Mercado de San Miguel

Walking from the Plaza Mayor towards Madrid's Cathedral and Royal Palace, we tripped over this masterpiece of iron and glass. The Mercado de San Miguel was built c.1916 and has recently been restored as a temple of food and drink.

Packed with bars and stalls selling every possible kind of food and drink, it was equally packed with people; sitting, standing leaning and enjoying themselves. Like all good eateries, the buzz of conversation was loud. The quality of everything was very high, and we guessed it must be run as a co-operative venture, as there were guys with trolleys doing the rounds and collecting empty glasses and plates, and people sat and stood anywhere, with none of the usual ties to individual stalls.

Why can't we do this in the UK? It was great, and we spent an anjoyable hour over a glass of vino blanco and some tapas, watching Madrid enjoy itself.