Information appreciated

[satxbonneville]

My wife and I are planning a trip to watch the final World Superbike race at Portimao. We have never been to the Iberian Peninsula and I was hoping to glean a bit of information to make our trip planning a bit easier. We will be flying into Madrid where we plan to spend a couple of days (October 21/22-24) before taking the short flight to Faro for the race weekend and then heading back to Madrid for some more sightseeing before our flight back to the states.

We both love food and are interested in eating some of the best of local foods. We prefer inexpensive places rather than big touristy places and hitting some tapas bars sounds like a heck of a good time as does outdoor dining and people watching.

I think we have our hotel covered in Madrid but if there is anyone who knows the Algarve and can recommend a reasonably priced place to stay in Portimao that would be great. Right now I am leaning towards some places in Albufeira of the tourist apartment type.

Food and must see places recommendations in the Algarve would be appreciated as well.

Shoot, any type of advice for maximizing our trip to the region would be gratefully accepted.  

Thanks - Mike

[Orson]

My cousin lives in Madrid, so she was able to show me around. One night, we went to a flamenco performance inside a metro station   I'm guessing it was for the acoustics. Talk about an intense experience, they reaaally get into their flamenco. They even have all-flamenco radio stations. The audience sat rapt throughout the performance, applauding with gusto as if they were at a rock concert. The place exuded passion.

I'm afraid I wasn't too impressed with southern Spain & Portugal. An over-developed southern Florida comes to mind with restaurants hawking bangers & mash to British tourists   The cliffs at Cape Sagres are beautiful. You might want to consider Lisbon & Sintra rather than going back to Madrid a second time, or flying from Madrid to Lisbon immediately, then enjoying Madrid on the way back.

They eat dinner reaaally late   Like 10 P.M., which was pretty rough on me as I usually eat dinner around 6 P.M. and it's lights out before 10:30  

[FJR-UK]

I've only been to Sintra and Lisbon, so no help with Portugal.

I've been to Madrid a couple of times for short breaks. If you are night animals, you will love Madrid. When a place turfs you out at 3 am, the club next door is just opening. It's no wonder Madrileños take a siesta. If you're not into art (Prado, Thyssen Gallery) you can take a stroll through El Retiro. And, the Atocha rail station to the southwest is worth a look – have a drink in the greenhouse.

Offal is popular in Madrid. They have fast food joints that serve nothing but animal innards. In the tapas bars you might look to see if criadillas are on the menu. You're more likely to find them the closer you are to the bull ring.

Botin serves another popular dish, roast suckling pig (cochinillo). Botin is definitely on the tourist map, but my wife and I enjoyed it. If you happen upon the fish market (I think it was to the east of El Retiro, but it was 10 years ago and my memory fails me) have a look around for a restaurant that serves a zarzuela, a seafood soup/stew. Delicious. Sopa de ajo (garlic soup) is another Spanish treat. And gazpacho.

If you walk around the neighborhoods, it gets a bit rougher, but you are more likely to find wine served from the barrel and tapas served free with drinks. Ask for a vermouth (bear-moot). Lots of neighborhood places have a small barrel on the bar and it seems to be a popular afternoon beverage.

Edit: more food – Manchego cheese. It's worth it to pay more for the aged variety. Razor clams (navajas) are served in many bars, just grilled. Delicious. Be careful when ordering a brandy. Lots of bartenders/waiters will wrist pour and wait for you to say "whoa!"

Pimientos de Padron (from the Santiago de Compostela area). A delicacy among peppers. Quickly fried in olive oil and served with rock salt on top. The saying is "some are hot, some are not." It's Russian roulette with peppers. The hot ones are surprisingly hot and you can go through most of a basket before you hit one, which lulls you into a false sense of security.

Cabrales. Unlike manchego, which is hard, this one is soft. Often served on the bar with bread. Delicious.

Percebes. (Goose-necked barnacles) Look for how to eat these delicacies on the internet, so you'll be prepared when you spot them on the menu. I've only ever seen then on sale in Spanish fish markets. They will be expensive, because they are so difficult/dangerous to harvest from the sea.

