Michael,
I just posted a long list of clubs in another thread.
Click Here to check it out. My post is the second one in the thread.
Below is a list to some of the gay bars and clubs in Madrid.
Restaurants:
A Brasileira Casa de Comidas
Al Natural
El Armario
Divina La Cocina
Gula Gula
La Dame Noire
Chez Pomme
Momo
Qoricancha
Casa Vallejo
Sarras�n
Zacat�n
Bars & Caf�s:
Candilejas
Coraz�n Loco
El Mojito
Escape
Hot
Rick's
La Sastrer�a
Mad Caf�
Star�s Caf�
XXX Caf�
El Jard�n
Discos:
Angel's of Xenon
Heaven
Refugio
Goa After Club
Week-End
Click Here for location, prices, and a description of each of these establishments.
Below are some clubs in the Chueca area
Big Bamboo
C/Barquillo 42 (91 562 88 38)
Metro Alonso Mart�nez/bus 3, 37, 40, 149, N19. Open 10pm-6am Tue-Thur; 10pm-7am Fri, Sat.
A great place to listen to reggae. Most people are too busy getting together and feeling alright to notice, but the pictures on the wall are worth inspecting: as well as the usual celebration of His Bobness, there's amusing artwork showing rastas in incongruous settings. Its distinctly primitive open plan toilets are compensated for by cheap cocktails, such as Big Bamboo Passion: rum, vodka and cinnamon. It fills up between midnight and 12.30am, and thereafter it's packed.
But
C/Barcel� 11 (91 446 42 31/91 448 06 98)
Metro Tribunal/bus 3, 40, 149, N19. Open 10.30pm-5am Mon, Tue, Thur; 7pm-5am Wed & Sun; midnight-5am Fri, Sat. after hours 5-10am Sat, Sun. Admission 1,000-1,500ptas incl 1 drink.
Not a club, a real dance hall - but whatever your prejudices about such places But is a pleasant surprise, more downtown Buenos Aires than Come Dancing. It's a big place, swirling with great music and filled with a lively crowd of all ages. The dancing's surprisingly good, and the moves range from rag time to rumba, polka to pasodoble. For the inexperienced there are also classes, including special children's lessons. Trainers are not allowed. But also has another identity, in that it hosts the Heat after hours sessions.
Corto Malt�s
C/San Andr�s 11 (no phone)
Metro Tribunal/bus 3, 40, 149, N19. Open 9pm-3.30am daily.
With a great location right on Plaza Dos de Mayo, this colonnaded bar has a warm, balmy feel to it. Its real strength, though, is its music, which remains resolutely dance orientated in a barrio over-endowed with guitar-fixated rock bars. At weekends DJs play a seamless mix of trip hop, house and techno at noise levels still conducive to conversation.
El no. 1
C/de las Minas 1 (no phone)
Metro Noviciado/bus 147. Open 6pm-2am Mon-Sat; 5pm-2am Sun.
If you're in need of a bit of calm this place is as mellow as it gets. A languid teter�a just off Calle del Pez, it offers comfort and rejuvenation in the form of teas, fruit juices and cocktails, and living-room upholstery - big sofas and inviting armchairs. It's on two levels (upstairs is lighter, downstairs ultra violet), never very full, and has friendly service.
El Pez Gordo
C/del Pez 6 (no phone)
Metro Noviciado/bus 147. Open 7pm-2.30am daily.
The Fat Fish isn't flash but has an understated elegance. It boasts a good selection of wines and tapas, displayed on big blackboards at the bar. The loyal local clientele ensures the atmosphere's relaxed and friendly, making it a perfect place to try some different wines or have a pachar�n or two.
Flamingo Club/Soul Kitchen/Goa
C/Mesonero Romanos 13 (91 532 15 24)
Metro Callao, Gran V�a/bus all routes to Callao. Main nights: Soul Kitchen midnight-5.30am Wed, Sat. Admission 1,500ptas incl 1 drink. Goa 6-10am Sat, Sun. Admission 1,000ptas incl 1 drink.
The Flamingo is not a club in itself, but an important venue for Madrid's repertoire of one-nighters. It hosts a range of nights at different times, but an important `regular' is Soul Kitchen on Wednesdays and Saturdays, a welcome change in a city where black culture often seems disconcertingly absent. There are as many black faces as white, baseball caps and basketball wear is the order of the night and the music is a blend of hip hop and swingbeat. The icicles that hang above the dancefloor are an unfortunate reminder of how much like a kitchen it is. Still, if you can't stand the heat
Just as central to the scene is Goa after hours on weekend mornings. From 6am until mid-morning the dark interior pulses to progressive house, in a session that's equally popular with a gay and straight crowd. It's probably the most popular of Madrid's after hours gigs, and you may have to queue to get in. Make sure to bring your shades - that daylight thang can be a real drag when you come out. Later on Sunday nights the Flamingo hosts the Shangay Tea Dance.
Kingston's
C/Barquillo 29 (91 521 15 68)
Metro Chueca, Alonso Mart�nez/bus 3, 37, 40, 149, N19. Open 11pm-5am daily.
A place that likes to think of itself as a cut above other music bars in the area: the owner has dropped reggae from the playlist, explaining it only attracted dopeheads. It now starts off with soul, moving to a funkier beat as the night progresses, and the pleasantly decorated interior attracts a slick, smartish crowd. Put your hands in the air and reach for the sky - the blue ceiling is daubed with fluffy clouds.
