Madrid Bars & Restaurants

Delic, Costanilla de San Andrés

Plaza de la Paja is a beautifully calm square, with plenty of trees and shade from the attractive buildings. With a handy terrace at Delic, I cannot imagine wanting to be anywhere else on a Sunday morning. Except asleep, perhaps. I spent more than an hour sipping really strong milky coffee before the sun rose above the building behind me and I discovered that I had unwisely chosen the first table to be hit with the sun; I have never paid the bill and left so quickly. I shall take one of the tables higher up next time.

The next day we went looking for a cheap lunch menu, but plan A (Casa de Paco) did not have a fixed price lunch menu, and Plan B (Café del Núncio) was deserted, so we ended up back at Plaza de la Paja. We sat outside Delic for lunch, but a few of my classmates did not appreciate the excellent sandwiches (about €4 each) because they were quite oily. I did not mind, because I got to swap my pan con tomate y jamón for a cured duck ham ciabatta. Cuba's chicken salad wrap looked good too.

Coming back to this excellent cafe for a late evening coffee in early October, it was a shock to realise that it was actually to chilly to sit outside on the terrace; I supposed it was not summer any more. Fortunately, Delic is good inside, and has plenty of comfortable furniture in the back room. This is probably my favourite cafe in Madrid.

See also

• Madrid Bar & Restaurants introduction
• European Cafe Watch