[Snowdog]

If you're not into art (Prado, Thyssen Gallery) you can take a stroll through El Retiro. And, the Atocha rail station to the southwest is worth a look – have a drink in the greenhouse.

Even if you're not into art, go to the Museo Centro de Arte Reina Sofia and look at Picasso's Guernica. I think it's one of those things that everybody should see at some point in their life. The most powerful piece of art I've ever seen. +1 on the Retiro - a great place to people watch and has some amazing monuments demonstrating typical Spanish understatement.

They eat dinner reaaally late   Like 10 P.M., which was pretty rough on me as I usually eat dinner around 6 P.M. and it's lights out before 10:30  

I like to eat around 8 or 9. In Spain I'm usually the first in the restaurant aside maybe from families with young children.

I can't help with Portugal either, I've only dipped briefly into the north but left when I realised I couldn't understand a word of the language. I don't suppose that will be so much of a problem in a more touristy area like the Algarve.

[notarian]

Every suggestion about Madrid is spot on.

Communicating in English all along the Algarve? It is well know that even the cats and dogs speak it.

I can't help with specific accommodations in the Algarve, but agree with your thinking on Albufeira area.

Foods = Cataplana is a national dish that is a must and generally for 2 persons. Simple foods like grilled sardines, salad, bread, olive oil and wine carafe is a splendid lunch or dinner for 12 euros and found everywhere.

Note

[Gaw]

Hi,

I can help you with Madrid because I live in

As well as typical Madrid places (Puerta del Sol, Plaza Mayor, Calle Gran Via, Museo del Prado, Parque del Retiro.....) I recommend you renting a car a couple of days and visit some places like El Escorial, Avila, Toledo, Segovia or Aranjuez, all of them are very nice places very beautiful and close to Madrid with a lot of historical constructions.

Another nice possibility for you, could be rent a motorbike one day a make a route in the Madrid mountains(sierra de Madrid) they are located in the north of the "Comunidad de Madrid" around 50 km of the citycentre, and you will get another vision of the Madrid area, and probably you will surprise for the beautiful landscapes and roads.

Anycase I could recommend you different place for lunch and dinner depending on the money and your preferences

[satxbonneville]

Wow!

Thanks one and all for the feedback and the information!

Pimientos de Padron? Man, I'm from South Texas and I'm fluent in hot peppers. My wife is already talking about the fresh seafood - she's of Spanish-Chinese descent, born and raised in the Phillipines with a Chinese family (Suntay) on one side and a Spanish family (Lopez) on the other - she is MAD about fresh fish.

Bangers and mash? Eh, no thanks. Manchego? Yes, please!

We are both art lovers and the museums in Madrid are on our list. I'd crawl across broken glass to see "Guernica" in person. As long as it's safety glass.


I'm pretty sure my wife will want to take in a flamenco performance. She drag...er...took me to one last month. I'm pretty sure that it was just one long song with a short intermission. Better with a dancer I'd bet.

Eating at 10:00? That's my bed time!


 

[Orson]

Pimientos de Padron? Man, I'm from South Texas and I'm fluent in hot peppers.

That reminded me. When I was in Andalusia, I had a dish called piri-piri shrimp.

If you like HOT & SPICY, give that a try  

[satxbonneville]

That reminded me. When I was in Andalusia, I had a dish called piri-piri shrimp.

If you like HOT & SPICY, give that a try  

Oh yeah! I've had Piri-Piri Shrimp. Great stuff. The chef made his sauce using bird peppers but habaneros are also a good.

On a hot food side note there's a burger place here in San Antonio that builds what could be the worlds hottest burger. They use grilled jalapeno, serrano, habanero and the bhut jolokia (over 1 million Scoville units!!!). No, I haven't tried it yet. That one requires some thought and, possibly, an updated will.  

