Madrid: Art, Food, and Culture in Spain’s Majestic Capital
This week, we’re in Madrid, Spain’s vibrant capital—a city that blends imperial grandeur, world-class museums, walkable streets, and an unmatched food scene. Tim and David share expert insights, from where to stay, eat, and explore, plus personal travel experiences that bring Madrid to life.
Topics Covered:
Where to Stay 🏨
Whether you’re looking for historic luxury, modern design, or boutique charm, these are our top picks:
- 🌟 The Westin Palace, Madrid – Built in 1912, commissioned by the King of Spain, and a past residence of Picasso and Hemingway. Located near the Prado Museum.
- 🌆 Four Seasons Hotel Madrid – A luxurious flatiron-style landmark, home to celebrity chef Dani García’s rooftop restaurant.
- 🎶 Hyatt Centric Gran Via Madrid – A music-themed hotel inspired by the city’s radio station heritage, with a fantastic rooftop terrace.
What to Do 🎨🏛
- 🏛 Museo Nacional del Prado – Spain’s iconic art museum, home to Goya, El Greco, Velázquez, and Bosch’s legendary triptychs.
- 💡 Museo De La Luz Madrid – A modern interactive art space with immersive light installations, great for Instagram-worthy moments.
- 🚂 Mercado de Motores – A weekend market inside a historic train museum, blending shopping, culture, and classic locomotives.
- 🌍 Plaza Mayor – Madrid’s grandest square, a historic meeting place filled with cafés, street performers, and architectural beauty.
- ⚽ Santiago Bernabéu Stadium – Experience the electric atmosphere of a Real Madrid match and explore the team’s legendary history.
Where to Eat 🍽
- 🍷 El miniBAR – A small but highly rated local spot with classic Spanish flavors like gazpacho with Serrano ham.
- 🥘 Bestial by Rosi La Loca – A fun, vibrant tapas and paella spot, known for its playful decor, theatrical cocktails, and late-night energy.
- 🥪 Mercado de San Antón – A more local alternative to Mercado de San Miguel, featuring artisan sandwiches at Gusto.
- 🍄 Mesón del Champiñón – Famous for its garlic-stuffed mushrooms, located just steps from Plaza Mayor.
- 🐖 Restaurante Botín – The oldest restaurant in the world (since 1725), specializing in roast suckling pig—reservations required.
Can’t-Miss Experiences 🌟
- 🍫 Chocolatería San Ginés – A Madrid institution since 1894, serving thick hot chocolate and crispy churros—open 24 hours.
- ⚽ Real Madrid Match at Santiago Bernabéu – Feel the intensity of Spain’s biggest football club, and explore the stadium’s rivalry with Barcelona.
Final Thoughts:
Tim and David wrap up by debating Barcelona vs. Madrid—which city is better? Tim leans toward Barcelona for its Mediterranean charm, while David prefers Madrid for its walkability and culture.
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Credits:
Hosted by Tim Johnson and David Brodie. Produced by Voyascape Media.
Copyright - Voyascape Media
Transcript
Welcome to travel in 10.
Speaker A:Last week we were in Spain talking about Barcelona.
Speaker A:Today we're a short train ride away in the middle of the country in Madrid.
Speaker A:A dynamic mix of old world charm, modern energy, world class museums, historic plazas, incredible food and a very walkable city.
Speaker A:So today we're going to get into it.
Speaker A:Where to stay, what to do.
Speaker A:Tim, what, what, what are some of your opening thoughts as, as we get into Madrid?
Speaker A:Why, why, why should someone go to Madrid?
Speaker A:And from what you've, you've seen and done in the city.
Speaker B:Well, well, for me, Madrid really feels like there's a few cities in the world that really feel like capital cities, you know, cities that were the center of an empire, you know, and all of that wealth and influence led to a lot of beauty.
Speaker B:You know, obviously empires don't really exist anymore in a physical sense, but all of the beautiful things that for better or for worse came from the empire ended up in those cities.
Speaker B:I know we're going to talk about Vienna at some point, same thing with Vienna.
Speaker B:And that's the way that I feel like when I'm in Madrid.
Speaker B:I've only been to Madrid a couple times, been a few years since I've been there.
Speaker B:I know, David, you were there much more recently.
Speaker B:So why don't we dive right in?
Speaker B:Well, you know, before we dive in, I know you've got a few really good recommendations.
Speaker B:I'm just going to give a couple of my quick ones and then I'm going to hand the ball off to you.
Speaker B:Plaza Mayor, right in the heart of the city, main square.
Speaker B:Everybody goes there, everybody knows about it, but it really is worth it.
