# Best Cheap Eats in Madrid

> Fifteen Madrid restaurants and bars under €25 per person, from Casa Dani's market-stall tortilla to Casa Labra's 1860 taberna and Mi Dang's Korean home cooking.

- **Canonical URL:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/best-cheap-eats
- **City:** Madrid, Spain
- **Published:** 2026-09-27
- **Updated:** 2026-10-06
- **Author:** Justin Mota, Guidavera founder
- **Reading time:** 13 min

## Introduction

Casa Dani's own menu calls its tortilla de patata ‘the best... in Spain,’ and it sells it by the pincho from a counter inside the Mercado de la Paz, not a dining room with its own front door. That's the register for this list: fifteen Madrid restaurants and bars where a meal comes in under €25 a person, without cutting corners on recognition. Thirteen hold a Solete in the Guía Repsol, one is listed in the Michelin Guide, and the oldest has fried bacalao in Sol since 1860.

## Key picks at a glance

- **Best market-stall tortilla** — [Casa Dani](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/casa-dani): Casa Dani's own menu calls it the best tortilla de patata in Spain, sold by the pincho inside the Mercado de la Paz.
- **Best historic cheap eat** — [Casa Labra](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/casa-labra): bacalao and soldaditos de pavia at a Sol taberna running since 1860.
- **Best menú del día** — [La Sanabresa](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/la-sanabresa): a casa de comidas lunch of garbanzos, ternera guisada and alcachofas con jamón, with a Repsol Solete.
- **Best tacos** — [Portacos](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/portacos): the panceta taco that won a Taco de Oro in 2023, on 100% corn tortillas.
- **Best rice house** — [Samm](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/samm): family-run Valencian rice and paella in Nueva España since 1973.

## A guide to cheap eats in Madrid

### What counts as ‘cheap eats’ in Madrid?

Cheap eating in Madrid runs through a few different formats: tapas bars, tabernas built around a short, home-style menu, casas de comidas serving a daily-changing plate, and comedores tucked inside the city's covered markets, where an individual stall sells portions from a counter rather than running a full restaurant service.

### What is a Repsol Solete?

The Guía Repsol, Spain's national restaurant guide, uses a Solete to flag good, honest cooking at an accessible price, a tier below its main Sol rating.

### What's a mercado comedor?

Several of Madrid's historic covered markets, among them Mercado de la Paz, Mercado de Vallehermoso and Mercado de Numancia, host kitchen stalls and bars alongside their produce stands, a format that lets a single counter build a following without the overhead of running a full restaurant.

### Does a Michelin Guide listing mean a restaurant is expensive?

Not necessarily. The Michelin Guide's own selection runs across price points, not just starred kitchens; a listing means the Guide's inspectors rate the cooking, separate from what a meal costs.

> "Casa Dani's own menu calls its tortilla de patata the best in Spain, and it sells it by the pincho from a market-hall counter, not a restaurant with its own front door."

## How we built this list

We checked the English- and Spanish-language searches that rank for cheap eats in Madrid and read the source articles they turned up, alongside the price band of every Madrid venue we've profiled. We rebuilt this list in October 2026, after our venue review re-checked price bands, from each venue's own carta where one is published: every entry here carries the under-€25-per-person band in that data, and every venue clears the same diner-rating bar as the rest of our guides. Recognition, a Solete in the Guía Repsol or a Michelin Guide listing, was the tie-breaker. One pick, Mo de Movimiento, also turned up by name and address in a Gastroactitud roundup on eating cheaply and well in Madrid, which we read directly. We didn't invent a dish, a price or an award beyond what each venue's own carta or our verified venue data states.

