitable venues to get steaming drunk in than the whole of Belgium… or Norway… or the rest of Europe put together (depending on who you listen to). And more ways to get plastered, as well. A night on the Fino? Rounding off the evening with one glass too many of Vermut de [...]