In the late 1990s a young team set up La Musa in Malasaña, creating one of Madrid’s fun and funky restaurants attracting a matching crowd. While that venue is still worth a visit, it’s newer, bigger sister, La Musa Latina, is our preferred option of the two. Located in the incredibly popular La Latina district, La Musa Latina works on two levels.

Upstairs is the restaurant, which serves juicy meat dishes, hung from the skewer on which they were cooked, selected tapas and salads, all of which are perfect for sharing over a noisy evening with friends. Meanwhile, downstairs is the bar area, where satisfied patrons can wander down to enjoy a post-prandial long drink in pleasingly darkly lit surroundings. The wait staff are all too cool for school, but still provide a pleasantly friendly service, while the clientele range from twenty-somethings celebrating birthdays, to discerning forty-something couples.