Madrid eats late. 10pm is normal dinner time. But if you’re trying to eat at 12:30am or after, the options shrink fast — and the ones that stay open are either institutions or terrible. Here’s how to tell them apart.

11pm: kitchens still open

Casa Mingo

Paseo de la Florida, 34. Asturian cider house, roast chicken, cheap, loud, kitchen open till midnight. A classic pre-show dinner near Real Madrid games too.

La Bien Aparecida

Calle de Jorge Juan, 8. More refined. Northern Spanish. Kitchen runs to 11:30, worth the price.

Sala de Despiece

Calle de Ponzano, 11. Modern tapas, counter-only, kitchen open late. Book ahead.

Midnight: kitchens slowing

Lhardy (upstairs bar)

Classic consomé and croquetas at the upstairs bar until late. An old-school move.

Las Bravas

Huertas. Patatas bravas, cañas, open until 1am. The sauce is trademarked. Really.

1am: post-show, pre-club

El Brillante

Plaza del Emperador Carlos V, 8. Open until 2am. Bocadillo de calamares at 1am is a Madrid rite. Rough-and-ready, fluorescent-lit, perfect.

Casa Gonzalez

Wine bar open late. Cheese, ham, wine, kitchen closes but the bar doesn’t.

2am and after

Chocolatería San Ginés

Open 24/7. Chocolate con churros at 2:30am, surrounded by people doing the same. Every visitor to Madrid does this once.

100 Montaditos

Not recommended except in emergencies. Open very late, cheap, fine for a beer and a tiny sandwich when nothing else is.

Neighborhoods to be in

Huertas, La Latina, Malasaña, Chueca — late-night kitchens cluster here. Salamanca goes to sleep early. Anywhere near tourist plazas = overpriced late-night traps; walk 4-5 blocks out before stopping.

The rule

If a place advertises “Open all night — tourist menu” in English, keep walking. If the door is heavy, the bar is crowded with locals, and nobody is pitching you, you’ve found the right place.