El Rey de Gallinejas in Madrid's Embajadores quarter is the working-quarter taberna for gallinejas (fried lamb intestine) and entresijos (fried lamb-belly fat), the offal canon that defined the Madrileno cheap eat since 1947.
Tip: Walk-in only. Cash preferred. Closed Mondays. Racion of gallinejas runs 8 euros; entresijos 6 euros.
Address: Calle del Embajadores 84, 28012 Madrid
Rosales on Calle Echegaray in Madrid is the standing-room tapas counter where the Basque-origin gilda (anchovy, olive, guindilla on a stick) anchors the Spanish-Northern tapas canon adopted by Madrid taberneros.
Try: Gilda tapas
Tip: Walk-in. Gilda tapas run 2 euros each; pair with vermut. The bar fills up at 20:30 weekend evenings.
Panaderia Mision in Madrid's Conde Duque sells sourdough sandwiches at the counter, with daily fillings of jamon iberico, tortilla and salmorejo, plus the city's reference sourdough loaves to take away.
Try: Sourdough sandwich
Tip: Walk-in only at the counter. Sourdough sandwich runs 6 to 8 euros. The loaves sell out by 14:00; buy early.
Casa Puerto Rico off Plaza Mayor in Madrid is the bocadillo de calamares counter, with squid rings fried to order in the small kitchen behind the standing-room bar, beside fresh-pressed lemon slices.
Try: Bocadillo de calamares
Tip: Cash preferred. Walk-in only. Bocadillo runs 5 euros, cana 2.50 at the standing-room counter.
Casa Mira on Carrera de San Jeronimo has produced turron (soft-and-hard almond-and-honey brick) since 1855, with the marble counter and the original 19th-century moulds for Christmas-season production.
Try: Turron de Jijona
Tip: Cash preferred. Closed Sundays. Turron runs 15 to 28 euros per kilo; smaller portions sold by weight.
Bar La Ideal off Plaza Mayor in Madrid is the bocadillo de calamares counter where battered squid rings on a fresh roll define the Madrileno working-day lunch since the 1950s.
Try: Bocadillo de calamares
Tip: Walk-in only at the counter. Bocadillo (5.50 euros) with a slice of lemon and a cana. Cash preferred at the bar.
Chocolateria San Gines off Calle Mayor in Madrid has fried the churros con chocolate for the after-midnight crowd since 1894. The 24-hour counter still pulls a queue at 03:00 from the late-night Madrid scene.
Try: Churros con chocolate
Tip: Walk-in only. Set of 6 churros and a thick chocolate cup (4.30 euros). The 03:00 to 05:00 slot is the post-club rush.
