This October I stayed in one of the apartments of Hospedaje Madrid , Calle Esparteros, between Plaza Mayor and Puerta del Sol, and I'd like to share my experience with anyone looking for this kind of an accomodation.
First off, the apartment was two doors down from the hostal of Hospedaje Madrid. The entrance of the building where the hostal is located, #6 Esparteros, still has a sign that reads Hostal Madrid. We stayed at #8.
The apartment might be disappointing for some. The building is older, but not as old as I assumed it would be. The inside was remoldeled, but some of the remodeling is sloppy. The areas that count though, the kitchen, bedroom and bathroom are adequately done and comfortable. The bathroom had a nice tile floor and a bidet. The kitchen had a clothes washer and a device for hanging clothes to dry. and the bedroom had a huge brand new cabinet. The living room though had a couch with a dirty cover, and furniture which might have seen the latter part of the Civil War. There's that is. The flooring in the main hall and living room is original and slightly uneven. They did have a nice television though and elevators that worked and were almost always available.
The noise from the street was present, though not that annoying four floors up. At night, until about midnight, someone was constantly playing an instrument on the street. Most of the time the music was very pleasant so again, not too annoying.
The owner and the people who run the hostal were very professional and helpful. There was a couple of problems with water running from upstairs into our kitchen one time and from our apartment downstairs another. But the owner fixed the problems rather quickly.
Altogether, it was a very nice experience. For anyone seeking privacy and spacious living this is the ideal type of lodging. Plus laundry is not a problem and you can try some home cooking when you're tired of eating out.