Warning: pornographic photos ahead.

(I’m only sort of kidding. Because, if you find mouth-watering, eye-popping food from incredible cities like Madrid to be sexy, then these photos could certainly be considered pornographic. We’ll go with calling them “food porn.”)

When traveling to any city for the first time, exploring the unique cuisine is not just a fringe benefit. It’s a necessity. The prerequisite question for any traveler to a new city should be, “Will you appreciate exotic foods you have never before tasted? Will you be adventurous and order dishes you can’t even pronounce?”

If your answer is a resounding yes, I would imagine we would make wonderful travel companions.

Spain is a country known for its flavourful tapas, flamenco music and dance, and its widely exported Iberian ham, or jamon. I’d been searching for a place to jet off to for my November reading week, a week off from lectures and tutorials at my university, and Madrid, Spain’s capital, seemed the ideal place to dip my toe into a new realm of European travels.

If you’ve been keeping up with my posts, you’ll know I’m an expat in Ireland– maybe you’ll even know that a large part of the reason I chose to study in Ireland instead of staying in the U.S. is because I’m perpetually itching to travel, and what better base from which to do so than the magnificent city of Dublin?

But I digress.

Madrid is beyond expectations. Madrid somehow manages to feel foreign and warm at once, chaotic and unworried within a single breath. The grated balconies that fence in every window of every symmetrical and architecturally impressive building give the city a picturesque uniformity. Outdoor eateries emanate scents both savoury and sweet, all the while boasting their laid-back, happy diners with glasses full of rosy wines or honey coloured ale.

 

But the food. Oh, the food.

 

Travelling among fellow food lovers is a must, especially in a city like Madrid. It seems as if every storefront window flaunts a display of mouthwatering pastries and treats, begging the ambitious eater to step inside and indulge. I am not one to resist such pleas, naturally. And the best part about Madrid is that many of the high quality cafes and eateries are shockingly inexpensive, especially Takos al Pastor, where we scored a platter of nine tacos for only one euro EACH. Also delightfully inexpensive was Cafe Granier, a small cafe with no shortage of irresistible pastries; for only two euros, you could buy three delicate, buttery, powdered sugar-dusted croissants filled with chocolate, almond creme, or jam.

The obvious must-haves, tapas and churros, are scattered all over the city, and you likely couldn’t avoid trying a plate of patatas bravas (fried potato chunks topped with a spicy tomato sauce and aioli) or croquetas (small breaded fritters filled with cheese or ham) if you tried. Add a pitcher of fruity sangria to the mix, and you’ve got yourself a perfect Spanish meal.

A major go-to was Cafe Federal, a brunch/breakfast spot with an inviting, modern interior and a glass case of pastries that would certainly convince you to leave room for dessert. My fellow traveler ordered a spectacular smoked salmon bruschetta with delicate cucumber relish and mascarpone, while I indulged in a savoury Spanish omelette with roasted onions, ricotta, and sage.

Traveling is a beautiful way to cultivate the palette and the mind. Our sense of taste, much like smell, is intertwined with memory. The taste of a particularly distinctive dish, especially when coupled with the unique experience of being in a new city, perhaps alone, perhaps surrounded by friends or family, has the power to take us back in time, to show us new facets of ourselves. Not only will you gain an appreciation for foods you’ve never dreamed of before, but you will inevitably gain an appreciate for the culture from which it evolved.

So grab a fork and your suitcase and hit the road.