One of our favorite things to do in a country is to sample their typical iconic breakfast foods. We have found some of our most favorite foods this way – yogurt and honey from Greece, helva from Turkey, Torta Caprese from Italy, etc. – and we find it quite a lot more enjoyable than taking a bland continental breakfast. In Spain, the breakfast treat of choice is hot chocolate and churros. In the US, churros have something of a dubious reputation. While, of course, you can find some excellent renditions of churros in the US, the sugar-coated, soggy churro is often the purview of school lunches and amusement parks. I had personally sworn off churros after they were the only dessert offered in our junior high cafeteria. However, I am open to an opinion change.
Churros (left) and Porras (right) at Chocolatería San Ginés in Madrid
Churros are a different affair in Spain though: no extra sugar is added, and the fried pastry is the whole deal. However the best part of having churros is dipping them in the thick, rich hot chocolate that traditionally accompanies them. No Swiss Miss hot chocolate here: this is thick, rich sipping chocolate. They sometimes even give you a little spoon to eat it with. We tried chocolate and churros and two locations in Madrid, each of which was completely different.
Waiting in line at Chocolatería San Ginés
The first stop for churros was Chocolatería San Ginés (Pasadizo de San Ginés, 5, Madrid). All they serve is chocolate and churros, and boy do they serve a lot! We went on a Saturday night, which admittedly is probably the most crowded time you can get chocolate and churros, and there was a line snaking out of the door. The routine is similar to Giolitti: you order and pay and then get a receipt for what you ordered. If you are able to get one of the tables (either inside, outside or in the basement) the waiter will take your ticket and give you your order. The only things available to order are chocolate, churros and porras (a thicker churro). The churros were excellent: a nice portion and not at all greasy. The cost of a cup of chocolate and 6 churros is less than 4 euros.
Chocolate and Churros at Chocolatería San Ginés
On our last day we sampled churros from Chocolatería Valor (Calle Postigo de San Martin, 7, Madrid), which is more of a regular full service café. We visited Valor at an admittedly off hour, 8:45 on a Monday morning. So we were very pleased to find that a fresh batch of churros was fried up just for us. Perhaps as a product of their freshness, we found these churros a little greasier than the offerings from San Gines. However, the price was a lot cheaper, and you could get additional items off of the menu if you so desired. There are even paper cones for those who want to take the churros to go.
Chocolate and Churros at Valor
Going to Madrid completely changed my idea of the churro (especially when combined with hot chocolate). We especially enjoyed Chocolatería San Ginés, and we are looking forward to going back someday and trying more varieties. Do you have a favorite place for churros in Madrid?
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