An ex-local's guide to Chamberí, Madrid

Those blue, blue skies of Madrid.

When I moved to Chamberí at the start of 2020, it didn’t take me long to fall in love with it. This neighbourhood is just a stone’s throw from the centre of Madrid, but it has a quiet, residential feel, and still retains the “barrio life” that is missing from some of the city’s more tourist-thronged quarters.

It’s also home to some great cultural attractions, a myriad of interesting places to eat, and one of the city’s nicest plazas. On which note…

Plaza de Olavide and surroundings

Chamberí district is made up of several barrios: Vallehermoso and Ríos Rosas in the north, and Gaztambide, Arapiles, Trafalgar and Almagro in the south. In the middle of Trafalgar, you can find this turtle-shaped plaza, which used to house the barrio’s covered market until the whole structure was dynamited in the 1970s. 

Today, the space left behind is the epicentre of this neighbourhood. There’s playground space, plenty of greenery, park benches and a perimeter ring of bars and restaurants with outdoor seating.

Families meet up for play dates, teens walk arm in arm with their grandparents, and people of all ages congregate to enjoy life from breakfast to post-dinner copas late into the night. It’s everything I love about Madrid, and it’s easy to see why the Financial Times dubbed it the European dream. 

This was one of the first places I came after Madrid’s pandemic restrictions lifted, sitting in the shade of one of its many trees, sipping a vermut and marvelling at the spring that had burst into verdant life while we had spent almost two months indoors, venturing out only to buy food (Spain’s lockdown was strict). Perhaps that’s a reason why this plaza will always feel extra special to me. Anyway: you should go. It’s lovely. 

I tend to agree with the FT writer that the restaurants in Olavide itself are “pleasant but unexceptional”, but there are a few spots in the streets immediately nearby that are worth tearing yourself away from the plaza vibes for. 

Toma Café is a specialty coffee place that makes a reliably great flat white.

Bar Trafalgar is the perfect spot for a long, boozy lunch with friends. I went there for the first time a few months ago when I was back in the city, and it immediately leapt into my top 10 places to eat in Madrid. They do excellent cocktails and classic “tapas with a twist” like patatas bravas hojaldradas-style (essentially, potato mille-feuille with bravas sauce), a dish I first ate in Zaragoza a few years ago and became instantly obsessed with.  

“Patatas bravas de Chamberí” and croquetas: both solid choices at Bar Trafalgar

Shift Public House is a new-ish place around the corner from here. It’s a bar run by two lovely guys both called Alberto, and their current cocktail menu has drinks inspired by the different neighbourhoods of Madrid. It would be cheesy if it weren’t so thoughtful and well-executed. If you like bitters, try the Chamberí.

Finally, Olavide Bar de Libros is my favourite kind of hybrid: a bookshop where you can also have a glass of wine or a coffee and a slice of cake. They hold regular events such as author interviews and writing workshops, using a room in the basement which is also kitted out as a laptop-friendly space available for coworking. The atmosphere is delightful, the staff are very pleasant, and I think if hadn’t left Madrid I would basically live here. 

Best things to do in Chamberí

You could quite easily spend a whole weekend in Chamberí just exploring its museums, wandering and eating, perhaps visiting a cinema like Cine Yelmo Luxury Palafox (where you can order a meal at your seat) or the Teatros de Canal theatre complex, which has an impressive programme of contemporary dance. 

Valencia-born Joaquín Sorolla was one of Spain’s most important artists of the late-19th and early-20th centuries, and he lived and worked for many years in a stately home in Chamberí which is now a museum about his life and work. Museo Sorolla has a pretty Andalucian-style garden complete with fountains, and you can pop in to look at it even if you’re not visiting the museum. [UPDATE: the museum is currently closed for refurbishment, and slated to reopen in early 2026].

The pretty patio of Museo Sorolla is a delight on a hot day

Museo Geominero is (pun absolutely intended) a bit of a hidden gem in barrio Ríos Rosas. As well as housing an impressive collection of gemstones, rocks and fossils, the Geomineral Museum has a striking building with beautiful stained-glass ceilings and windows. Entry is free. On the first Sunday of each month, the neighbouring Mining School has a market where you can buy all kinds of rocks, gems, fossils and shells.

Estacion Chamberi, also known as Anden 0 (Platform Zero), is one of a series of museums belonging to the Madrid Metro. This one is located underground in the former Chamberí Station, which closed in the 1960s, and has walls covered in vintage ceramic tiles. If, like me, you’re fascinated by “ghost stations”, then keep on eye out for this one when you’re travelling on Metro Line 1 between Iglesia and Bilbao stations. Here’s some footage I recorded on my phone in slowmo.

Where else to eat in Chamberí

Finally a round-up of some more of my favourite cafes and restaurants in Chamberí. 

Calle de Ponzano is one of Madrid’s trendiest streets for tapas bar hopping. It’s home to the industrial-chic Sala de Despiece, famous for dishes such as the Rolex (I am yet to try this but I’m told the flavour and presentation is quite something). My personal favourites on this street are Fide and DeAtun, which specialise in seafood, stylish La Maquina for a bit of everything, and El DeCano when you just fancy some traditional tapas in a cosy taberna-style environment.

Just around the corner from Ponzano is Sylkar, a small neighbourhood bar that serves a tortilla de patatas (Spanish omelette) that’s been hailed as one of the best in Madrid. I recently read that the owners are hoping to retire soon and are struggling to find someone to take over the business. If they can’t find anyone it will have to close, so if you want to try their star dish for yourself, don’t wait too long. 

Over on the other side of Chamberí, the Mercado de Vallehermoso is a market full of places to eat as well as stalls selling fresh produce. When I first came here I recall there were only a few bars and restaurants, but now it’s packed with them.

Kitchen 154 is my absolute favourite, with some great Korean-influenced dishes (they also sell an excellent homemade hot sauce), and I hope to one day be organised enough to get a booking at the award-winning Tripea, which serves Peruvian-Asian fusion food by “market cuisine” trailblazer chef Roberto Martínez Foronda.

There’s one place I always make a pilgrimage to when I’m back in Chamberí and that’s Mazal Bagels. We ordered these New York-style bagels by delivery throughout the pandemic, and the small joy of opening the paper bag and inhaling the “everything bagel” seasoning was sometimes the highlight of the day. 

As much as I love Spanish food, I also love that Madrid, like London, has pretty much every world cuisine you could want these days. But that’s a subject for another day!