I think it was first on Instagram when I saw something from Cup of Couple. It was a fantastic breakfast setup with an exquisite-looking cup of coffee. Then Lovely Pepa posted another. Ever-curious, I clicked on top of the pin and found the address. What luck! It was only five minutes from my apartment. So one Sunday afternoon, I entered The Little Big Café for the first time. It’s now one of my favorite spots to write, read The New York Times, or to just clear my head. In fact, it was here where I wrote my Helena Rohner article.

Opened last year by Max and Cris (both with experience living and working abroad), the area of Chamberí between Moncloa and Argüelles now has a perfect oasis.

Now, you’ve already heard about Little Big as a place for the best brunch on a budget in Madrid, and let me tell you, it is absolutely heavenly (my go-to is the tosta de huevos a la plancha al estilo árabe on whole-wheat bread). But this cozy café great for more than brunch. Open from 9 am to 8 pm during the week, you can go to Little Big at almost any hour.

And with that there are several menú options (and let’s face it, a menú del día is one of Spain’s greatest little pleasures). In the morning until 1 pm, you can enjoy the breakfast menu (menú de desayuno). This includes one breakfast plate (I love the bocatín de jamón on whole-wheat…) and a coffee or tea. To round out my special breakfast, I always get one of the make-your-own smoothies. While you can put in yogurt or milk, I prefer to get mine with water so it’s more like a juice.

There are two lunch-time menus, the TLBC (which has a sandwich, salad, and drink for €11), or the menú del día (with two courses, a side dish, drink, and dessert for €10.50). And then on the weekends, the brunch menu is also an amazing meal (you’re way full afterwards).

If you’re just craving something sweet for your afternoon snack, then the baked goods at the counter and window are calling your name. The banana bizcocho is gluten and sugar-free, but everything else,  in spite of the fact that I can’t eat them, looks fabulous. One of my roommates had the cake made with beer and loved it.

Then, of course, let’s not forget what first my caught my eye in the first place on Instagram: the coffee. With a plethora of variations…

you’ll see why their slogan is: “a little café with a big heart.” With to-go cups and a VIP program where you can put your Polaroid on the wall, this is also a place that coffee lovers can love. With the VIP program, you can make The Little Big Café part of your heart the way the owners have seemed to have conceptualize it.

As evidenced by my presence on the wall, the little café with a big heart has become an extension of my home and my little big pick-me-up.

Info: 

You may also like: 

Coziest Cafés in Chamberí

Best Brunch on a Budget in Madrid

Best Cafe-Bookshops in Madrid, Round 1

Best Cafe-Bookshops in Madrid, Round 2

Toma Café — Fuel up, Feel hip

The district of Chamberi is the heart of Madrid’s university life. During the week, the neighborhoods of Moncloa, Islas Filipinas, and Guzman El Bueno are bustling with students. It only makes sense that some of Madrid’s best cafes are located in this area. After all, university students need their caffeine! The following is a short list of my personal favorites. These four cafes are all perfect for that much needed study break!

1. La Rollerie

I discovered this adorable cafe about a year ago and fell absolutely in love with it. And I’m not the only one! Any day of the week you can find La Rollerie filled with people, especially during lunchtime. What I love most about this cafe, besides its friendly staff, is its extensive menu. La Rollerie is the perfect place for a coffee break (a delicious cappuccino) or a full meal (try their beef burger or their salad with goat cheese).

2. Chocolate y Nata

What’s really nice about this cafe is how small and quiet it is. Never very noisy, Chocolate y Nata provides a cozy and authentic atmosphere. Enjoy their mixed croissant or any of their succulant cakes! As its name would suggest, this cafe offers some of the best chocolate pastries in the area.

3. Salon des Fleurs

Out of the four cafes on this list, Salon des Fleurs has been open the shortest amount of time. Still, it has created the biggest buzz! Customers are eager to enter into the unique experience that results from the fusion of a cafe and a flower shop. The flowery decor paired with a delicious selection of teas, coffee, and pastries sets Salon des Fleurs apart. You can also check out a previous article on Salon des Fleurs here.

4. Miga

Miga is a popular choice for students of Saint Louis University Madrid and CEU because of its convenient location, delicious coffee, and young (good-looking) staff. Often you will find Miga packed with customers but in the afternoon the cafe proves a perfect environment for unwinding and conversation. Miga provides a warm and friendly atmosphere definitely worth checking out. Try their delicious chocolate muffins!

