What you need right now is a warm mug of thick, dark chocolate with 3 or 4 crispy, golden, still warm churros to dip into the chocolate. At least this is what I need right now. You can find these all around Spain, but Madrid had my favourites. But it seems that I am not the only one that feels this way judging by the long lines outside Chocolateria San Gines. Open and serving since 1894, Chocolateria San Gines first became famous serving chocolate and churros to people as they exited the theatre nearby. At the time there were bunolerias (shops making churros) everywhere and it was a very popular snack for people living in Madrid. Chocolate was the most popular drink at the time until coffee surpassed it in the 20th century.
San Gines still makes churros using a traditional technique called “a hombre”. The dough is mixed by hand and then pressed into a long string of churros, fried in a circular form. This is then cut up to serve; crispy on the outside and soft and doughy on the inside. Here is a good video showing the process.. Their website suggests that they have served over 73million cups of chocolate into which 929million churros were dunked. This winning combo can be enjoyed at all hours of the day; as an early morning breakfast, mid afternoon pick me up or midnight snack.
Watch the waiters balancing trays towering with mugs of chocolate and plates of churros, manoeuvring through crowds and down a steep flight of stairs. Also take a moment to gaze over the dozens of black and white pictures of celebrities that had the same churros and chocolate craving as you have at some point in the Chocolateria’s long history.
There is a Chocolateria San Gines in Tokyo now too (in Shibuya), if that is closer to where you are. This one is located at Pasadizo de San Gines, 5. Open from 9am to 10pm daily.
