Platea Food Market

Not so much a market as a kind of gourmet food court, set within the former Carlos III cinema in the swanky Salamanca district. "When you come inside, you think 'wow'," says director Gonzalo Hurtado, accurately enough. "But then what?" His point being that the dim-lit glamour of the interior – with its triple-deck of bars and restaurants stacked around a stage where the screen used to be – wouldn't count for much if it wasn't worth eating and drinking in. The "patio" is lined with individual units specialising in oysters, crab, assorted pintxos, and cardboard cones of bite-sized snacks such as chorizo iberico with chocolate shavings. The upper level, El Foso has six separate restaurants, including a sushi bar, and a high-end steakhouse called Vuelta Y Vuelta, where Hurtado himself likes to dine when he can.