Bacalao above all: the house tajada, one piece of prime battered and fried salt cod (the soldadito de Pavía), and homemade cod croquetas, eaten at the counter with a caña, a glass of Valdepeñas or vermouth on tap. The rest of the tapas list is short and classic: a banderilla of tuna in escabeche with tomato, a veal empanadilla and tortilla de patata, plus raciones and bocadillos of Guijuelo Ibérico ham, lomo and chorizo cular, Manchego and a pepito de ternera.

Casa Labra opened in 1860 in the heart of Sol, and less than twenty years later, on 2 May 1879, Pablo Iglesias and a small group of printers and workers founded Spain's Socialist Party here. The taberna still runs the way old Madrid bars did, with separate counters for food and drink, and has been frying its cod across three centuries. In 2023 the dish took the Premio al Plato Castizo at the Madrid Gastronomy Awards.

The house website currently says the restaurant dining room is closed and only the tapas bar is serving. The dining-room carta, when it runs, goes much further into cod: bacalao al pil-pil, a la vizcaína, a la bilbaína, in salsa verde, al ajoarriero, with mushrooms and capers, and a cod omelette, plus gazpacho, salmorejo and sopa de ajo. For now, come for the tajadas and croquetas at the bar, and check before planning a sit-down meal.

At the bar it's cañas, Valdepeñas by the caña or bottle, Rioja by the glass, vermouth on tap, manzanilla, fino and moscatel. The wine list reaches Rías Baixas albariño from Fefiñanes and Martín Códax, Madrid reds from Vinos Jeromín, Ribera from Protos, Pesquera and Hacienda Monasterio, Rioja from Muga and Marqués de Riscal, a Bierzo mencía and a Pedro Ximénez by the glass.