Madrid Bars & Restaurants

Taberna Tempranillo, Calle de la Cava Baja 38

This atmospheric wine bar is always packed late in the evening, apparently, which is no surprise given the great atmosphere, large wine selection and delicious sophisticated tapas. I adored the mushrooms on toast, and the wine was great. Bizarrely, everyone else seemed to be Spanish, even though Lonely Planet mention the place; presumably, La Latina is far enough from guirilandia (tourist-town) to be more normal.

One peculiar aspect of the crowd at Taberna Tempranillo is that Juan, the owner, used to be a waiter at the Spanish senate before he opened this place, which became popular with the senate staff who knew him.

On another day we returned to Tempranillo just after 9 p.m. for an early-evening drink to find the place much quieter than when we were here before. This meant that we got a place at the bar to munch the delicious mushroom and goats cheese toasties, while sipping gorgeous wine. Red, white and rose were all adored; it is only a shame that the glasses are small rather than, say, huge. Somehow, we needed something more substantial to eat, so we headed off after one glass to look for more elsewhere. It would be nice to fill up on tapas here, but not cheap.

See also

• Madrid Bar & Restaurants introduction
• European Cafe Watch