Speaker B:It might be one of the best sort of main squares for me in the world.
Speaker B:I mean, just the, the beauty and the history of the place and just the completeness of that square that, that surrounds you.
Speaker B:I love Plaza Mayor.
Speaker B:And then I'm just going to mention the Prado Museum.
Speaker B:I mean, again, another obvious one, but just so many treasures to discover there.
Speaker B:El Greco, Rubens.
Speaker B:And I know we were talking before the show that I wanted to mention, it's a little off topic, but I love the Bosch, the Hieronymous Bosch triptychs.
Speaker B:And it's not necessarily because I'm a Bosch fan and I mean, Bosch's art is a little bit dark, but I'm a huge fan of the Harry Bosch crime fiction series written by Michael Connelly and they often reference, because Harry Bosch is actually named Hieronymus Bosch and they often reference Bosch and the triptychs in his artwork.
Speaker B:So when I was in Madrid, I made a point of going and seeing these triptychs at the Prado Museum because I think it might be one of the best places in the entire world to see this type of artwork.
Speaker B:So those are my.
Speaker B:I only have a couple, but I know you've got some good ones.
Speaker B:David, let's, let's, let's talk about it.
Speaker A:Well, I was going to say I fully support your recommendation on Musea del Prado.
Speaker A:I mean it's really Spain's most iconic art museum.
Speaker A:You've got Goya, El Greco.
Speaker A:I mean I think it really is like it's comparable to the Louvre in many ways.
Speaker A:Like the size, the scope of it.
Speaker A:There is a lot to see and do there.
Speaker A:So definitely like, I think the Prado's worth spending probably almost a full day at for sure on, on a very different end of the spectrum when it comes to, to museums.
Speaker A:I mean I was there with my, my 16 year old and you know, we found a, a much more Instagrammable museum I guess was the, the Madrid Light Art Museum which was, which was quite cool.
Speaker A:Sort of a modern interactive art space, immersive light installations.
Speaker A:Very different obviously from what you're seeing at, at the Prado.
Speaker A:But if you're traveling with, with teens or family, that, that's definitely one I, I would highly recommend and, and worth checking out some great markets throughout the city.
Speaker A:I know there's, there's was one we hit which was in a vintage train museum that's, that's turned into a great weekend market.
Speaker A:So not only do you could see all these, you know, iconic vintage trains, but great local finds and things that you can find there from, from a, from a shopping perspective.
Speaker A:So definitely from, from a, from a, from a what to do standpoint, those would be, those be some of my favorites.
Speaker A:And it's also.
Speaker A:I don't know what you found, but I found the journey to be like a super walkable city.
Speaker A:We didn't have a car the whole time we were there.
Speaker A:You know, it was only about a half hour ride in from the airport to our, our, our hotel which was very, very centrally located.
Speaker A:And really, you know, for the four or five days we were there, there was no need for a car.
Speaker A:We didn't even really take public transportation or Ubers or stuff much because it is like super walkable.
Speaker A:Everything really concentrated.
Speaker A:And in addition to some of these iconic, you know, things from an art perspective, you know, one of the things I really liked were some of the markets in the City, I don't know.
Speaker A:Did you get to, you know, the one that.
Speaker A:I know everyone usually makes it to Mercado San Miguel.
Speaker A:I don't know if you had a chance to make it there when you were there, Tim.
Speaker B:I did.
Speaker B:I mean, I don't, I don't have any particular comments about it, but it was a, it was a very, very cool market and it was definitely worth a visit and definitely enjoyed it.
Speaker B:And I, and I second your notion on walking in Madrid.
Speaker B:I mean, there's some cities where you can, you can walk and then there's other cities, as you've said, where walking is a pleasure, you know, or walking is part of the experience.
Speaker B:And for me, that was my, definitely my experience on my couple visits to Madrid that, that you want to walk and you want to go out and explore and sometimes you want to just, you don't even have a destination, you just want to go, go out and wander and see what you see and discover what you discover.
Speaker B:And you're always going to discover something which is, which is kind of cool.
Speaker B:And then, you know, ob.
Speaker B:One of the reasons that we go out for a walk sometimes is to find something to eat.
Speaker B:And you know, Madrid is, is definitely a city that has options.
Speaker B:And I've again, you know, I've only got a couple here and I'm going to hand it off to you.
Speaker B:One I just want to recommend again, I mentioned a small, simple local place when we talked about Barcelona.
Speaker B:I have the same kind of place here, very highly rated in Madrid called El Minibar.
Speaker B:Who doesn't love a minibar, right?
Speaker B:But simple and delicious.