La Bardemcilla
C/Augusto Figueroa 47 (91 521 42 56)
Metro Chueca/bus 3, 40, 149. Open lunch served noon-4.30pm Mon-Fri; dinner served 8pm-3am Mon-Sat. Average 1,500ptas. Set menu 1,250ptas. Credit AmEx, DC, MC, V.
This superior film bar in the centre of Chueca is owned by the Bardem clan, and run by M�nica, sister of Javier - one of Spain's current leading actors, and star of Jam�n Jam�n and Almod�var's Live Flesh. By day it's a restaurant, but by night it becomes a film buff's bar serving themed raciones such as croquetas Jam�n Jam�n. It's no Planet Hollywood, as the interior's tastefully done and discretely adorned with photos of famous movie figures and the Bardem family's oeuvre. An interesting stop for fans of Spanish cinema.
La V�a L�ctea
C/Velarde 18 (91 446 75 81)
Metro Bilbao, Tribunal/bus 3, 21, 40, 149, N19. Open 7.30pm-3am daily.
Remember the days when rock music ruled the world? No? Well you ought to get out more, specifically to Malasa�a's `Milky Way', where the past is chronicled in rockcentric terms: memorabilia, newspaper cuttings and lurid posters. It's always packed in the basement, but there's a bit more room to swing a cat upstairs. Wednesday and Thursday offer (blasphemy) DJ sessions and Brazilian sounds, respectively. Normally, needless to say, it plays rock from the '70's, '80's and '90's. Known in some circles as The Woodstock Bar.
La Vaca Austera
C/de la Palma 20 (91 523 14 87)
Metro Tribunal/bus 3, 40, 149, N19. Open 8.30pm-3.30am Mon-Sat.
Another Malasa�a bar offering rock music, pool and a friendly environment. It's also light enough to see who you're talking to, which may or may not be a good thing.
Maravillas/Galax
C/San Vicente Ferrer 35 (no phone)
Metro Tribunal/bus 3, 40, 149, N19. Open 9pm-3.30am Tue-Sat.
A favourite of indie fans, Maravillas plays the best guitar-based music in town, specialising in Britpop and US indie bands, with some big beat and funk thrown in (but definitely no heavy metal, despite the Malasa�a location). Entrance policy varies: there's sometimes an 800ptas charge, but most of the time it's free. Thursdays it hosts Galax, an innovative look at electronic music with DJs given freedom to indulge their own passions (highlights have included a night of Kraftwerk remixes, if that's your cup of strudel).
Mission Cleimd
C/de la Palma 29 (no phone)
Metro Tribunal/bus 3, 40, 149, N19. Open 9pm-3am daily. Dark Malasa�a bar showing music videos mainly by Britpop and big beat acts. Notice how, whenever a Prodigy vid comes on, all the boys give their attention to the screen, while the girls hardly notice the depraved action and carry on talking. A suitable anteroom for Maravillas.
Pach�
C/Barcel� 11 (91 447 01 28)
Metro Tribunal/bus 3, 40, 149, N19. Open 11.30pm-5am Wed-Sat. Admission average 1,500-2,000ptas incl 1 drink.
Though related musically to its Ibiza namesake, Pach� is owned by the same people who run Joy Eslava. Inside it's big and camp, echoing to garage divas and house favourites and inspired by sensual dancers up on the stage. Populist in the best sense of the word, and open till late.
Speakeasy
C/Fernando VI 6 (no phone)
Metro Alonso Mart�nez/bus 37, N19. Open 9.30pm-3.30am daily.
This three-level place lets women in free, so it's predictably packed to the rafters with thrifty girls and hopeful boys. There's a big dancefloor where people try and groove to naff Spanish pop, while below it there's a pub-style bar with pool and table football; the first floor is quieter and more intimate. Perennially popular with a noisy, young crowd.
Star's Caf�
C/Marqu�s de Valdeiglesias 5 (91 522 27 12)
Metro Banco de Espa�a/bus all routes to Cibeles. Open 9.30pm-3am Mon-Thur; 9.30pm-4am Fri, Sat. restaurant Lunch served 2-4pm Mon-Sat, dinner served 8.30pm-12.30am Mon-Fri. Average 2,000ptas. Set menu 1,400-1,900ptas. Credit AmEx, DC, MC, V.
The jewel in Chueca's mixed gay-fashionable crown, this `dance caf�', with its big windows overlooking the street, has the feel of a vantage point from which to view the night. Inside it's equally chic, all yellow paint, Grecian columns, high ceilings, neat tables and chairs, and the odd sofa for the weak and infirm. A great, very stylish venue, with bouncy, high-NRG house to keep the people happy.
Torito
C/Pelayo 4 (91 532 77 99)
Metro Chueca/bus 3, 40, 149, N19. Open 10pm-5am daily.
A small, intimate Chueca bar playing only Spanish music. There's lots of interesting clutter to look at around the bar, and the owners couldn't be more friendly. Plus it has a pool table at the back.
Ben
pbchamp@intercom.net
The link to your other post is very helpful. Thanks bro.
- rent or buy a cell phone from me for your stay in spain, more info at 
- already have a cell phone, get a spanish SIM card for it at 
