Photo: Google MapsBest Bocadillo de Calamares in Madrid
Introduction
The Madrid bocadillo de calamares List We Send to Friends
A bocadillo de calamares is fried squid rings in a crusty roll, and in Madrid it's a bar-counter staple. Ten bars and restaurants make this list, from La Campana on Calle de Botoneras, open since 1870, and El Ideal, which lists the sandwich at €4.00 on its own carta, to El Respiro in Chueca and In-Pulso in Legazpi, which serves a calamari sandwich with citrus aioli at €15.
The short answer
Key Picks at a Glance
In a hurry? These are the essential picks from our full ranking below.
- For a budget-friendly classicBar La Ideal
the bocadillo de calamares is €4.00 on the bar's own carta, on Calle Botoneras off Plaza Mayor.
- For a long-running specialistLa Campana
open since 1870 on Calle de Botoneras, with the bocadillo de calamares as the house specialty.
- For a different cut of squidEl Respiro
long strips of squid instead of rings, in a Chueca bar that gives a free tapa with every drink.
- For a sit-down versionIn-Pulso
a calamari sandwich with citrus aioli, listed at €15 as a starter to share, in a Legazpi restaurant.
- For squid alongside torreznosLos Torreznos
Calamari Rings in a baguette on the carta at €7.00, in a Goya bar built around torreznos.
Before you order
A Guide to bocadillo de calamares in Madrid
What is a bocadillo de calamares?
It's a sandwich of battered, deep-fried squid rings, usually served in a crusty baguette-style roll with little else, and often eaten standing at the bar with a beer. Bocata is the everyday short form of bocadillo. In Madrid it's a classic bar order rather than a restaurant dish.
Calamares or chipirones?
Calamares are squid, usually cut into rings and battered a la romana. Chipirones are small squid, often fried whole. Menus use both words for the sandwich filling, so a bocata de chipirones is the same idea with smaller squid.
Why do some versions use molletes or brioche?
The classic is a crusty roll, but newer versions vary the bread. A mollete is a soft, round Andalusian bread roll, and some bars use brioche or a light, thin-crusted pan de cristal. The frying and the squid stay the same, the bread and the sauce change.
What comes with it?
Traditionally very little, sometimes a squeeze of lemon. Modern versions add alioli, lime mayonnaise or other sauces. At the older bars, the sandwich usually comes with a caña, a glass of vermut or a small plate of bravas rather than a full meal.
How We Built This List
Years of Eating, Asking, and Going Back
We compared eight Madrid and English-language guides to bocadillos de calamares, including Time Out Madrid, Guía Repsol, Madrid Secreto, ¡Hola!, IFEMA Madrid, La Troupe, Devour Tours and Los Replicantes, and listed every venue each one named along with its address where given. We then matched those names to the Madrid restaurants we've profiled, keeping a match only when the address lined up, since several of these are small chains with more than one branch. A venue made the list only if its own page backs up the sandwich as a real part of what it serves, whether that's the house specialty, a named menu item or a plate the venue itself talks about. Places that press guides name but that don't have a Guidavera page yet, and places whose own page doesn't mention the sandwich, are left out and noted in our research file. Two of the sources date from 2022, so we didn't take any prices from them; prices here come from each venue's own menu.
More on how we rank: our methodology and quality standards.
At a glance
The 10 Best bocadillos de calamares, Compared
Quick reference table. Click any name to jump to the full review.