Speaker B:You know, think as you know, gazpacho, serrano ham, that kind of thing.
Speaker B:The menu's like one page, you know, not, you won't be dazzled with choices, but anything that you order is going to be good.
Speaker B:So again, don't expect white tablecloths, don't get dressed up, but this is a great place.
Speaker B:And then another place I want to mention, and I know you've got a, you know, you've got a personal experience here is Rosie La Loca, which is bright and fun, has really good paella.
Speaker B:I know, I know, you've been there quite recently, right, David?
Speaker A:Yeah, it was a place that we just kind of stumbled upon late one night.
Speaker A:We were looking for some heat and wandered by and it happened to be open.
Speaker A:You know, I think they're open till 1:30, 2:00 in the morning.
Speaker A:They were definitely like a late, a bit of a late night place.
Speaker A:Super vibrant, instagram worthy spot.
Speaker A:I don't even really know how to describe it.
Speaker A:It's almost like you walk in and it's this kind of under the sea theme.
Speaker A:There's all these sculptures but also light projections where they actually like project stuff onto the tables as you're eating.
Speaker A:And a lot of them are big communal tables where you'll be sitting with 20, 30 people.
Speaker A:Super creative sort of cocktails and tapas.
Speaker A:Some of the cocktails will come in, you know, one of them came in a giant cup shaped like an octopus.
Speaker A:Another was a cartoon character.
Speaker A:A waiter will just start singing randomly out of the middle of nowhere in the restaurant.
Speaker A:It was a lot going on there.
Speaker A:It was a very cool spot from, from an atmosphere perspective and the food was great too.
Speaker A:So, so that's, that's definitely one that I would recommend checking out and very centrally located.
Speaker A:The other ones I would call out.
Speaker A:Well, two things I would mention from a, from a food perspective.
Speaker A:I know we, we mentioned earlier, earlier Mercado San Miguel, which is, you know, the best known market in the city, tourist hot spot.
Speaker A:It's, it's near Plaza Mayor and everybody goes there.
Speaker A:And I would recommend going there for sure.
Speaker A:It's worth seeing.
Speaker A:It's a great people watching spot.
Speaker A:I wouldn't necessarily recommend eating there.
Speaker A:Instead I would go to another market that's maybe a 10 minute walk away.
Speaker A:Marcado San Anton.
Speaker A:Definitely a little bit more local.
Speaker A:Really, really good food.
Speaker A:There was a, a can't miss sandwich shop there called Gusto where you had these guy, this guy creating very much these sort of artisan sandwiches.
Speaker A:He, he would take 10 to 15 minutes per sandwich and they were these crazy artistic displayed sandwiches that he, he was sort of obsessing over every detail and a crowd of people around watching him as he made each one of these sandwiches.
Speaker A:So, so Gusto and Mercado San Anton is definitely a strong recommend.
Speaker A:And then the other thing is, you know, Spain is obviously incredibly well known for, for tapas.
Speaker A:Each, each city in each region has their own variation on tapas and there is so much to choose from from you know, tapas restaurants.
Speaker A:When you get, were lucky that we, we got on a great tour, a company called the Tour Guys who does food tours throughout the city and, and their tapas tour was, I would say that's like a must do when you're there.
Speaker A:Incredible tapas scene.
Speaker A:And having a local guide who really can take you to a curated selection of the, the best of those throughout the city made it so much easier.
Speaker A:I mean they, they took us to about six different places for food and drinks throughout the course of the night.
Speaker A:But then we're telling us all about the history of the city and everything throughout the walk as well.
Speaker A:I, I won't spoil all the places that they take you to because I would recommend doing the tour, but there was one called Maison del Champignon, famous for its garlic stuffed mushrooms, just a few steps away from Plaza Mayor and, and a lot happening there from an atmosphere perspective as well.
Speaker A:And one that we didn't stop on on the tour but they talked a little bit about.
Speaker A:We walked by that looked like a great place and, and requires some advanced planning.
Speaker A:Was called Restaurant Botin.
Speaker A:It's the oldest restaurant in the world.
Speaker A: st operating restaurant since: Speaker A: t of continuous service since: Speaker A:They're supposed to have a, a legendary roast suckling pig there.
Speaker A:But it is one that you've got to make reservations like certainly at least months in advance.
Speaker A:So we got to see it, we didn't get to eat there, but one that requires a bit of advanced planning.
Speaker A:So those would be my go tos from, from a where to eat perspective for sure.
Speaker B:What about where to stay?
Speaker B:You got it.
Speaker B:You got a favorite spot?
Speaker A:Yeah, we stayed at a great spot, the, the Western Palace, Madrid.