## The 15 best Cheap Eats, compared

| # | Restaurant | Neighbourhood | Price | Distinction | Signature dish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | [Casa Dani](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/casa-dani) | Recoletos | € | Repsol Solete | The best tortilla de patata in Spain (with or without onion) |
| 2 | [Casa Labra](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/casa-labra) | Sol | € | Repsol Solete | Soldaditos de pavía |
| 3 | [La Sanabresa](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/la-sanabresa) | Barrio de las Letras | € | Repsol Solete | Garbanzos guisados |
| 4 | [Antoñita](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/antonita) | Trafalgar | € | Repsol Solete | Torrezno Antoñita |
| 5 | [Tasca Barea](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/tasca-barea) | Lavapiés | € | Repsol Solete | Marinera murciana |
| 6 | [Little Dragon](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/little-dragon) | Universidad | € | Michelin Selected | Xiaolongbao soup dumplings |
| 7 | [Biang Biang Bar](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/biang-biang-bar) | Justicia | € | Repsol Solete | Biang biang noodles |
| 8 | [Mi Dang](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/mi-dang) | Cuatro Caminos | € | Repsol Solete | Dolsot bibimbap |
| 9 | [Rasif](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/rasif) | Barrio de la Latina | € | Repsol Solete | Shish taouk |
| 10 | [Piccola Napoli](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/piccola-napoli) | Cuatro Caminos | € | Repsol Solete | Pizza margherita |
| 11 | [Portacos](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/portacos) | Numancia | € | Repsol Solete | Pork belly tacos (2 pieces) |
| 12 | [Buenas y Santas](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/buenas-y-santas) | Legazpi | € | Repsol Solete | Empanadas |
| 13 | [Casa Pachuco](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/casa-pachuco) | Lavapiés | € | Repsol Solete | Menú del día |
| 14 | [Samm](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/samm) | Nueva España | € | Repsol Recomendado | Arroz del senyoret |
| 15 | [Mo de Movimiento](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/mo-de-movimiento) | Ríos Rosas | € | Repsol Solete | Wood-fired Roman-style pizza |

## The 15 best Cheap Eats in Madrid

### 1. Casa Dani

*Tortilla by the pincho at a Mercado de la Paz counter*

- **Neighbourhood:** Recoletos
- **Address:** Calle de Ayala, 28, 28001 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://www.casadani.es/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/casa-dani

Casa Dani is a tortilla de patata counter inside the Mercado de la Paz, on Calle de Ayala in Salamanca, not a restaurant with its own street entrance. Daniel García and Dolores 'Lola' Cuerda from Albacete opened it in 1991, and their children Daniel and Noelia run it now. Its own menu tags the dish ‘the best tortilla de patata in Spain,’ sold by the pincho in small, half or whole portions, with or without onion. The house says it won the II Campeonato Nacional de Tortillas in Tenerife in March 2019 and the Academia Madrileña de Gastronomía's Premio al Bar the same year, and Phil Rosenthal filmed there for Somebody Feed Phil. Beyond tortilla, the counter runs homemade croquetas, raciones of morcilla and chistorra, and a seasonal menú del día of cocido, lentejas and callos. It holds a Repsol Solete and, like the rest of this list, stays under €25 per person.

**Order:**
- The best tortilla de patata in Spain (with or without onion)

### 2. Casa Labra

*Bacalao taberna in Sol, open since 1860*

- **Neighbourhood:** Sol
- **Address:** C / Tetuan, 12, 28013 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/casa-labra

Casa Labra has run in the heart of Sol since 1860, keeping a rare old-Madrid habit: separate counters for ordering food and drink. Bacalao is the constant, above all the soldaditos de pavía, battered and fried cod strips, which won the Academia Madrileña de Gastronomía's Premio al Plato Castizo in 2023. The carta also runs to croquetas de bacalao, banderillas, tortilla española, jamón ibérico cured 36 months and vermouth on tap. Spain's Socialist Party was founded within these same walls in 1879, and owners Manuel and Álvaro Molina run the place today. It's a walk-in, quick-service bar, open daily, and holds a Repsol Solete at under €25 per person.

**Order:**
- Soldaditos de pavía
- Croquetas de bacalao

### 3. La Sanabresa

*Old-Madrid casa de comidas with a lunchtime menú del día*

- **Neighbourhood:** Barrio de las Letras
- **Address:** Calle del Amor de Dios, 12, 28014, Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/la-sanabresa

La Sanabresa is a traditional casa de comidas on Calle del Amor de Dios, in the Barrio de las Letras, the kind of room that used to fill old Madrid, and it holds a Solete in the Guía Repsol for its consistency. Lunch is the strong point: a menú del día of platos de toda la vida served at speed, with a choice of stews, braises and vegetable dishes, plus raciones. The Guía Repsol points to the garbanzos guisados, the ternera guisada and the alcachofas con jamón. There's no website, so book by phone. It opens for lunch from 13:00 Monday to Saturday, adds dinner from 20:30 Thursday to Saturday, and closes on Sunday.

