After work in Spain: A Unique Way to End Your Work Day
September 23, 2022
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Endless days and hours of work, a boss you can’t stand it anymore, meetings where you want to cut your head off… We are increasingly looking for ways to disconnect from our work and relax with a beer in our hands.
Let me introduce you to Spanish afterwork!
First, let’s leave our workplace and call our colleagues. It’s time for tapas while we listen to good music while take a sip of our favorite drink. It doesn’t sound bad at ALL!!
Here I’m gonna show you how Spanish people enjoy afterwork, its benefits, and some of the top places to go and have the best experience. Are you in?
Table of Contents ▼ ▶
What’s the Spanish “Afterwork” and its benefits
Millions of people face a hard working day and try to find a formula to free themselves from the stresses of work. This formula is known as the “afterwork.”
When you read this word, a few images from movies or series can quickly come to your mind (in my case, I thought of “Friends” the TV show). The main characters meet afterwork in bars to discuss work and personal issues.
Let me tell you that this actually exists! And it takes place in Spain, especially in the big cities like Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, and Valencia.
The “Afterwork” is a new way of socializing, a phenomenon that has emerged among the Millenials between 25 and 35 years old who work long hours. Afterwork, they want to meet with their colleagues while they relax by having a drink.
The afterwork can be any day of the week once you finish work, but people tend to join more on Thursdays.
I think this could be because we have other duties or responsibilities during the week. Still, being Thursday, you know that the next day is already Friday, and you need to cheer up a little to give the last push! Are you with me?
BUT many people can’t make it until Thursday and need a boost of energy to get through the week. So don’t be surprised to see people going for a drink on a Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday, especially in the big cities.
On Friday afternoons, if you work for a cool company and you finish early, you can join the lucky ones and go for a drink.
We could say that Afterwork in Spain has its benefits as it is used as a method to release stress and fatigue and reduce tension at work and home.
Besides this, another benefit is creating stronger relationships with co-workers since you have almost no time to talk to them during the day, and everyone is busy or stressed.
I really believe that this helps a lot to improve the work environment.
Afterwork can be your great ally if you consider expanding your professional network and looking for a new job or business opportunities.
But I’m sure you’re interested to know what exactly Spaniards do “afterwork”. So I recommend you to keep reading…
What Spanish people usually do afterwork
The afterwork has become part of Spanish culture. Spaniards always try to find an excuse to get together to socialize and, of course, to eat and drink something.
It is the key time to let off steam with friends, either to complain about work or to brag about how well they are doing and how much they earn. Some love to complain about their partner, and others talk about how well they are doing.
Spaniards usually get together in a bar with their co-workers after a hard day at work in the city. What they are looking for is to relax and put aside their problems while having a drink. The most typical thing to do is to go to the bars near your workplace or the trendy places around the city to have “pinchos,” “tapas,” beers, or drinks.
Sometimes if you enjoy and have lots of fun, it can be extended late into the night. I am talking about LATE LATE, like 4-5am. But it depends, of course, on your friends and the energy you have.
I am WARNING you! This actually happens very often!
In fact, you can’t miss the places I’m going to recommend below, to go afterwork with your friends.
But first, let me share with you Adriana’s (30 yo from Madrid, working in Deloitte) afterwork opinion:
“Afterworks in Madrid are A THING. If you aren’t present, you’ll probably miss out on the main topics of your business environment. In my case, pre-Covid afterworks were weekly, especially on Thursdays. We usually met in bars close to Torre Picasso (Broker, for instance), had a few beers, which magically turned out to be Gintonics, and ended up in Fortuny (aka Morris nowadays). During Covid, naturally, these afterworks disappeared, and presently these have been resumed although we are working on pulling up attendance.”
Most Popular Places to go afterwork in Spain
Do you want to be part of the best afterwork in Spain? Good music, good DJs, fantastic drinks and cocktails, and an incredible atmosphere! In any big city, you will find super cool places afterwork.
I’ve asked friends from different cities, and these are the places you can’t miss!
Madrid
- Broker: is a restaurant located right in the middle of the capital expert in organizing afterworks. It’s mainly attended by people who work in the big four (Deloitte, PWC, KPMG, and EY) or who work in a specific area of the city, “Azca.” They usually get together on Thursdays around 6pm and stay until 1.
- Bicai: it’s actually the trendiest place at the moment! Located in the financial center of Azca, next to the Picasso Tower. If you are looking for a bar-restaurant to eat something quick and have a few beers or drinks, here it is! Bicai also offers breakfast, a la carte meals and a high quality daily menu. But without a doubt, the most famous is its afterwork, which usually lasts well into the night. Trust me you are gonna love it!
Teresa, 31 yo from Madrid, works in the city and highly recommends the “Ponzano” area, full of bars for all tastes and always with a great atmosphere! Pinzano, Maraca, and Margarito are her favorites, and where she usually goes with her co-workers on Thursdays around 8pm.
Barcelona
- Collage: without a doubt, this place is famous for its cocktails. I have heard that the Spring Perfume is a must and that you should order it at least once. Who said FREE food? They have complimentary appetizers and tapas afterwork, something people love and go crazy for.
- Shakerato: located in the famous Born neighborhood. A place that offers a super different afterwork, and also, if you are a big fan of sushi, I’m sure you’ll love it! On Wednesdays from 20 to 23, they have a sushi master who prepares incredible pieces of sushi, and the best of all is that they are included with the drink. On Thursdays, they organize afterwork dinners for 25 euros! Highly recommended!
Carlos, 34, from Barcelona, recommends “Soho House.” This club has spectacular Mediterranean cuisine, rooms in case you get stuck at night, event spaces, a health club, and much more. Believe me when I tell you that you won’t want to leave!
Sevilla
- Cielo de Sevilla: an incredible place with spectacular views in the heart of the Santa Cruz neighborhood. An excellent place to relax afterwork and have a drink with friends.
For some reason I still don’t understand, their website seems to crash very often. If you want to get in touch to make a reservation, I would advise you to call instead of using the website. This is the link to their google maps profile.
- Cafe de la Boheme: the perfect place to escape the routine and the essentials in your list of afterwork places. It is created exclusively to enjoy. And the customer service is spectacular!
Ignacio, 33, from Seville, usually goes for a beer near his work area. One place he likes to go with his colleagues is “La Escondida.” Ignacio recommends the “Arenal” area, especially the well-known Arfe St, where you will have difficulty choosing a bar, as all of them look pretty cool. People tend to go there, especially on Thursdays and Fridays. In fact, on many Fridays when they leave work at 3 o’clock they go to that area and stay until the wee hours of the morning!
Valencia
- Vessel club: First you should know that it is only open on Fridays and Saturdays from 5 o’clock. But this is a place you should definitely go to! Highly recommended by the locals. Perfect music and an incredible atmosphere!
- Bureau: it started as a friend’s bar, but now it’s one of the top places to go afterwork. They have some of the best cocktails in town, so what are you waiting for?
Lele, 31 years old from Valencia, recommends the area of Barrio del Carmen, the “Mercado de Colón”, the Alameda, and Sorní street, which is full of bars.
I think now you can get an idea of how Spaniards try to make their working days more enjoyable, but that doesn’t mean they work less. Spaniards are good workers!
In general, Spaniards are nice and friendly people with whom it is easy to talk about anything. So I suggest that if you are in Spain or planning to come, you should join one of our afterworks!