Speaker A: know this, this was built in: Speaker A:Everybody from Pablo Picasso to, to Ernest Hemingway have stayed there you know, during the, the, the Spanish Civil War.
Speaker A:Its iconic sort of glass domed lounge served as an operating theater because of size and the natural light and stuff.
Speaker A:And then they're actually restoring that right now and it's currently being converted over from a Westin to one of the luxury collection hotels, part of Marriott Bonvoy.
Speaker A:So when we stayed they had just finished renovating all of the rooms and we're still in the process of renovating all the, the common areas.
Speaker A:But the rooms were, were beautiful and it's you know, right across the street from the, from the, the Parliament buildings there also you know, maybe a three minute walk, four minute walk from the Prado Museum.
Speaker A:So just a great central location and really kind of an iconic spot to say in the city.
Speaker A:How about yourself and where are your go to places to stay when you're, when you're visiting.
Speaker B:Got a couple, David?
Speaker B:I've got a couple, you know, Four Seasons, right?
Speaker B:You can't go wrong with Four Seasons ever.
Speaker B:And it's got a great.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I mean, everything about it's in this beautiful Flatiron building.
Speaker B:Everything about it is like a Four Seasons.
Speaker B:You know, be big, beautiful rooms, excellent service.
Speaker B:And then they have this rooftop restaurant with a celebrity chef and understand Danny Garcia is the, the chef.
Speaker B:Celebrity chef in Spain at this rooftop restaurant in about the Four Seasons in Madrid.
Speaker B:The other one I want to talk about is Hyatt Centric.
Speaker B:You know, I think this is a brand.
Speaker B:I mean, everybody knows Hyatt.
Speaker B:Maybe people don't know Hyatt Centric quite as well.
Speaker B:Centric is a, it's a type of hotel.
Speaker B:It's a brand where the hotel is in usually in the best, most interesting neighborhood in the city.
Speaker B:And they take elements from their surroundings and they bring it into the hotel.
Speaker B:So, you know, some of these hotels where you stay, people say, oh, five star hotel could be anywhere in the world.
Speaker B:Not at Hyatt Centric.
Speaker B:It's really, really interesting brand.
Speaker B:I've done one in, in, in Tokyo in Ginza.
Speaker B:Just, just stayed at the, the one in Times Square in New York City.
Speaker B:Really fantastic hotel.
Speaker B:And then the one in, in Madrid is fantastic.
Speaker B:It's.
Speaker B:So they based their theme there on the fact that across the road there used to be a radio station.
Speaker B:I don't think there's a radio station there anymore, but that's what that block was known for.
Speaker B:So they actually have a mock radio studio in the lobby.
Speaker B:And then kind of the, the theming throughout the hotel is, is music and, and you know, and sort of Spanish music.
Speaker B:So, yeah, it's a great place.
Speaker B:It's a great place.
Speaker B:And then they also.
Speaker B:As many hotels in Madrid do.
Speaker B:As many hotels in, in Spain do.
Speaker B:They've got just an absolutely great rooftop terrace.
Speaker B:So, so that is, that's, that's probably my, my top recommendation in the city.
Speaker B:I think we might be at the point where we're talking about can't miss experiences.
Speaker B:Do you.
Speaker B:I have one.
Speaker B:Do you have one?
Speaker A:I've got one as well.
Speaker A:I've got a quick one which is.
Speaker A:You got, you got to get some, some chocolate churros when you're, when you're in Spain.
Speaker A:It's, it's definitely one of the iconic combinations of dishes that the country is known for.
Speaker A:Their hot chocolate is this.
Speaker A:It's all.
Speaker A:It's really Thick, almost like a, more like a pudding than a, you know, what you would traditionally have as hot chocolate in North America, it's.
Speaker A:And you dip these delicious churros in them.
Speaker A:They're probably the, the most well known place in Madrid, although there's a lot of them, but one called Chocolateria San Jeanez, it's, it's, you know, maybe a two minute walk walk from Plaza Mayor, which we talked about earlier.
Speaker A: It's been there since: Speaker A:I think if it's not mistaken, it's even open 24 hours.
Speaker A:And that's one last thing I will say is just like when you're, when you are visiting the city to be aware of is that dining in Spain tends to be a little bit later than what, than what it would be here in North America.
Speaker A:You know, most people are going to restaurants around 9 o'clock at night or, or a little bit later.
Speaker A: op, I would say by like about: Speaker A: and: Speaker A:But Chocolateria San Ginez I'm pretty sure is open 24 hours.
Speaker A:So if you're, if you're looking for something, you could always, you could always head up there if you're looking for a snack when you're in the city.