**Order:**
- Garbanzos guisados
- Ternera guisada
- Alcachofas con jamón

### 4. Antoñita

*Castizo Madrid plates with a playful streak, most under €14*

- **Neighbourhood:** Trafalgar
- **Address:** C. de Garcilaso, 1, Chamberí, 28010 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://antonitarestaurante.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/antonita

Antoñita is a casual restaurant on Calle de Garcilaso in the Trafalgar quarter of Chamberí, with a Solete in the Guía Repsol and a motto that says it's more Madrid than callos and more castizo than cocido. Chef Fernando Muyo Talavera, born in Madrid in 1986, cooks the city's classics with Mexican and street-food touches: a whole piece of pork belly baked for six hours, cocido croquetas, callos with trotter and snout served with sourdough, and pig's-ear tacos on nixtamalised corn tortillas. Most dishes cost €4.50 to €14. It's open Wednesday to Saturday for lunch and dinner and Sunday for lunch, closed Monday and Tuesday.

**Order:**
- Torrezno Antoñita (€10.50)
- Callos with sourdough bread (€14)
- Cocido madrileño croquetas (€13.50)

### 5. Tasca Barea

*Murcian marineras and draught vermouth near the Rastro*

- **Neighbourhood:** Lavapiés
- **Address:** C. de Rodas, 2, Centro, 28005 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://tascabarea.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/tasca-barea

Tasca Barea opened in 2017 on the corner of Calle de Rodas and Embajadores in Lavapiés, set up by neighbours Benjamín and Jaime, who wanted a tasca pouring draught vermouth, and it holds a Repsol Solete. The house tapa is the Murcian marinera, creamy ensaladilla rusa on a crisp rosquilla topped with a Cantabrian anchovy, at €3.50, with variations on it, a classic gilda at €2.50 and €9 raciones of Cádiz-style chicharrones, pickled turkey and the house peppers. Next door, its shop Comestibles Barea sells local producers' goods and runs tastings. It opens evenings Monday to Thursday and from midday Friday to Sunday, a natural stop after the Rastro.

**Order:**
- Marinera murciana (€3.50)
- Gilda (€2.50)
- Chicharrones especiales de Cádiz (€9)

### 6. Little Dragon

*Shanghai dumplings near Plaza España, Michelin Guide listed*

- **Neighbourhood:** Universidad
- **Address:** Reyes, 11, 28015, Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Michelin Selected
- **Website:** https://littledragon.es/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/little-dragon

Little Dragon sits on Calle de los Reyes at the Plaza de España end of Universidad, in the Centro district, and it's listed in the Michelin Guide, a Guide entry rather than a star or a Bib Gourmand. The carta leans Shanghai: xiaolongbao soup dumplings from €7.80, pan-fried shengjianbao buns, wontons in chilli oil, hand-pulled noodle soups, and dishes like Shanghai-style pork chop rice and Sichuan-pepper chicken, traditional and ingredient-led rather than fusion. The restaurant's own site lists three other branches, in Serrano, Moncloa and Ponzano, so confirm which one you're booking. It's closed Monday, open Tuesday to Sunday 13:00 to 16:30 and 19:30 to 23:30, budget-friendly despite an elegant, modern room and polished service, and bookable online through the restaurant's own site.

**Order:**
- Xiaolongbao soup dumplings
- Shanghai-style pork chop rice

### 7. Biang Biang Bar

*Hand-pulled Xi'an noodles, made daily*

- **Neighbourhood:** Justicia
- **Address:** Calle de Pelayo, 8, 28004 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://biangbiangbar.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/biang-biang-bar

Biang Biang Bar is run by Óscar Ling, who opened it in July 2019 after training at Madrid's School of Hospitality and travelling to Xi'an to learn how biang biang noodles are made. Each bowl is one wide, hand-pulled noodle, made daily from flour, salt and water. The signature noodles run €13.90, the same as the aubergine and triple-mushroom versions, with prawn and beef at €16.80 and an Ibérico pork and black-truffle version at €18.90. There are two locations: the original on Calle de Pelayo in Chueca, and a second stall inside the Mercado de Vallehermoso in Chamberí. It holds a Repsol Solete and stays under €25 per person.

