Milk

I have spent many a hungover afternoon in Madrid searching for a cafe that serves a real deal English Breakfast. As mentioned in an earlier post, we went to Carmencita, which I was told served excellent brunch in Madrid. For anyone who hasn't read about my experience, it wasn't the best. However, I must tell you now that we recently visited a second time, and the food was excellent. Still no baked beans though…

Anyway! The next few posts will be about Barcelona. I had the best weekend of my life, and I'm so lucky to have celebrated by 21st Birthday there, with some of my amazing friends. 

The morning after a rather eventful evening at Razzmattazz, we wandered the cobbled streets of the Gothic district in search of Milk, a well known bistro/bar in Barcelona. The atmosphere was so chilled, with comfy seats and a soothing soundtrack, (Stevie Wonder, Fleetwood Mac, Simply Red vibes) and the staff were very friendly. 

Milk's breakfast menu is called Recovery Brunch, which they serve everyday from 10 till 4pm. The majority of us ordered the English Brekky which was just perfection. BEANS, MUSHROOMS, TOMATOES, SCRAMBLED EGGS, BACON, SPICY POTATOES, TOAST. I was absolutely loving life. The Eggs Benedict also looked sensational, and the Smoothies were an absolute delight. We even got a glass of cava thrown in for free because our food took a while to come out. We left the cafe, extremely full, but in high spirits as we made our way down to the beach for a long lie down in the sun. 

If you are in Barcelona, and want a really tasty brunch with big portions, at reasonable prices, in a cool hip venue, then the only place to be is Milk. 

Carmencita Bar

What an odd afternoon I have encountered. So last night got a little out of hand… Greg’s friends from Nottingham have come to stay for the weekend, and what better way to show them Madrid then to go to Taboó and get absolutely bladdered. Taboó is a little club hidden in the depths of Malasana which we frequent rather a lot. (Some would say a little too much…) I absolutely love it in there. It isn’t too expensive, the music is always spot on, and everyone is always up for a boogie. (I will write a review on Taboó at a later date.)

So on Saturday afternoon we woke up, blurry eyed, heads pounding, trying to piece together the night before. The only solution for this awful hangover is a greasy old fry up. We made our way down to Carmencita, a small cafe near Noviciado. A lot of people have recommended this place to me, and after looking at reviews on Trip Advisor, I was rather excited to go. We booked a table, as it gets very very busy at the weekend.  

The decor is modern, with a few quirky wall stickers dotted about. The menu is very promising, with Eggs Benedict served with crispy bacon and a side of hash browns staring me right in the face. The others ordered the American Plate, which consisted of fried eggs, sausage, bacon and hash browns (WHERE ARE THE BEANS?) So we waited a while, all very hungry and becoming increasingly impatient. 40 minutes later, the American Plate’s arrived. The food was cold. Then, the waitress came over to tell us that they were having a few issues with the Hollandaise sauce but the Eggs Benedict should be ready in a few minutes. Another 15 minutes later, it arrived. Freezing cold eggs, unsatisfactory sauce, grease ridden bread, but the hash browns were good!  The waitress admitted that they had a lot of problems that morning and told us that nothing had to be paid for as it wasn’t up to scratch. Being the students that we are, we asked for a few extra coffees, which were also free. We were all so hungry that we polished off the food, and made a swift exit back to the flat. 

 I was very disappointed with Carmencita, but I do understand that restaurants have their off days, when nothing goes to plan. The service was very slow, however, the American waitress was extremely apologetic and sweet. Despite the food being cold, the quality of ingredients was very good, and i’m sure that if I went again, that the food would be spot on.