Speaker A:But what's, what's your can't miss?
Speaker B:That definitely makes me hungry.
Speaker B:I love churros anyway.
Speaker B:My, my, can't miss.
Speaker B:You know, we, we when we talk about Barcelona, we talked about going to a Barca game.
Speaker B:I can't knew some I can't miss here is going to a Real Madrid game at Santiago Birdbao Stadium where they have really an amazing atmosphere.
Speaker B:It doesn't matter who they're playing, if they're playing a big team from La Liga, if they're playing another, you know, type of team, you know, from a lower league, there's always going to be people who are showing up and cheering.
Speaker B:And one thing that we, I know we talked about a little bit before the show because both of us follow European football a little bit and you know, the fact that somebody told me this and you know, we might get letters about this, I don't know, but that it's that, that there's, you know, in most sports rivalries, it's just you know, if you're talking about Yankees, Red Sox or whatever, you know, Maple Leaf Canadians, it's just whatever.
Speaker B:You know, it's two teams, two cities, rivals in Spain.
Speaker B:Somebody told me when I was.
Speaker B:I believe it was when I was at a Barca game that the Real Madrid, Barcelona rivalry has a political element because Catalonia, of course, is.
Speaker B:Sees itself as autonomous and independent and would, maybe some people would love to have their own country.
Speaker B:Real Madrid, I mean, literally means Royal Madrid.
Speaker B:You know, it's.
Speaker B:It's a symbol of Castilian Spain.
Speaker B:And so I just think that's really fascinating that there is this sort of existential political element to a sports rivalry.
Speaker B:So anyway, that's all I have to say about that.
Speaker B:It's a go for the game, stay for the politics.
Speaker B:I don't know.
Speaker B:But, yeah, there you go.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:So if you're.
Speaker A:If you're only.
Speaker A:We talked about Barcelona last week, we talked about Madrid this week.
Speaker A:If you're only going to one, which, which are you going to?
Speaker B:I mean, I gotta say, for me, it's part.
Speaker B:It's.
Speaker B:I, I think you have a different opinion, but for me, it's Barcelona, because, you know, I've been to Barcelona so many times, perhaps a dozen times.
Speaker B:So, you know, when you go to a city that you know a little bit, you have your familiar favorite spots, you go there automatically.
Speaker B:For me, Barcelona's got the advantage that it's right on the Mediterranean.
Speaker B:So if you want to go to the beach, you want to do anything related to the sea, all that fresh seafood, that's.
Speaker B:That's a big part of it as well, so.
Speaker B:But I believe, David, you've got a difference of opinion on this one.
Speaker A:I think I'd come down on the other end of the spectrum there.
Speaker A:I like.
Speaker A:I mean, go to both.
Speaker A:Go to both.
Speaker A:They're both great cities.
Speaker A:You want to go hang out in both.
Speaker A:And they're.
Speaker A:And they're a short train ride.
Speaker A:We actually had some friends from Barcelona who came up and visited us while we were in Madrid.
Speaker A:So it's not like you can't do both on one trip, but if you had to only do one, I would actually pick Madrid.
Speaker A:I just found it a little bit more walkable, a little less touristy, a little cooler, I thought.
Speaker A:But, yeah, they're both great cities.
Speaker A:There's no reason not to go to both.
Speaker A:So people should hit up both.
Speaker B:I definitely can't argue with that.
Speaker B:I mean, I definitely though.
Speaker B:I would definitely recommend going to both.
Speaker B:I'd recommend going to every city and Spade if it was possible.
Speaker B:But.
Speaker B:But no, both definitely go to both.
Speaker B:We can agree on that for sure.
Speaker B:So any other any other thoughts or should we sign off and and meet again next week for whatever city we're covering next week?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So next week I think we're, we're either sticking here and we're either going to go to Europe, to Vienna or to maybe over to talk about Delhi, one of the two that we're we're getting back into.
Speaker A:But as always, I would really encourage if people are finding some of our tips on places to trav around the world useful, would be hugely helpful if you could go on and give us a rating or review.
Speaker A:Whether it's if you're listening to us on Spotify or Apple Podcasts or wherever you happen to check out our podcasts and also our partner podcast on the Voyage Podcast Network.
Speaker A:We've got a bunch of shows and content creators from around the world creating great content on on where to Travel.
Speaker A:Really trying to help you travel more and travel better and and give you some insights into great places to go discover around the world.
Speaker A:So I hope people will take some time and go check that out at Voyescape do and look forward to connecting you next week.
Speaker A:Thanks, Tim.
Speaker B:Thanks, David.
