Madrid's Marais

When I read this NYT article about Calle Conde Duque in July, I got really, really excited about living in Madrid. When I moved into my apartment next to Arguelles metro, I didn't realize that I was a five minute walk from Conde Duque. I am! I teach at a school literally one street over from CD, so I walk around there about every other day. After a couple of months in my flat, I've been to every place on the NYT list without making any particular effort. Yesterday I talked to the owner of one of the Grupo Deportivo stores, and recommended that he look into Hollander and Lexar, where Dotts and I befriended our photogenic friend last year. I hope some kind of transatlantic connection is made because those stores are perfect complements.

The photo above is of El Jardin Secreto, which I tried for the first time a couple of weeks ago and loved. I had a super sweet Bailey's based cocktail, some arroz negro and a cheese plate. Last night, I went to La Dichosa nearby, which would've fit into the NYT article nicely. It was lively, pretty, and cheap--5 drinks (not all mine) and a cheese+ham plate for 23 euros. Can't beat that. They had an interesting drink selection, all written in chalk on the black wall behind the bar: vermouth, basque cider, Mahou negra (the lighter, Spanish version of Guinness) and my embarrassing favorite, cava.

Conde Duque, I love you. I can walk there, it's reasonably priced, it's authentic, it's low key and pretty and lively. I basically want to go out there every night.