**Order:**
- Biang biang noodles
- Ibérico pork and black-truffle noodles

### 8. Mi Dang

*Jeolla-style Korean home cooking in Cuatro Caminos*

- **Neighbourhood:** Cuatro Caminos
- **Address:** C. de San Antonio, 6, Tetuán, 28020 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://www.restaurantemidang.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/mi-dang

Mi Dang is a tiny Korean restaurant on Calle de San Antonio in Cuatro Caminos, a few steps from the Mercado de Maravillas, and it holds a Solete in the Guía Repsol. It's run by a Korean couple who moved to Spain in 1989 and, now in their seventies, cook family recipes from Jeolla province, which they call Korea's culinary province par excellence; the name means 'the home of delights'. Expect dolsot bibimbap sizzling in a hot stone bowl, jeyuk bokkeum pork in the house chilli sauce, mandu and a seafood pancake, with side dishes alongside every main and kimchi made in the house. There's a weekday set lunch, and it's closed Sundays.

**Order:**
- Dolsot bibimbap (€15.90)
- Jeyuk bokkeum (€16)
- Mandu (4 pieces) (€5.50)

### 9. Rasif

*Beirut street food by the Plaza de la Cebada*

- **Neighbourhood:** Barrio de la Latina
- **Address:** C. del Humilladero, 6, 28005 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://rasifmadrid.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/rasif

Rasif brings Lebanese street food to Calle del Humilladero in La Latina, a few steps from the Plaza de la Cebada, and it has held a Solete in the Guía Repsol since October 2023. The name means 'pavement' in Arabic, and the menu follows: hummus from €4.50, muhammara and other dips with Lebanese bread, kibbeh and sambousek by the piece, shish taouk and shawarma rolled in Lebanese bread, grilled skewer plates and knefe to finish. Much of it is vegetarian or vegan, everything can be taken away, and the drinks include Lebanese wine from Ksara. It's open every day from 13:30, except Friday, when it opens at 19:00.

**Order:**
- Shish taouk (€8.50)
- Hummus (€4.50)
- Knefe (€5)

### 10. Piccola Napoli

*Family Neapolitan pizza in Cuatro Caminos since 2010*

- **Neighbourhood:** Cuatro Caminos
- **Address:** C. de Palencia, 29, 28020 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://www.piccolanapoli.es/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/piccola-napoli

Piccola Napoli opened on Calle de Palencia in Cuatro Caminos in 2010, Mario's project backed by his family, cooking Neapolitan pizza and pasta from recipes handed down the generations, and it holds a Solete in the Guía Repsol. Pizzas come in 25 cm and 30 cm sizes, from a marinara at €7.50 and a margherita at €8.50 to house specials like the Bella Roma with pumpkin and truffle cream, smoked provola and pancetta; pastas such as spaghetti carbonara run about €10.50 to €13.50, and gluten-free pasta is available. A weekday lunch menu costs €13.50. It's open Monday to Saturday for lunch and dinner, closed Sunday, and has since added branches on Cristóbal Bordiu and López de Hoyos.

**Order:**
- Pizza margherita (€8.50)
- Spaghetti carbonara (€12.90)
- Bella Roma pizza

### 11. Portacos

*Prize-winning panceta tacos at the Mercado de Numancia*

- **Neighbourhood:** Numancia
- **Address:** C. de Josefa Díaz, 4, planta, local 4 exterior, 28038 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://www.portacosbar.es/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/portacos

Portacos opened in 2021 on the outer side of the Mercado de Numancia in Vallecas, founded by Venezuelan cook Andrés Federico Rodrigues Fuentes and his wife María de los Ángeles Yánez, both trained in fine dining, and it won a Solete in the Guía Repsol six months later. Tacos come in pairs on 100% white or blue corn tortillas, which the kitchen notes are gluten free, from cochinita pibil and al pastor at €5.90 to the panceta taco, €7, that won the house a Taco de Oro in 2023. In 2025 it received the Sello Copil, the Casa de México en España's authenticity seal. Micheladas, mezcal and margaritas run from tamarindo to siete chiles. There's a terrace, and it's closed Mondays.

**Order:**
- Pork belly tacos (2 pieces) (€7)
- Cochinita pibil tacos (2 pieces) (€5.90)
- Homemade guacamole with totopos (€8.50)

### 12. Buenas y Santas

*Argentine family cooking near Matadero, empanadas at €3.90*

- **Neighbourhood:** Legazpi
- **Address:** Calle Bolívar, 9, 28045 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://www.buenasysantas.es/nueva-home/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/buenas-y-santas

Buenas y Santas opened in June 2009 on Calle Bolívar in Legazpi, between Matadero, Madrid Río and the Planetario, and it holds a Solete in the Guía Repsol. The name is how people still greet each other in the Argentine countryside, and the Argentine family team cooks homemade, fresh food, some of it with vegetables from their own garden: hand-crimped empanadas in seven flavours at €3.90 each, milanesas, quiches, burgers and dulce de leche panqueques. The grill cuts, entraña and bife de chorizo, push past the band, but a weekday lunch menu costs €15.30. Lunch runs every day, with dinner Thursday to Saturday.