[miles]

Outside of Madrid is a place called El Valle De Los Caidos.  Go.  It's a memorial and tomb for both sides of the civil war.  It is one of the most stunning places I've ever seen.

[FJR-UK]

Anycase I could recommend you different place for lunch and dinner depending on the money and your preferences

¡Si, por favor! If the OP won't take up your offer of local knowledge, I will!

I'm as comfortable standing in a local bar as I am seated in a fancy restaurant, as long as the food and atmosphere are good.

If you were to recommend two tapas bars and two restaurants, what would they be?

Muchas gracias.

Here are two for you, if you ever get to Cádiz:
http://www.restaurantebalandro.com/index2.asp El Balandro. Sit at the bar and have tapas. Wonderful food, a nice place to sit and usually buzzing.

http://www.restaurant-guide.com/el-faro-cadiz.htm El Faro. They have a tapas bar separate from the main restaurant. More of a stand up place, but also great food. Short walk to the swimming beach.

I was going to recommend Cadiz to the OP, because it is on a train line that includes four of my favorite Spanish cities: Toledo, Córdoba, Sevilla and Cádiz. When I took the train to Sevilla, it said right on the ticket "if this train is more than five minutes late, your fare will be refunded." This would never happen in the UK. Anyway, I thought the trip might be too much of a stretch when the objective is a SuperBike race in Portugal.

Hmmm. I'm rambling now...

[miles]

¡Si, por favor! If the OP won't take up your offer of local knowledge, I will!

I'm as comfortable standing in a local bar as I am seated in a fancy restaurant, as long as the food and atmosphere are good.

If you were to recommend two tapas bars and two restaurants, what would they be?

Muchas gracias.

Here are two for you, if you ever get to Cádiz:
http://www.restaurantebalandro.com/index2.asp El Balandro. Sit at the bar and have tapas. Wonderful food, a nice place to sit and usually buzzing.

http://www.restaurant-guide.com/el-faro-cadiz.htm El Faro. They have a tapas bar separate from the main restaurant. More of a stand up place, but also great food. Short walk to the swimming beach.

I was going to recommend Cadiz to the OP, because it is on a train line that includes four of my favorite Spanish cities: Toledo, Córdoba, Sevilla and Cádiz. When I took the train to Sevilla, it said right on the ticket "if this train is more than five minutes late, your fare will be refunded." This would never happen in the UK. Anyway, I thought the trip might be too much of a stretch when the objective is a SuperBike race in Portugal.

Hmmm. I'm rambling now...

My house is pretty close to Cadiz, and I enjoy going to the beaches there... but for an American, it's a pretty uninteresting Spanish city.  Even though it is an extremely old city, there isn't anything really old to see- all the Phoenician and Roman stuff is long, long gone.  Seriously, it reminds me of Miami- which is not necessarily a bad thing, but if you've already been to Miami, why travel to another continent to go to someplace similar?
Sevilla, though, is another story.  For an American tourist it's a wonderland.  
Cordoba always depresses me a bit.  It bothers me to see spray-painted graffiti on 2000 year old Roman bridges.  The city is dirty and unkempt.  Sevilla is dirty, too, but at least it's vibrant and alive.  Cordoba seems a bit morose to me.
You didn't mention the other big Andalusian city, Granada.  I love Granada.  The Albaicin, the cathedral, but most of all the Alhambra.  Perhaps the most beautiful man-made structure I've ever seen.

The OP asked about places near to Madrid- I'd put Toledo and Segovia on the list of great places to see.  I love both towns.  Skip the cochinillo in Segovia, unless you really, absolutely love pork roast.  Do go to the castle.  Wander freely around the old towns in both cities- there are very, very many wonderful spots tucked away off the beaten path.

[FJR-UK]

... but for an American, it's a pretty uninteresting Spanish city.