| # | Restaurant | Neighbourhood | Price | Distinction | Signature dish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bar Postas | Centro | € | — | Bocadillo de calamares |
| 2 | La Campana | Sol | € | — | Bocadillo de calamares |
| 3 | Bar La Ideal | Centro (near Plaza Mayor) | € | — | Calamares (Bocadillos section) |
| 4 | El Respiro | Chueca | € | — | Bocadillo de calamares |
| 5 | Cervecería Sol Mayor | Sol | € | — | Bocadillo de calamares |
| 6 | Los Torreznos | Goya | € | Repsol Solete | Calamari Rings (Baguette Sandwich) |
| 7 | In-Pulso | Legazpi | €€€ | Michelin Bib | Calamari sandwich with citrus aioli |
| 8 | Bar H Emblemático | Castellana | €€ | — | Squid Mollete |
| 9 | Los Galayos | Sol | €€ | Repsol Recommended | Bocata de calamares |
| 10 | Tablafina | Cortes | €€ | — | Calamari sandwich |
The ranking
10 Best bocadillos de calamares in Madrid
Bar Postas1. Bar Postas — Fried-squid sandwiches between Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor
Bar Postas is on Calle de Postas, between Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor, and it's known for one thing above the rest: the bocadillo de calamares, the fried-squid sandwich. It's more of a quick stop than a sit-down lunch. La Troupe's January 2026 guide says the bar has been in business for over 70 years. Plan around the closing days: it's shut on Wednesday and Thursday, and open 08:30 to 23:30 the rest of the week. It's inexpensive, under €25 a head, and cards and contactless are accepted.
“enjoy one of the best bocadillos de calamares in Madrid”— Devour Tours
La Campana
2. La Campana — Open since 1870, on a short street into Plaza Mayor
La Campana is a cervecería on Calle de Botoneras, one of the short streets that run into Plaza Mayor, and the bocadillo de calamares is why people come: fried squid rings piled in a long crusty roll. The bar has been open since 1870, when the site was a bodega called Bodegas Sierra, and the sandwich has been the house specialty for generations. Patatas bravas and tortilla are on the menu alongside it. Hours are 10:00 to 23:00 Tuesday to Sunday (22:00 on Thursdays) and it's closed on Mondays. There's usually a queue at busy times and seating is limited, though the line moves fast and you can watch the squid being fried while you wait.
“Los bocatas de calamares son la especialidad de esta cervecería”— Time Out Madrid
Bar La Ideal
3. Bar La Ideal — A €4.00 bocadillo de calamares off Plaza Mayor
El Ideal, also written Bar La Ideal, is a traditional bar on Calle Botoneras, just off Plaza Mayor, and the bocadillo de calamares is its house plate: fried squid, made fresh, in crusty bread. On the bar's own carta the calamares bocadillo is €4.00, the same as the morcilla, chorizo frito and tortilla bocadillos, and a ración of calamares is €7.00. Around it sit patatas bravas, tortilla de patata, pinchos, beer on tap and vermut. The bar's site says it prepares the bocadillos to take away, so you can eat out on Plaza Mayor. It's closed on Wednesdays and otherwise open roughly 09:30 to 23:00.
“El pan crujiente y los calamares jugosos pero nada aceitosos”— Time Out Madrid
El Respiro
4. El Respiro — Long strips of squid instead of rings, plus a free tapa
El Respiro is a long-standing tapas bar on Calle de las Infantas, in the heart of Chueca. Its bocadillo de calamares is made with long strips of squid rather than rings, which makes it easier to bite into. The other reason people come is the free tapa that arrives with every drink: paella topped with a fried egg, potatoes with sausage and peppers, pollo al ajillo or empanadillas. Tigres (stuffed mussels) and revuelto are on the menu too. It opens at 13:00 and runs to midnight (23:30 on Tuesdays), closed on Sundays. It runs under €25 a head.
“bocata de calamares es algo más manejable”— Madrid Secreto
Cervecería Sol Mayor
5. Cervecería Sol Mayor — A cervecería on Calle de Postas where the sandwich leads
Cervecería Sol Mayor is a classic cervecería on Calle de Postas, by Plaza Mayor, and the bocadillo de calamares leads a fried-seafood menu that also runs to chopitos, patatas bravas with alioli, zarajos and cazón en adobo. It goes with cold beer or cider, and a free aperitivo comes with the drink. The feel is casual and standing-room, with quick service. It's open Wednesday to Sunday, 08:00 to 23:30, and closed on Mondays and Tuesdays; the same premises also front onto Calle de Esparteros 6. It runs around €10 to €20 a head.