**Order:**
- Empanadas (€3.90)
- Classic beef milanesa (€16.90)
- Dulce de leche panqueque (€6.90)

### 13. Casa Pachuco

*Self-taught 'travelling' cooking on Calle de los Tres Peces*

- **Neighbourhood:** Lavapiés
- **Address:** Calle de los Tres Peces, 15, 28012 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/casa-pachuco

Casa Pachuco has been on Calle de los Tres Peces in Lavapiés since 2012, and it holds a Solete in the Guía Repsol. Self-taught cook José María Lobelos is its driving force, turning out imaginative 'travelling' dishes that mix Mediterranean, vegetarian and fusion ideas, in a place built as much for wine and music as for food. Since September 2026 it serves a menú del día at lunch Tuesday to Friday, lunch on Saturday, and dinner from the carta on Friday and Saturday evenings; it's closed Sunday and Monday. There's no website, so book by phone.

**Order:**
- Menú del día

### 14. Samm

*Family-run Valencian rice house since 1973*

- **Neighbourhood:** Nueva España
- **Address:** C. Carlos Caamaño, 3, 28016 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Recomendado
- **Website:** https://restaurantesamm.com
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/samm

Samm has cooked Valencian rice in Madrid's Nueva España, in the Chamartín district, since Vicente and Carmen opened it in September 1973. The arroz del senyoret and paella Valenciana are the signatures, with a classic ensaladilla rusa to start and a tarta de queso as the most-asked-for dessert. Its own site points to the Wikipaella 2020 award it won for its paella, and it's listed in the Guía Repsol. Lunch only, Tuesday to Sunday from 13:00 to 16:30, closed Mondays, with a wheelchair-accessible entrance and seating and a terrace, it's set up for groups. It runs around €25 or under per person, with a daily menu at €20 covering a starter, main, drink and dessert.

**Order:**
- Arroz del senyoret
- Paella Valenciana

### 15. Mo de Movimiento

*Wood-fired pizza from a social-inclusion kitchen*

- **Neighbourhood:** Ríos Rosas
- **Address:** C/Espronceda, 34 28003 Madrid, Spain
- **Price:** €
- **Distinction:** Repsol Solete
- **Website:** https://modemovimiento.com/
- **Full profile:** https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/mo-de-movimiento

Mo de Movimiento occupies the former Teatro Espronceda on Calle de Espronceda in Ríos Rosas, rebuilt with recycled materials. It's the flagship of Proyectos Conscientes, which friends Felipe Turell and Javier Antequera set up in 2018, and it hires and trains people facing barriers to work through partner foundations such as Norte Joven, Fundación Tomillo and Fundación Raíces. Wood-fired, Roman-style pizzas are the draw, made with stone-ground organic flours from Sigüenza and Zamora, and the Guía Repsol singles out the one with green asparagus and Iberian papada. It's cash-free, card or app only, and it's one of the picks in a Gastroactitud roundup on eating cheaply and well in Madrid. It holds a Repsol Solete and runs under €25 per person.

**Order:**
- Wood-fired Roman-style pizza
- Roman-style pizza with green asparagus and Iberian papada

## Honourable mentions

- **[Bodegas Rosell](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/bodegas-rosell)** (Delicias) — A traditional Delicias tavern with a Repsol Solete, known for bacalao Rosell, callos a la madrileña and a cocido madrileño to order for groups; often hard to book, so plan ahead.
- **[Juancho's BBQ](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/juancho-s-bbq)** (Almagro) — The Almagro branch of Juancho de la Rica's burger group, with a Repsol Solete; the Bacon JuanCheeseburger that won a national best-burger contest at the end of 2019 still leads the menu.
- **[La Hummuseria](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/la-hummuseria)** (Chueca) — An Israeli hummus bar in Chueca with a Repsol Solete, serving warm hummus with fresh pita non-stop from 13:00 to 23:00 every day, plus a €14.90 weekday lunch menu.
- **[Sacromonte](https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/restaurants/sacromonte)** (Moscardó) — An Usera taberna with a Repsol Solete, built around tostas, pinchos and a wine list that runs well past Madrid, Ribera and Rioja; closed Sundays.