I'm an American (but I've never been to Miami). We stayed an unplanned extra night in Cádiz because we were enjoying the town so much. I suppose we just look for different things in a place. I found it a comfortable, not too touristy place. I thought I wouldn't mind living there for a while to see if it became boring. When you're used to London, places can get boring pretty quick. I thought the food in Cadiz was excellent. I liked the fact that it was on a peninsula and you could walk around the town following the shoreline. It has a nice beach right in the old town. I liked watching the family nightlife in the squares. I was amazed by the fish market, but then any Spanish fish market amazes me. Who knows? If I stayed there another week, I might agree with you.

Córdoba. Yeah, it can be pretty rough, but I didn't wander too far from the area surrounding the Mesquita, which I think is as important to see as the Alhambra. We agree on Granada (which I didn't mention, because it is not on that train line) and Segovia. Also near Madrid is Chinchón, where you can enjoy a glass of anís de Chinchón while sitting next to a wonderful old bull ring.

I am looking forward to the day I can return to Granada. The loop around the Sierra Nevadas to the south was a good day out.

[miles]

I am looking forward to the day I can return to Granada. The loop around the Sierra Nevadas to the south was a good day out.

When you are close to ready, let me know and I'll point you in the direction of some incredible roads.

[FJR-UK]

When you are close to ready, let me know and I'll point you in the direction of some incredible roads.

I'll take you up on that, thanks! I'll be close to ready when the pound recovers. Will you still be around in 2020?

[Gaw]

Outside of Madrid is a place called El Valle De Los Caidos.  Go.  It's a memorial and tomb for both sides of the civil war.  It is one of the most stunning places I've ever seen.

El Valle de los caídos is not for both sides of civil war. I was built by Franco (Spanish dictador) using political prisoners. Anycase as you say the views are impressive but I recommend not make
a journey only for visiting it. I will visit Monasterio Del Escorial first and after that Valle de los caídos



My recommendations:

One very typical and popular tapas bar (and not expensive) is "Casa Mingo" I recommend you try tortilla, chicken and chorizo a la sidra. it's a classic

Another nice and typical tapas bar could be "La percha", ask for a table in the cave. In the area of this tapas bar ("Cava baja" area, Subway station: "La Latina", in the 5 line)  you can find
a lot of typical tapas bar and a very nice atmosphere

"La creacion" is another interesting tapas bar, but you will need to book previously, it's crowd


For restaurants, I recommend you:

Restaurante Guipuzcoa, in "Casa de Campo" inside of the fairgrounds. it's a bit expensive but the quality it's very good. In general restaurants in these area are very good


In the Santiago Bernabeu area you can find two typical restaurants "Mesón Txistu" and "Asador Donostiarra" both are expensive and meat specialist but very high quality

Outside of the city you can find "La Leyenda" is another nice restaurant


For try "Cocido" (typical Madrid dish):

Restaruante La Bola. You can eat all cocido that you be able to. It's a strong dish, better for lunch and winter

Several of my favourite restaurants in Madrid are not in the city are in the north of the Madrid autonomous region. You can enjoy beautiful landscapes and great meal, if someday you decided
make a motorbike route in this area, please ask me.

Milles, in Cadiz I recommend you to visit this town "Sanlucar de Barrameda" very good meal and very cheap in general

[satxbonneville]

 

Lot's of good info, fellas and all much appreciated. The wife and I do have a future trip planned to Spain to ride the mountains but no bike riding on this trip, sadly. It's more of a hit and run highlights type trip with only 8 days total including travel days. Right now it looks as if we are going to fly into Madrid, hop over to Lisbon right away and spend 2-3 days, head down to Portimao for the race Saturday and Sunday and then head to Madrid Monday to wrap up the trip there.

The cochinillo is on the list. Lechon and Crispy Pata are two of my favorite dishes so the opportunity to sample the source of the Filipino version cannot be missed.  

[Papa Lazarou]

As said before, the Alhambra is a must experience/ see for every sentient creature. Perhaps the greatest building in the world.

[Gaw]

As said before, the Alhambra is a must experience/ see for every sentient creature. Perhaps the greatest building in the world.

Totally agree, it´s amazing

[Orson]

you may not have enough time, but here is a site for the Alentejo region just north of the Algarve.