“unos bocatas jugosos que te dejarán más que saciado”— Time Out Madrid
Los Torreznos
6. Los Torreznos — A torreznos bar with Calamari Rings in a baguette
Los Torreznos, on Calle de Goya 88 in Salamanca, is a torreznos bar first: Ávila-style crisp pork belly is what the house is built on, and it holds a Solete in the Guía Repsol. The squid sandwich is a side act. The carta's Baguette Sandwich section lists Calamari Rings at €7.00, next to Torreznos at €6.50, and the kitchen also does ribs, patatas revolconas and patatas alioli. If you'd rather have squid on a plate, the raciones include Lightly Fried Andalusian Squid at €14.00 and Fried Mini Squid at €15.20. Open every day from 08:00 to midnight, with a terrace and classic breakfasts. It runs around €10 to €20 a head. The house has four sites, so check which one you're heading to.
“un bocadillo de calamares que cumple con los cánones de la cocina castiza”— Time Out Madrid
In-Pulso7. In-Pulso — A sit-down calamari sandwich with citrus aioli, in Legazpi
Bib GourmandRepsol RecommendedIn-Pulso, on Calle Ariel in Legazpi, is chef Alex de la Fuente's restaurant for recovering Madrid's traditional recipes with updated technique. Its calamari sandwich with citrus aioli sits under Starters to Share on the carta at €15, and it's a lobster-roll-style fried squid sandwich. The restaurant sources its bread from Madreamiga. The rest of the menu runs to carrillera de ternera and pepitoria de codorniz, and the six-course Menú Castizo tasting menu is €60. Lunch is Tuesday to Saturday from 13:30 and dinner Wednesday to Saturday from 20:30, and it's closed on Sundays and Mondays. It's listed at €51 to €100 a head, so this is one plate in a longer meal rather than a bar snack.
“chipirones rebozados y fritos que se acompañan de un alioli de cítricos”— Time Out Madrid
Bar H Emblemático
8. Bar H Emblemático — A squid mollete on Calle Castelló
Bar H Emblemático is on Calle Castelló, in the Castellana area, and cooks clásica actualizada, updated Spanish classics, in a bright, quiet room with a proper bar. Brothers Ismael and Fernando Hevia, the third generation of the family behind Hevia on Serrano (1964), opened it at the start of 2023. Its version of the sandwich is the Squid Mollete, €6.90 on the bar menu under Mollete and Pinchos. According to ¡Hola!, it's a glass-bread mollete filled with Galician baby squid cut into rings, tempura-battered and finished with a mild garlic alioli, and the carta also lists Galician Baby Squid in tempura with mild alioli as a plate at €18.00. Its own site publishes no opening hours and the booking link points to a sibling restaurant, so phone ahead rather than turning up on a guess.
“mollete de cristal con calamarcito gallego cortado en anillas”— ¡Hola!
Los Galayos
9. Los Galayos — A Plaza Mayor institution with its own calamari bocata
Los Galayos is known for Castilian roasts, cochinillo above all, and has operated at Plaza Mayor since 1894, per its own site. It splits into a formal restaurant and a separate historic tavern built around a hand-carved 17th-century wooden counter. The bar's own Instagram posts the bocata de calamares as its classic, made with crusty bread and freshly fried squid, and the bar's photo set includes a baguette filled with fried calamari rings held up in the plaza. The restaurant is listed at €26 to €50 a head, so if you only want the sandwich, the bar side is the place to ask. The bar is open 9:00 to midnight and the kitchen runs 11:30 to 23:30, seven days a week, with terrace seating on the square.
Tablafina
10. Tablafina — Calamari sandwich on a Madrid-classics menu, Paseo del Prado
Tablafina is on the Paseo del Prado, inside the NH Madrid Nacional and opposite the Botanical Garden, and it lists the calamari sandwich among its Madrid classics next to patatas bravas, callos and octopus. The menu is chef Jesualdo Bermejo's, with Abel Valverde advising, and it leans on designation-of-origin products. According to IFEMA's 2022 guide, the sandwich is a steamed mollete with fried calamari and a black-garlic mayonnaise, so ask what's on the plate today. It's open daily from 12:30 to 23:00, at €20 to €30 a head, with a wheelchair accessible entrance, restroom and seating.