## The cheap eats scene in Madrid

Cheap eating in Madrid, on this list, splits between old-school casas de comidas and tabernas and a run of international kitchens that keep the same price band. Casa Dani sells tortilla de patata by the pincho inside the Mercado de la Paz, Casa Labra has fried bacalao in Sol since 1860, La Sanabresa and Casa Pachuco build lunch around a menú del día, and Tasca Barea pours draught vermouth with €3.50 marineras in Lavapiés. Little Dragon's Shanghai dumplings carry a Michelin Guide listing, while Biang Biang Bar, Mi Dang, Rasif, Piccola Napoli, Portacos and Buenas y Santas cover Xi'an noodles, Korean, Lebanese, Neapolitan, Mexican and Argentine cooking, all with a Repsol Solete.

## Know before you go

### 1.

Casa Dani is a counter inside the Mercado de la Paz, open from 07:00 Monday to Saturday and closed Sunday.

### 2.

La Sanabresa and Casa Pachuco have no website, so book by phone; La Sanabresa only opens for dinner Thursday to Saturday, and Casa Pachuco only on Friday and Saturday.

### 3.

Biang Biang Bar has two locations, the original on Calle de Pelayo in Chueca and a second stall inside the Mercado de Vallehermoso; confirm which one you're booking.

### 4.

Mo de Movimiento runs entirely cash-free, card or app only, so don't plan on paying with cash there.

### 5.

Closing days vary: Antoñita closes Monday and Tuesday, Little Dragon, Portacos and Samm close Monday, Biang Biang Bar closes Tuesday, and Mi Dang and Piccola Napoli close Sunday. Samm serves lunch only.

## Glossary

- **Repsol Sol / Solete** — Distinctions from the Guía Repsol, Spain's national restaurant guide. A Sol ranks above a Solete, which recognises good, honest cooking at accessible prices.
- **Casa de comidas** — A traditional, home-style Spanish eating house, usually built around a short, changing menu of stews and simple cooked dishes rather than an à la carte restaurant format.
- **Menú del día** — A fixed-price weekday lunch menu, typically a starter, a main and a dessert with a drink included, common across Spanish restaurants and tabernas.

## Frequently asked questions

### What counts as cheap eats on this Madrid list?

Every entry carries the under-€25-per-person band in our venue data, from a market-stall tortilla counter at Casa Dani to Argentine empanadas at €3.90 each at Buenas y Santas.

### Which restaurant on this list has the longest history?

Casa Labra, in the heart of Sol, has fried bacalao since 1860, including the soldaditos de pavía that won the Academia Madrileña de Gastronomía's Premio al Plato Castizo in 2023.

### Is there a market-stall pick for cheap eats in Madrid?

Casa Dani is a counter inside the Mercado de la Paz, Biang Biang Bar has a second stall inside the Mercado de Vallehermoso, and Portacos sits on the outer side of the Mercado de Numancia in Vallecas.

### Which of these holds Michelin recognition despite the low price?

Little Dragon, a Shanghai dumpling house near Plaza de España, is listed in the Michelin Guide, a Guide entry rather than a star or a Bib Gourmand.

### Where can I find a Repsol Solete pick on this list?

Thirteen of the fifteen hold one, among them Casa Labra, Casa Dani, La Sanabresa, Antoñita, Tasca Barea, Mi Dang, Rasif and Portacos. The Solete is the Guía Repsol's distinction for good, honest cooking at an accessible price.

### Where can I get a cheap menú del día?

La Sanabresa serves one at lunch Monday to Saturday and Casa Pachuco Tuesday to Friday. Piccola Napoli's weekday lunch menu costs €13.50, Buenas y Santas' costs €15.30 and Samm's daily menu is €20.

### Is there a vegetarian option on this list?

Rasif marks its many vegetarian and vegan dishes on the menu, Casa Pachuco's carta has vegetarian options, and La Hummusería, an honourable mention, is almost entirely vegetarian.

### Which of these is good for a group?

Samm, a Valencian rice house in Nueva España, is set up for groups.

## 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.

More: https://guidavera.com/about

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This guide is the canonical machine-readable version of https://guidavera.com/spain/madrid/best-cheap-eats. Every claim is verifiable against the linked restaurant profiles. Source: Guidavera (https://guidavera.com).