Plaza de Matute: that Madrid that we like
With such illustrious residents, like Cervantes, Zorrilla and Becquer, Today it is a calm and peaceful place where neighborhood life is mixed with new places that are buzzing, and have reminiscences of here and there (such as Matute ), nice shops ( The Corner ), cafes that have already become pseudo-classics ( El Imperfect ) or modern magazine newsrooms (Tenmag) . As it happens in so many other corners of that Madrid that we like the most.
Fashion 'à la Matute'
As for the reason for its name, there are several versions among the neighbors: Matute meant hustle and bustle “because here they were sold black market”, say some (in fact, according to the RAE, matute it is “introducing genres in a population without paying consumption taxes”); meanwhile, others assure that it is the surname of the former owner of the entire area.
What they do agree on is that the square has changed : which is now pedestrianized, which –unfortunately– Filmo no longer exists –a bar with movie seats and portraits of actors that now occupies a bland pub– and that, long before, they were here the headquarters of the Impartial, liberal newspaper founded by Eduardo Gasset y Artime in 1867, and the café of the same name, where the world of flamenco congregated at the end of the 19th century.
fun and very pop
There are those who continue like the tobacconist, the Milan cafeteria (of all life, which has a sunny and pleasant terrace since spring), lottery administration (number 5 in the capital!) and the **Mantequería Cabello,** from 1877, which has only belonged to two families. The current owner, Mario, has been in charge of it for more than twenty years. In addition to picturesque it is a gourmet reference , especially for four star products: oils, jams, honey and legumes.
Of the former, it has an impressive sampler and sells bulk bottles; of the latter, of everything one can imagine (green tomato, watermelon, reineta apple or piquillo pepper), but also of what is not (there is a coffee one that is made exclusively for the store). The offer of honey is just as curious, from avocado to acacia, passing through carrot or ginseng; and that of legumes, in bulk, the largest in Madrid. Here you can find everything from lentils from Puy to verdinas or beans from Tolosa , in addition to all those whims that are eaten in each province and are missed when you are away, such as the Asturian sausages from Tireno or the Maritoñi cakes from Granada.
gourmet of all life
Number 12 (the portal next door) She is the pretty girl from the square . Where all eyes are directed. It is the Pérez Villamil house, a modernist building with an impeccable facade of rounded lines and arabesques and a portal with lanterns and railings, which is well worth sticking your head out. In what was an abandoned vinyl store in its low, opened a new location just a few months ago: the ** Matute 12 **, which, it must be said, lives up to its architecture.
His partners – actor Nacho Fresneda, Mario Álvarez and Marco Martínez, also linked to Carbones and the Atenas terrace – were obsessed with making it so. This is how this space arose open almost all day and has several environments, and where they serve from fun food with exotic touches (we like the trio of tacos and hummus with paprika), to fruit juices (strawberry, grapefruit, apple), vegetables (cucumber, spinach, celery) and roots (carrot, beet , radish) or cocktails.
Floors with pieces of hydraulic carpeting , retro design armchairs of different colors, old sewing machines as tables, dim lights, large mirrors, exposed brick in some places, graffiti, large and leafy plants and even a small vertical garden are some details of the decoration . But, the one that attracts the most attention is the telephone booth next to the bathrooms. We do not reveal more.
On the ground floor of the modernist building on the street
This is where the plaza ends and the street begins. Between a Chinese bazaar (Vecino) and its neighbor -excuse the redundancy- supermarket (where he always makes curious gifts with the purchase, such as a loaf of bread or a pack of chewing gum) and another handful of businesses, we still have a couple of places left interesting: **the Desnivel bookstore ** and the French restaurant ** Petit Bistró **, whose brunch (bakery basket, orange juice, homemade jam, mini cold buffet, cava and eggs, better if they are Benedictines), we have already recommended on other occasions by its good value for money (19.50 Euros).
The ultimate brunch
In the premises of an old luggage store and one of the oldest stationery stores in Madrid (from 1878) specializing in office supplies, Desnivel has become "the" reference bookstore for fans of the mountain world . There you can find globes, maps, technical or travel books for children and even publications from its own publisher. All wrapped in a halo of romance in a space with an old-fashioned flavor inherited from the previous business (the wooden shelves, or even the creaking park floor) and peppered with some portraits painted on the walls of great mountaineering meccas (including Edurne Pasabán).
When shopping, you must not stop going down to the lower floor, where the offers are, out-of-print books, or those who are traveling “from store to store”. Here, as in Plaza Matute, there is no corner that does not deserve an investigation.
*** You may also be interested in...**
(All Madrid with Magnifying glass)
- The street of Gabriel Lobo
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- Villalar Street
- Rue Street
- All the articles of Arantxa Neyra
There is no corner that does not deserve an investigation