“este bocadillo de calamares se forma por un mollete al vapor”— IFEMA Madrid
Also worth trying
Honourable Mentions
The bigger picture
The bocadillo de calamares Scene in Madrid
In Madrid the bocadillo de calamares is mostly a bar-counter order, and the bars that press guides name most often are clustered by Plaza Mayor: La Campana and El Ideal on Calle de Botoneras, and Bar Postas and Cervecería Sol Mayor on Calle de Postas. Away from the centre, the sandwich turns up in Chueca at El Respiro and on Calle de Goya at Los Torreznos. Sit-down restaurants have their own takes too, from the calamari sandwich with citrus aioli at In-Pulso to the squid mollete at Bar H Emblemático. Formats run from squid rings in a long crusty roll to strips of squid, and from a €4.00 bar bocadillo on El Ideal's carta to a plate to share at a restaurant.
Practical tips
Know before you go
A short survival guide for eating bocadillo de calamares in Madrid— everything we wish we’d known on our first trip.
- 1
Check closing days before you go
Several of the classic bars close midweek. Bar Postas is shut on Wednesday and Thursday, El Ideal on Wednesday, La Campana on Monday, Cervecería Sol Mayor on Monday and Tuesday, and El Respiro on Sunday.
- 2
Expect a queue at La Campana
La Campana usually has a line at busy times and limited seating, though it moves fast and you can watch the squid being fried while you wait.
- 3
Take it away if the bar's full
El Ideal prepares its bocadillos to take away, so you can eat them out on Plaza Mayor. Check other bars' carta or ask at the counter before you go.
- 4
Check the address for chains
Los Torreznos has several sites, and press guides don't always name the same one. This list covers the Calle de Goya 88 branch.
Know the terms
Glossary
The vocabulary you need to order bocadillo de calamares in Madrid like a local.
- Bocadillo
- A sandwich made with a length of crusty bread, usually a baguette-style roll. Bocata is the everyday short form.
- Calamares a la romana
- Squid rings coated in batter and deep-fried. It's the standard filling for a bocadillo de calamares.
- Chipirones
- Small squid. Some bars fry them whole or in pieces and use them for the sandwich in place of rings.
- Mollete
- A soft, round, flat-topped bread roll from Andalusia. Some modern bocadillos de calamares are built on a mollete instead of a baguette.
- Caña
- A small glass of draught beer, a common drink to have with a bar sandwich.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
All restaurants on this list were independently verified as open and serving the dishes described as of .
Which bars come up most for bocadillo de calamares in Madrid?
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Bar Postas and La Campana are named by more of the guides we read than any other venue. Bar Postas is on Calle de Postas and La Campana on Calle de Botoneras, open since 1870.
Where can I eat a bocadillo de calamares near Plaza Mayor?
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La Campana (Calle de Botoneras 6), El Ideal (Calle Botoneras 4), Bar Postas (Calle de Postas 13) and Cervecería Sol Mayor (Calle de Postas 5) all serve it, and Los Galayos posts its bocata de calamares on its own Instagram. El Ideal lists it at €4.00 on its own carta.
How much does a bocadillo de calamares cost in Madrid?
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It depends on the venue, and prices change. On their own menus, El Ideal lists it at €4.00, Los Torreznos lists Calamari Rings in a baguette at €7.00, and In-Pulso a calamari sandwich at €15.
Which bocadillo de calamares bars are closed on certain days?
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Bar Postas is closed on Wednesday and Thursday, El Ideal on Wednesday, La Campana on Monday, Cervecería Sol Mayor on Monday and Tuesday, and El Respiro on Sunday.
What's the difference between calamares and chipirones in a sandwich?
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Calamares are squid, usually cut into rings and battered. Chipirones are small squid. At El Respiro the bocadillo uses long strips of squid instead of rings, while Bar H Emblemático makes a squid mollete with Galician baby squid.
Is there a good bocadillo de calamares outside the old centre?
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Yes. El Respiro in Chueca, Los Torreznos on Calle de Goya and Bar H Emblemático on Calle Castelló all serve a version.
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About the author
Justin Mota
Guidavera founder
Justin Mota is the founder of Guidavera. He has lived in Spain for over 10 years and runs a native AI agency alongside building this platform. Food has always been the way Justin connects with friends, and Guidavera started as the list he kept sending to everyone visiting Barcelona. He built it for himself and his friends first, and now hopes it can transform the way people discover great food experiences everywhere.
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