Madrid, a place we didn’t expect to be so speciality-coffee-forward, surprised us with some great flat whites so we decided to spread the word and share this best coffee in Madrid list.
Finding a cup of decent coffee can be a struggle, especially if you visit new cities as often as we do and don’t have a chance to revisit your favourites. For us, the drill is always the same – research, check reviews and social media for photos to see if the coffees look ok, then add to a list and test one by one after arriving at a destination.
During our stay in Madrid, we discovered some more places, removed a few from the original list and compiled them all in one place. Here’s the list of our top 10 coffee shops in Madrid (in no particular order, based on our experiences ordering regular flat whites). Prices quoted valid as of end of July 2019.
WAYCUP Specialty Coffee
We visited this one of the two WAYCUP outposts during our last week in Madrid. It was a bit of a walk from the area where we mostly were spending our time but the coffee we had there was worth the effort.
The cool industrial interior is dominated by a long rust-coloured bar that stands out against white walls. The space is otherwise small, or so I thought until I read there’s also a downstairs section, which we didn’t notice due to being too strongly focused on the coffee.
Our two flat whites didn’t take long to arrive and starting off with the presentation, looked promising. They weren’t too hot, the milk was done well and the milk to coffee ratio was just right. Definitely one of our top 3 coffee places in Madrid where I’d happily return.
Flat white · €2.50
Hola Coffee
Hola, located just 5min walk from our Airbnb apartment, was the very first place we visited in Madrid. We started our relationship by drinking cold brews and purchasing a bag of beans but returned many times later for their beautiful flat whites (and more beans).
This cosy cafe with friendly baristas and the cutest logo is a tranquil spot in the colourful & eccentric Lavapiés neighbourhood. There was something about the ambience of that place that always put a smile on my face and it just felt not pretentious despite serving some of the best coffees in town.
Flat white · €2.50
ACID Café
We stumbled upon Acid on one of our walks – we first heard the familiar milk-steaming sound, so we stopped to assess the interior. A rather minimalist, mostly concrete and metal space, warmed up with wooden benches and green plants.
ACID is located just a short walk from the Prado Museum and the botanical garden. They serve coffee from Danish La Cabra roastery and seem to know their craft well. Our flat whites were great and had properly done microfoam milk.
Flat white · €3
Zero Point Coffee Shop
A big “high quality coffee” sign was easy to spot from afar but Zero Point wasn’t on my original list so we approached with caution at first.
The cafe is small, just two sets of bar seats along the walls, some shelves with books, Chemex, Aeropress and Bulgarian Dabov coffee beans. Beautiful floor tiles grab my attention. Laptops are banned and on the menu, the focus is on coffee without any unnecessary distractions. Friendly barista whips up solid flat whites, giving us a choice of two types of beans.
Zero Point is conveniently located just up the road from Reina Sofia.
Flat white · €2.60
Ruda Café
Ruda Café is a cosy little cafe located in the La Latina neighbourhood. There isn’t much room for seating and no matter what time of the day we visited, there were always some coffee-loving people around.
The interior has a lot of exposed brick and one wall fitted with shelves packed with coffee beans, teas, mugs and other coffee accessories as well as Melbourne’s Prana Chai.
We visited many times and enjoyed the friendly vibe and good flat whites.
Flat white · €2.30
Misión Café
Second cafe of the people behind Hola Coffee. Misión is more high-tech with the fancy Modbar espresso machine and also bigger focus on food with its semi-open kitchen.
All the coffee in Mission Café comes from Hola Coffee Roasters and is prepared with as much care. There is a bit more space to sit down which makes sense when there’s food involved.
Flat white · €2.50
Bianchi Kiosko Caffé
As the name could suggest it’s a tiny coffee kiosk with just a handful of chairs. During our visit, there was a constant stream of people and most seemed like regulars, chatting away with the barista.
The flat whites we got were excellent, definitely in the top 3 in Madrid for us. Everything from the temperature to the milk/coffee ratio was just right.
Flat white · €2.50
Randall Coffee Roasters
Coffee stand with a couple of tables in front of it at the Mercado de Vallehermoso. Not many tourists make their way to that market so it has a nice local feel to it.
They serve coffee prepared with care and it shows – our flat whites were nicely balanced and had a well-matched roast to milk coffees.
Flat white · €2.30
HanSo Café
HanSo is recommended almost everywhere I checked as the place to grab a coffee and seat with a laptop and get some work done. Well, looks like everyone read that and when we visited (and brought our laptops) the place was packed. So we settled on coffees and some early lunch.
Despite the huge amount of coffee-deprived and hungry people, the staff worked like clockwork. The wait for coffees was very reasonable and the quality didn’t suffer.
They use Nømad beans from a roastery in Barcelona and know how to make a solid flat white.
Flat white · €2.50
Black Poplar Espresso
Now here’s one I wish I found earlier. Lovely, quiet cafe with lots of natural light, minimalist interior and overall good vibe.
Whether you’re after a place where you could sit with a laptop and drink good coffee or just have a quiet moment of relaxation I’d suggest to check out Black Poplar Espresso.
Flat white · €2.50
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