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Doppelgänger
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Steaming caramelized round laminated pastry on a beaded pedestal dish held over a wooden bar counter
Steaming glazed swirled pastry on a white beaded pedestal held by a hand over a wooden table
Dark ceramic bowl of pale custard or sauce topped with two golden fried rolls and crumbled white topping
Torched meringue-topped tart with pastry crust on a dark plate over a woven mat
A round bread topped with microgreens and an orange yolk-like garnish, on a mosaic-tiled plate.

Doppelgänger

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#139 in MadridRanked #139 of all Madrid restaurants on Guidavera. Click to see the full ranked list./Hidden GemGuidavera tier, our editorial classification combining ratings, accolades, and source consensus across the Madrid dining scene./SpanishSpanish cuisine: the kitchen's primary culinary tradition and style./€€€€/Centro/

Doppelgänger is a small fusion bar on the first floor of Mercado Antón Martín in Lavapiés, opened in summer 2020 by chef Samy Alí, half Madrileño and half Sudanese, after he gave up the Michelin star he held at La Candela Restó. The carta is a short list of numbered bocados chosen from the day's options, from a Morocco Pie and a guanche masala to sweetbreads 'on the cod route', built on flavour intensity and spice, with natural wines and craft beer to drink.

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From doppelgangerbarmadrid on Instagram

Background

About Doppelgänger

The Story

Samy Alí ran La Candela Restó, a small restaurant that won a Michelin star, and walked away from that format to open Doppelgänger in a stall in Mercado Antón Martín in the summer of 2020, trading tablecloths for something looser and louder. His motto on the house website is his own take on Pessoa: cook what you feel exactly as you feel it, and understand that cooking isn't a law but an instrument.

The Cuisine

A numbered list of bocados, subject to availability, that crosses borders freely. The current carta runs from a soy tomato and 'prawn and chicken at midnight' to a burnt cauliflower that asks whether it's meat or fish, the Morocco Pie, a guanche masala, a beef birria roll, an adobo dish, a spring-onion roll and sweetbreads 'on the cod route', with a spicy celery sorbet between courses. Desserts are a poblano-style flan, a 'desert donut' and the electric candy. Plates cost from €3 to €18, and nearly all can be taken away.

The Electric Candy

Doppelgänger's sign-off is the candy eléctrico, a sugar capsule with a liquid, alcoholic centre that numbs and tingles the tongue. Alí started making caramels with Timut pepper at La Candela Restó to reset the palate before dessert, then boosted the effect with the electric flower, Acmella oleracea, grown in Toledo by Raúl Díaz of El Jardinero y La Cocinera. Customers began ordering them by the hundred for weddings and company dinners, so at the end of 2025 Alí set up a company to produce them, still by hand, at up to about a thousand a day. Boxes of six are sold at the stall, and larger batches of 25 to order.

Drinks and Takeaway

The drinks list is short and characterful: natural wines by the glass or bottle, with more in the back room, craft beers, the house 'yonkilata', kefirs and kombuchas. From Tuesday to Saturday, 10:30 to 23:00, the stall also sells its wines, beers, kefirs, kombuchas and electric candies to take away.

The Chef

Samy Alí

The Team

Chef Samy Alí, half Madrileño and half Sudanese, previously ran the Michelin-starred La Candela Restó before opening this market-stall follow-up.

Highlights

What Diners Say

CasualCozyAttentive ServicePolished ServiceExperimentalModern CreativeOpen Kitchen

Consensus

Doppelgänger Ratings & Reviews

Professional Ratings

Recommended
Macarfi

decor 5.8/10, service 6.5/10, typical spend 40€

food 7.3/10

Diner Ratings

Google

4.7

1289

TripAdvisor

4.6

181 reviews

#139 in MadridHidden Gem

Doppelgänger ranks #139 of 1001 rated restaurants in Madrid. Diners rate it 4.6/5 on TripAdvisor (181 reviews).

Reservations

How to Book Doppelgänger

Booking

Reserve through the booking widget on the venue's own site (doppelgangerbar.com).

Experience

Doppelgänger Dining Experience

A small, busy market stall with an open kitchen and a pace that doesn't let up, fitting two sittings on weekend nights. It's casual and loud in the best way, with attentive, fast service and a room that's climate-controlled year-round.

Navigate

Doppelgänger Location & Neighbourhood

Address

Mercado Antón Martín, 1ª Planta, Puesto 44, Calle de Santa Isabel 5, 28012 Madrid, Spain

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Getting There

Doppelgänger sits on the first floor of Mercado Antón Martín in Lavapiés, about 500 m north-west of the Reina Sofía. Atocha station is roughly 800 m in the same direction, north-west.

Nearby

Lavapiés is a steeply layered corner of central Madrid, a tight grid of narrow streets where the cooking comes from everywhere at once. The rooms are small, the prices are honest, and the good ones fill with regulars rather than reservations. Museo Reina Sofía and CaixaForum Madrid sit uphill from it, El Rastro at the bottom.

Details

Doppelgänger Reservations, Hours & Contact

Opening Hours

DayHours
MondayClosed
Tuesday19:30–23:15
Wednesday19:30–23:15
Thursday13:30–16:45, 19:30–23:15
Friday13:30–16:45, 20:00–23:15
Saturday13:30–16:45, 20:00–23:15
SundayClosed

Doppelgänger hours verified 2026-08-11. Contact the restaurant to confirm.

Contact

Good to Know

Tables are held for 90 minutes from the booking time, and bookings open up to 30 days ahead.
Natural wines, craft beers, kefirs and kombuchas on the drinks list.
The kitchen can't adapt dishes to specific dietary restrictions; allergen information is on the website.
Lunch Thursday to Saturday, dinner Tuesday to Saturday; weekend and holiday services run in two sittings.

Questions

Doppelgänger FAQ

Where is Doppelgänger located?

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Inside Mercado Antón Martín, first floor, stall 44, on Calle de Santa Isabel in Madrid's Lavapiés neighbourhood, by Antón Martín metro.

How does ordering work at Doppelgänger?

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You choose from a short numbered list of bocados, subject to the day's availability, plus a few desserts. The kitchen can't adapt dishes to specific dietary restrictions.

How much does dinner cost at Doppelgänger?

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Around €26 to €50 per person. Bocados run from €3 to €18, with most between €11 and €18, and wine by the glass starts at €3.70.

When is Doppelgänger open?

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Tuesday to Saturday. Dinner Tuesday to Thursday with flexible booking between 19:30 and 21:45, and two sittings at 20:00 and 21:45 on Friday, Saturday and holidays. Lunch Thursday and Friday between 13:30 and 15:15, and two sittings at 13:30 and 15:15 on Saturday and holidays.

Who is the chef at Doppelgänger?

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Samy Alí, half Madrileño and half Sudanese, who previously held a Michelin star at La Candela Restó before opening Doppelgänger in 2020.

What is the electric candy?

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The house's signature sweet, a sugar capsule with an alcoholic centre flavoured with the electric flower, which makes the tongue tingle. It's sold at the stall in boxes of six.