12 Best Markets in Madrid to Explore Food & Crafts
February 6, 2023
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If you are the type of person that looks for authentic food and gifts when traveling, then buying a souvenir from the stores in Gran Vía is not a very good start - you are losing out on the potential of markets in Madrid.
Don’t let the rush of fitting every single landmark in three days keep you from getting one-in-a-lifetime experiences in the best markets of Madrid.
I have synthesized the 12 best markets in Madrid for you to have an authentic experience on your next trip!
Before diving into these markets, I just want to point out that the ‘Best time to visit’ category recommends visiting the market during the less crowded hours.
Table of Contents ▼ ▶
1. Mercado San Miguel
Category: Gastronomic experience, tapas, and beverages.
Address: Pl. de San Miguel, s/n, 28005
Opening hours: Monday through Sunday from 10:00 - 00:00 h
Best time to visit: At their opening hour it is less crowded.
Mercado San Miguel is the most popular market in Madrid. Visited by over 10 million people yearly, this market is famous for its gastronomic offer, which blends the concepts of a traditional market with high-end tapas and drinks such as beer and wine.
Founded in May 1916, it is especially beautiful for its 20th-century iron structure, which becomes a beautiful sight at night when it is lit from within.
Mercado San Miguel has 33 stalls, and their top-selling offers in this market are cheese, ham, wine, and oysters. But my personal favorite is the mushroom and ham croquetas from Arzabál Croqueteria cart and the baos from Boale.
This market is usually full, so you have to go with a lot of patience and ready to eat standing!
2.Mercado San Idelfonso
Category: Gastronomic experience, tapas, and beverages.
Address: Calle de Fuencarral, 57, 28004
Opening hours:
- Monday - Sunday: 13:00 - 00:00 h
- Friday - Saturday 13:00 - 1:00 h.
Best time to visit: At 17:00 and from 22:00 - 00:00 h.
Unlike Mercado San Miguel, the San Idelfonso is a 21st-century gastro market meant to recreate the street food experience from New York and London, and now in Malasaña, Madrid.
Mercado San Idelfonso offers over 18 stalls of food and drinks. It welcomes you into a three-floor vertical market that takes you in a gastronomic tasting worldwide. You will find Korean street food, Venezuelan arepas, Peruvian ceviches, and of course, Spanish tapas.
On the first two floors (street hall and first stage), you will find all the food experiences and a bar. And, in the final stage, a lively cocktail bar is waiting for you.
3. Mercado San Antón
Category: Gastronomic experience and groceries.
Address: C. de Augusto Figueroa, 24, 28004
Opening hours:
- Monday- Saturday: 9:30 - 1:00 h.
- Sunday: 12:00 - 1:00 h.
Best time to visit: From 9:30 to 13:00 h, and from 21:00 forward is usually not too busy.
Located in Chueca, the Mercado San Antón first opened its doors in the 19th century, but it has been refurbished on several occasions to meet the demands of the districts and the visitors.
Today it is the third store building that offers tasting stalls and groceries. This is another market where you can get some fresh fish, chicken, and some flower arrangements, and by the end of the end, when you are tired and hungry, you should get a nice, juicy burger at Juancho’s BBQ.
P.S.: Some people say it’s the best burger in Spain. Just saying!
5. Mercado de la Paz
Category: Groceries and a few tasting stalls.
Address: Cl. de Ayala, 28B, 28001
Opening hours:
- Monday - Friday: 9:00 - 20:00 h
- Saturday: 9:00 - 2:30 h.
Best time to visit: Nice to visit at all hours.
Mercado de la Paz is one of the oldest markets in Madrid, founded in 1879 in the exclusive neighborhood of Salamanca; today offers over 60 stalls of food and dishes.
This market has three entrances; you can get from Ayala, Lagasca, or Claudio Coello street and stroll until you find the stall that excites your belly.
If you enjoy the traditional Spanish tortilla or tortilla de patata, go straight to Casa Dani! You will have the best and the juiciest tortilla in Madrid prepared with fresh ingredients that come directly from the market.
5. Mercado de Motores
Category: Crafts and food trucks.
Address: Paseo de las Delicias, 61, 28045
Opening hours:
- Saturday: 11:00 - 22:00 h.
- Sunday: 11:00 - 21:00 h.
*The market has specific editions, so it will have a moderate crowd every time they open.
Have you ever heard of the word upcycling? It means that you give a new purpose to something. That is precisely what happens to the National Railway Museum once a month when the Mercado de los Motores opens its doors to the public.
Remember what I said about the Sain Idelfonso market? Just that vertical market of Malasaña, the Mercado de los Motores, was created by a couple who wanted to replicate the dynamic of flea markets in London, New York, and Berlin.
The beautiful thing about this market in Madrid is that you will find over 200 artisans offering unique products. Fashion like anywhere else, food trucks like anywhere else, and second-hand opportunities.
The market is celebrated during the weekend only once a month. The editions are revealed a month in advance; you can check them here!
6. Mercado de San Fernando
Category: Groceries, gastronomic experience, crafts, and more.
Address: C. de Embajadores, 41, 28012
Opening hours:
- Monday: 9:00 - 14:30 h / 17:30 - 21:00 h
- Tuesday - Saturday: 9:00 - 22:00 h
- Sunday: 11:00 - 18:00 h
*It is usually not busy.
A craft beer, a perfect croqueta, some Mexican tacos, and some more craft beer. That is the combination you will get at San Fernando Market in Madrid.
You will find the Mercado San Fernando while strolling through the streets of Lavapies, one of Madrid’s most multicultural and colorful neighborhoods.
