Hi everyone,

To start with my name is Jean from South Africa. In the next couple of months around about August I am making my move to Spain. My dillema however is which city.

I have been to Madrid, Malaga, Valencia and Barcelona, but I really love Madrid and Malaga. What I am looking for is still a major city feel but relaxed as well. Also, I want to start up a bar over there to keep me busy. I know that bars are very blase and not really worth the effort however, I have a business here which is doing well and I am not really needed to be around for it.

I am putting about 4 - 5000€ away a month, which I have done for the past two, however there were some awesome parties over here so call it one month

Which cityis recomended and areas as well if anyone can help me out.I am not looking at spending more than 1000€ per month on renting mind you.

Thanks all!

Hello JeanSP! Welcome to our little ALL SPAIN Message Board!

Madrid City (and old city center more) has LOADS of bars already and new ones come and go with the wind mainly because if they're not immediately popular the owners can afford to keep them open. Winters are cold and dry and summers are HOT and dry. Nightlife in Madrid is probably more lively than in Málaga City, though. But in WHICH area in Madrid? Hard to say. Chamberí, Huertas, La Latina, Conde Duque areas of Madrid have lots of nightlife so maybe one of those places? Although there there'd be more competition too.

I'm not sure how Málaga City is with bars but imagine there there are plenty too. Málaga, I'd say, is even more laid back than Madrid, the weather's better throughout the year, you have the beach there close, and it actually rains from time to time. The summers are milder in Málaga City than in Madrid but it's more humid too in Málaga City.

Can someone rent bar-space in Old Madrid for 1000 Euros per month? Hmmm.. I really don't know. Depends on the size of the space, I'd imagine, IF you have a terraza, and other factors. I'd GUESS (although I don't know) Málaga City bar space would be cheaper but I'm only guessing.

Good luck! Saludos, MadridMan

i was in Malaga city 3 weeks ago and yes it is a nice city, but not as much going on as in Madrid,there are loads of bars and restaurants which seem to be condensed into one area, not being into property myself i cannot comment, but looking from the outside, Malaga seems to be very Spanish i.e. not touristy people land at the airport and move on down the coast to there destination,stay there and dont venture to a city staying ut on the beach.
so to open a bar in Malaga i expect the location is the main factor

Jean ,
If you´re looking for somebody to work for you ....... hehehehehe I´d love to work in a bar ( I did it when I was 18 for a year or so ) . I would say you would be better off in Madrid , but the competition is more than in Malaga . But I have seen a few bar/restaurants up for sale in Madrid .
When I went to Cape Town I met a lady who´d set up a great wine bar called "The Nose" in Waterkant . I think she´s now set up one other bar . That for me was the perfect business .

Jean , just as a foot note . I met a guy recently .. he´s from Ohio in USA and owns a very successful ( gay ) bar in the centre of Madrid . Maybe I should speak to him next time I see him to ask how difficult ( or easy ) it was to set up a bar in Madrid .

Hi Everyone,

Thank you kindly for the comments. I was was thinking about Madrid more than Malaga is its cold, so I can throw awesome little parties hehe...and there are of course more people. I am sure the competition is tough, but like all businesses it would be.

Malaga to me seems too touristy and I wouldnt want to only cater for tourists, I want to be involved with the locals as much as possible hence my direction always steers to Madrid, location wise I am not sure...I want to scout the areas for about a month to make sure. So wherever I will be anyone keen to join me on bar hopping:)

Steve, yeah Cape Town is an awesome city and running a lively place over there is hard but alot of fun. I would really appreciate if you could get info from the bar owner you mentioned.

Thanks again!

Oh and by the way, I am pretty young, 27, so still got loads of energy for hustle and bustle

Jean .. this may seem a strange question .. but are you a guy or a girl ? Jean can be both , right ! Not that it matters to me , just interested . I sat next to a girl from Durban for 2 years , her parents were from Mauritius so they spoke French , English and Africaans ... Jean , of course can be a guy´s name in French . I´ll try and get to see the guy who owns the bar to ask how he moved forward .
Bear in mind that , even at 27 years old , you´d have to deal with very late nights .
When i meet friends , it´s usually at 11pm , more or less , and some days we don´t leave until 5am .
Steve

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Hi Steve,

Yeah, I get that often when I communicate via email often, when I eventually meet clients they usually say 'damn thought you were some hot chick'

Pretty funny.
You did a lot of travels here in South Africa, what did you think of it?
I dont mind the late nights, I am more of a night person anyway 5am is to far for me though the sun starts peaking and I have to return to my cave
Thanks again

What kind of Bar will you be opening?? An Irish Pub?? I have been to Irish Pubs in Madrid and Lisbon, and they seem to be quite successful. One problem might be finding bar staff who can pull a proper pint of Guinness. Another: last I counted, there were more than 15 Irish Pubs in Madrid. The Market may be saturated. Cruz Campo is part of the Guinness family, so, if you're thinking along those lines, you might want to contact someone at Cruz Campo for assistance.

