Brunch is the best meal that exists. It is a basic activity that brings me an immense amount of joy. I have spent over the last year exploring different brunch offerings around Madrid, and I compiled my favorites into this guide for anyone missing the comforts of home in the form of eggs benedict. I have organized them by neighborhood.
MALASAÑA
This place is my favorite so I had to feature it first. Owned by a lovely woman who is half-Spanish, half-American and fully understanding of the need for a proper eggs benedict in Madrid, Carmencita Bar is a gem and a total expat staple. The breakfast burrito, benedict, mimosas and cocktails are amazing, and the prices are so reasonable. Reservations are highly recommended as it fills up every single Saturday and Sunday.
The first time I came here was actually on accident. Their patio in Malasaña appears to belong to the popular restaurant Federal, but it’s actually for this place. The mix up turned out to be not a problem at all, as the food was really great and it was better priced than Federal. Plus outdoor seating on a sunny day in Madrid for brunch is an awesome atmosphere.
This place is awesome, and I’ve spent many a Sunday afternoon nestled with my laptop in a corner, drinking either coffee or beer, getting work done on my laptop, surrounded by English books. This place was started by people from Los Angeles who wanted to bring a used bookstore to the English speaking expats in Madrid, but also offer an amazing cafe atmosphere to its patrons. They don’t have a huge menu, in fact it’s mostly just different artisan bagels, but the bagels are a great, simple brunch if you are looking to get work done on your Sunday rather than just nurse your hangover and hollandaise cravings.
ARGÜELLES/CHAMBERI
Right in Argüelles, this is probably the most charming place I’ve ever had brunch. Beautiful China plates, romantic decorations and soft lighting make this an inviting place to go out for brunch with a group of friends. The eggs benedict “brunch salado” was great – it had spinach florentine and came with a generous side salad and fried potatoes. I like how they did a multi-course brunch, starting with yogurt and a delicious granola mix. It also came with orange juice, I believe I ordered the coffee separate.
Ok, this place had a breakfast burrito that looked so amazing, I abandoned my normal benedict obsession to give it a try. And it truly DELIVERED. This place is a winner for brunch – it is very reasonably priced and the food is amazing. I was perfectly content after eating the breakfast burrito, didn’t feel stuffed or sick to my stomach after shoveling it in and washing it down with a mimosa.
This place is so cute and so cheap!! I loved the brunch we had here, I had eggs benedict which came with a salad, and one of my friends got the French toast with Nutella that looked absolutely amazing. This is probably the most inexpensive brunch I’ve had in Madrid.
LAVAPIES
Vegans & vegetarians – listen up. This place is your spot for brunch. I had no idea it was a vegetarian cafe until I noticed that there was no meat listed in any of the dishes that it was serving up for brunch. This place has awesome cakes, interesting twists on brunch dishes, and a really cool atmosphere. Definitely make a reservation ahead of time, as the line can get quite long and the space inside is pretty small. I enjoyed the eggs benedict plate and coffee.
SOL
This place was a bit expensive for what it was – the service was not great, in fact they didn’t have a few things we ordered and instead of giving us other options to fix the situation, they made executive decisions and just gave us other things instead. For example – there was no more fresh orange juice by the time we ordered to complete all of our orders, so instead of asking for an alternative preference, they came out with a strawberry juice. It was still great, but it was weird. The brunch plates were great – I was so full after the English breakfast and it was delicious. They had a lot of different pastry and breakfast/brunch options, and it was a huge place so I would recommend it for large groups looking to go for brunch.
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