Photos provided by Charlotte Geier, instagram: @charlotte_geier

You may also like:

La Paca, the perfect Malasaña café

Pepe Botella, a coffee place where you can think

Toma Café, Fuel up, Feel hip

El Cafelito, a trendy spot for cafe lovers in Lavapiés

Madrid’s best cafe-bookshops, round 1

Madrid’s best cafe-bookshops, round 2

Every day is Spring inside Salón des Fleurs. Step inside this quaint store that doubles as a florist and tea room, with a side of vintage products, and breathe in the fresh smell of flowers that are carefully displayed throughout the space.

Twinkling lights adorn the large paneled windows, adding to the charm of this café, if you could even call it simply that. Bright pink, red, and orange flowers are displayed outside next to small tables for those wanting to soak up the sun in good weather.

Sink into one of the comfy armchairs as you consider the all-encompassing tea list. There is nothing standard about the menu at Salón des Fleurs, descriptors such as “black tea,” and “green tea” are merely side notes offered to try to explain the flavoring of such teas as Apple Pie, Cookie, and Champagne and Strawberries.  Coffee is offered too, but with such exotic tea flavors, why bother?

Served in beautiful painted mugs, the tea puts your morning Earl Grey to shame. If you’re looking for a side treat to indulge in, Salón des Fleurs offers cakes and desserts also, including a two-layered fluffy carrot cake topped with rich cream cheese frosting.

Once you have savored your tea as long as possible, explore the rest of the store a bit. There is more than meets the eye, and you might find yourself discovering little quirks throughout the store, such as the multiple clocks in unusual places, all displaying a different time.

A spiral staircase leads to an upstairs vintage section, while the downstairs is more dedicated to the flowers, with a florist freshly cutting stems.

Like their alluring tea selection, Salón des Fleurs offers a variety of flowers, in bright colors, in pots, long stemmed; come here for any occasion and you won’t regret it. Don’t need flowers? Browse the vintage section or warm up with a mug of tea, any excuse to visit this charming spot will do.

Salón des Fleurs

In a barrio undergoing the gradual process of gentrification, chic cafes are a dime a dozen. Cafelito, situated on Calle Sombrerete near Mercado de San Fernando, quickly stood out amongst the crowd as my go-to spot for coffee and studious activity in the barrio. The owner, Julio, imports his coffee from locations such as Kenya, Ethiopia and Mexico.

During my first two years abroad I lamented the absence of iced-coffees, especially during the pinnacle of the Madrid summers. This past summer, when Cafelito opened, they boasted of offering homemade iced-coffee using cubes of frozen coffee as the ice. Since then, I have gone through 6 full punch chards and been rewarded for my loyalty with as many free drinks.

My favorite winter drink, which I typically take to go, is dirty chai. When I need to sit and be studious as I write assignments like this, I usually take a double espresso of whichever imported coffee is available that week.

Cafelito is now a hub for the writers amongst us in the barrio. The charms of the cafe are enhanced by the recycled furniture and open library. Coffee drinkers can borrow books–on the honor system–and leave books in the hope that they in turn will be borrowed.

They have cakes too.

Looking for other spots in Lavapiés? Check out:

Baobab, an authentic Senegalese restaurant

Tribuetxe, a Basque pintxo bar 

Mercado de San Fernando, the real food emporium 

Taberna Lamiak, another Basque pintxo bar with free wine tastings

Toma Cafe could very well be a coffee shop in a hipster mecca like San Fransisco or Brooklyn. Upon wandering into the sparse space with narrow benches lining the walls and a bicycle dangling from the ceiling, one might wonder: “Have I wandered onto the set of Portlandia?”

People peck at their laptops while seated at teensy tables. The baristas take their posts at the helm of the espresso machine seriously. More seats can be found in the back, but space is rather cramped. One’s daily dose of espresso can be consumed in various different forms. Options extend beyond the confines of café con leche.

A gem on the beverage menu: chocolate picante. In this concoction, bitter chocolate and prickly heat make ordinary chocolate seem lame.

A limited breakfast list exists offering a few variations on toast (tomato and olive oil, butter and jam, not much more). Alternatively, as Marie Antoinette famously did not say, let them eat cake. The chocolate cake is made with Madrid’s own Cerveza La Virgen–what could be better for breakfast?

The omnipresent carrot cake also beckons from the pastry case. Here, the crowd-pleaser takes on a spicy character and the cream cheese frosting makes an already good cake better.

Luckily for those in search of a caffeinated workspace, Toma Cafe opens for breakfast at early hours. Come here to fuel up and to fill hip.

Here are some more of our favorite cafes in Madrid:

Pepe Botella, a Coffee Place Where You Can Think

La Paca, the Perfect Cafe in Malasaña

Best Cafe-Bookshops in Madrid, Round 1 & Round 2