Bad Company 1920

Address: Calle De Tudescos, 4, Madrid, 28004, Spain
Instagram: @badcompany_1920

Door: Wait list
Style: Cocktail bar, Speakeasy
Recommended for: Chatting, Cocktails, Date Night, First date, Romantic evening, Special night out
Food: Bar Snacks, Large plates, Small plates

By the owner's admission, cocktails aren't what Bad Company's excels at. As Yeray Monforte explained, you're unlikely to remember the cocktails from any bar a year after visiting, but hopefully, you'll remember the experience. They set out to make that experience fun and memorable.

Such is Bad Company's reputation; you're likely to have to join a wait queue outside the door – indeed, the line of folk patiently waiting is a giveaway to this bar's location. (You may be asked for a password, which you'll find on the bar's Instagram.) Once in, you'll be guided downstairs by your host, who'll explain, probably at gunpoint, that what goes on in this den of inequity stays there. Once duly warned, you'll be shown into the small dimly lit lounge.

We sat at the far end of the bar, watching people enter. They all had a smile, a combination of the briefing on the stairs, their finally entering the bar, the warmth of the room, and the greeting from the bartenders they passed en route to their seats.

The menu, literally a mounted artwork, lists signature cocktails, highlighting the liquor brands used in each. It also includes a selection of the most popular cocktails from previous menus.

Be sure to order fried chicken and chips – the chicken is delicious and the chips curly, stringy and crunchy (despite being described as 'thick cut in the menu").