If you visit this market, you should find a wide offer. Imagine the following, you are about to go out into the streets of Madrid to grab some food and drinks, maybe some groceries, and while you are getting dressed, you rip the only pair of jeans you brought to the trip. What are you going to do?! Go to San Fernando Market.
Once there, you have to look for Sussan at ‘Arregleglos de ropa Sussan,’ a masterful seamstress who will fix your jeans, then go around the market, maybe order some jamón ibérico from ‘El Colmado,’ and then try Canarian food at ‘El Perequén.’
Everything in one market!
7.Mercado de la Cebada
Category: Groceries, gastronomic experience, crafts, and more.
Address: Pl. de la Cebada, 28005
Opening hours:
- Monday - Friday: 9:00 - 14:00h / 17:00 - 20:00h
- Saturday: 9:00 - 18:00h
- Sunday: 11:00 - 17:00h
*It is usually not busy.
Mercado de la Cebada was founded in 1876 in the La Latina neighborhood. But the current building was constructed during the 1950s.
Just like in San Fernando Market, La Cebada has a wide variety of stalls that go from fisheries to massage spaces. It is another perfect market to eat tapas, especially if you are visiting Madrid on a budget.
8.Mercado Antón Martín
Category: Gastronomic experience and groceries.
Address: C. de Sta. Isabel, 5, 28012
Opening hours:
- Monday - Wednesday: 9:00 - 23:00h
- Thursday - Saturday: 9:00 - 23:30h
Best time to visit: The market is usually not too busy in the early hours of its opening and during the mid-afternoon.
Mercado Antón Martin was officially inaugurated as such in 1941. It is shared between the neighborhood of Lavapiés and Atocha, very close to the Barrio de las Letras.
The market is in the middle of a very bohemian district of Madrid, and the food stall inside reflects the variety of cultures that lived together around San Antón.
One of my favorite places in Antón Martin is Yokaloka, delicious Asian food, and the specialty coffee from Cafés Tornasol.
9. Corte Inglés Gourmet Experience Callao
Category: Gastronomic experience
Address: Comercial El Corte Inglés, Pl. del Callao, 2, 9ª planta Centro, 28013
Opening hours:
- Monday - Thursday: 10:00 - 23:00h
- Friday - Saturday: 10:00 - 00:00h
- Sundays: 11:00 - 23:00h
Best time to visit: Generally busy
I must admit that this is not an authentic, traditional market like all the others we have talked about, but the view is wonderful.
Located on the last floor of the Corte Inglés Callao, this indoor market offers 13 stalls of food, drinks, and desserts that will charm any palate.
Even though it would be pretty full, the Gourmet Experience is an exciting place to go with a small group of friends or to date right before sunset and watch the sun disappear between Gran Vía.
My top two in this indoor Madrid market are the tapas at La Máquina and the ice cream in Amorino, which is not very Spanish but super good!
10. El Rastro
Category: Crafts and more.
Address: Plaza de Cascorro, 28012
Opening hours: Every Sunday from 9:00 - 15:00h
Best time to visit: Ver (very) early in the morning if you want to avoid waves of people.
Describe Madrid’s quintessential market; El Rastro attracts millions of people every Sunday searching for a unique craft or antique piece. The market extends into three streets: Embajadores, Toledo, and Ronda de Toledo, and the traditional way is to go from Plaza de Cascorro all the way into Puerta de Toledo.
For this one, I truly recommend you go at 9 am sharp! It usually gets super busy, and trust me, you don’t want to be swimming and dodging people the entire time.
The Rastro is the perfect market to find that second-hand jacket you have been dreaming of or buy some hand-made leather notebooks.
Little tip! Don’t drink coffee before going to Rastro; instead, get a flat white at Boconó Specialty Coffee in Embajadores streets. You won’t regret it!
11. Cuesta Moyano
Category: Second-hand and classic books
Address: Calle Claudio Moyano, 28014
Opening hours:
- Monday through Sunday: 9:30 - 13:30 h / 16:30 - 19:00 h.
Best time to visit: Usually not crowded.
‘Cuesta de Moyano’ is one of my favorite markets simply because of its vintage vibe. Every time I visit it, I wonder what books I found buried there.
Extending from the Royal Botanic Garden to the Retiro Park, the ‘Cuesta Moyano’ is more of a fair than a market, and it has been supplying people with books since 1925. There you’ll find a variety of literary genres between the 30 stalls of books.
The beautiful thing about Moyano is that the stalls are usually family-owned, and people have inherited them from their grandparents and parents.
I recommend you take your time and let the stalls uncover your next reading!
12. Platea
Category: Gastronomic experiences and events
Address: Calle de Goya, 5, 7, 28001
Opening hours:
- Friday: 18:00 - 2:30 h
- Saturday: 12:00 - 2:30 h
- Sunday: 12:00 - 1:00 h
****Due to the limited opening hours, you can expect to find a crowd at most times.
Plaetea Madrid is not your usual market. Just as we can define San Idelfosno as a vertical street food experience, Platea is a luxurious market of selected tapas and events.
If you aren’t into eating standing in a small space, Platea should be your market of choice. This market offers avant-garde tapas and signature cocktails to enjoy while watching a show of aerial dancing or flamenco.
Check out their agenda right here!
As you can see, we, madrileños, love food. There is no arguing against that; otherwise, we wouldn’t have such a wide variety of markets where we can shop and eat.
Remember that if you are visiting Madrid on a budget, eating in a market is the perfect option to get variety and reasonable prices, except for Platea, Corte Inglés Gourmet Experience, and Mercado San Miguel.
