Looking for the best food at the best prices with the best atmosphere is certainly something we all try to do on the road. In Madrid, it is all about Tapas, and the number of Tapas Bars is dizzying. The Plaza Mayor is filled with some good food, but pretty pricey, and of course Plaza Santa Ana is a must in the early evening. So I have 2 recommendations in the Centro for good food, great atmosphere, and wonderful prices!
Rain or shine, it’s El Mercado de San Miguel. Just off of the Plaza Mayor, the Mercado is fully covered by a Beaux-Arts glass and steel structure, and is filled with high end food, wine, desserts, cheeses, seafood, Tapas, caviar and the ever popular Vermut Grifo. Go there for lunch or dinner or Tapas and you will be surrounded by locals and tourists and you will eat really well and really economically!
When you do want a full sit-down meal and still want to feel the Madrilenos atmosphere, then head to Taberna Maceira. Hidden at the end of the tiny Calle de las Huertas (number 66), you would probably walk past it if you did not know it was there. The locals begin arriving after 9PM or so, and there are no reservations. 
People wait outside for a long time, but each time I went I waited no more than 10 minutes. Once inside, you can order off the menu (handwritten on painters’ palettes) or ask for a menu in English, too. Have a pitcher of Sangria and some of those wonderful roasted peppers to get yourself started. At the end of the evening they will ask you if you want to partake in a ritual of drinking, which is a large bowl on a table filled with a mix of alcohols…that are lit on fire and served in a cup at your table. The show around the lighting of the bowl is pretty amazing, and the brew is damn good! Come prepared though: Maceira is CASH ONLY!