'Sports Bars' are Big these days; with all the hype leading up to the World Cup, getting your investment into the black might be achieved sooner. Some Sports Bars are 'Theme' Bars: Hawaii motif (for beach resorts), Outback or Walkabout Creek for others.

Then you have 'Gay Bars:' Bars that cater to Gays of either gender.

Good luck with your enterprise!

Hi Eddie,

Thanks for the info, I am not looking at a pub sort of vibe, something that caters for all. Cocktails, good music etc... I want to try and steer away from theme bars so to speak, I want to generate a variety of clientele, locals, tourist and such.

Yeah the World Cup is going to be big, but I think I will be staying here for that as I booked my tickets already.

thanks for the wishes!

JeanSP . I went to a great tapas place a few days .. my second visit . It´s very smart on one of Madrid´s most important streets ( Velásquez ) . You might want to check the link to see what they offer . They have a mouth watering pintxo of solomillo ( steak ) about 1/2 an inch thick . Cooked medium rare . Topped with either blue cheese or , my favourite , foie gras . I know that foie gras isn´t very " politically correct " ... ( It might even be banned in some States in the USA ) But it is widely available here in Spain . The link is : www.cadenalateral.es . They have 5 branches in the city , all of which are great locations . But I like the on in Velásquez .

By the way , even though they are a high profile group of tapas bars , some of their English translation leaves a lot to be desired .. but you´ll get an idea anyway ( I can´t remember where you said you spoke Spanish ) .

Wow that does sound good, I have to say I am no stranger in the kitchen, my friend owns a restaurant over here and now serves one of my own dishes as a main, and the customers love it...(red wine makes all food good..hehe)I am not familiar with foie gras, sounds interesting I will have to google that.

Yeah location is very important, which I think will be challenging to find but not impossible.

I dont speak spanish yet, I am only a week in my Spanish classes, man I feel like a grade 1 its amazing, I have a degree in journalism and I am battling with ABC's in Spanish haha...
All in good fun though

Foie Gras is basically the fattened liver of a goose ( sometimes a duck ) but the procedure is a little harsh as they force feed the goose with corn ( Maize ) . The result is like a paté but much more refined and MUCH more expensive .
Animal rights activists post images on the internet that are undoubtably distressing ... and I can´t quite explain to you the contradiction but I love eating foie gras as much as I love watching the bullfights .

Oh and we just passed by a bar today that´s up for sale in my "barrio" ( District ) ... My Peruvian flatmate was going crazy at me to check it out as a possible purchase ...
Another thing . I´m not saying that learning Spanish ( or any other language ) is easy , but one major advantage of Spanish is they follow the rules of pronunciation 100 % . Learn the rules ( pretty easy ) and you´ll be able to pronounce absolutely any Spanish word . ¡ Buena suerte ! Good luck !

Ive thought about that too Steve , giving up the offhsore life and opening a bar in Madrid , doubt it will ever happen .
I watched Anthony Bourdian visting a Foie grass farm in France , and the geese were coming up to the farmer to be fed , they are only overfed the last 2 weeks of their life's . Not all farms will be like that, just like most of the factory farmed chickens are compltely different from free range .

That sounds pretty drastic for the duck, but when in Rome do as the Romans I guess. I am willing to try anything out at least once

Yeah our teacher is starting us out with the correct pronunciations of words at the moment, I was lucky enough to study some basic Latin and I find it extremely similar so not doing to bad on that front, well I will only know once I start chatting to a native Spanish speaker I guess.

It will be tough purchasing a bar, I allowed myself 1 month to scope areas and bars out but I think I might leave it for 2 to be safe, it wont be my main source of income but I also do not want it to be a money hole.

Getting anxious about the whole move, wish it could happen sooner but alas life always has something thrown in the mix.

Soon very soon!!

JeanSp you make sure you give us notice of when you get to Spain .. I could predict a big lunch ..!

I think I would lean more towards Madrid... I just personally like that city better. I guess it also depends on what you're looking for in terms of bar. I think that malaga is a lot more touristy, so you would have to cater to that. Madrid would be a good option if you were looking to open something unique or different. But in both spots there is a lot of competition!

Steve, that sounds like a fantastic plan, I like your predictions, have any for the lottery by any chance
You will be first on my list, on me!

LadyN, thanks for the advice, yeah competition I am sure will be tough in both cities, I am however feeling you leaning more towards Madrid