I have been wondering if there is a market similar to the La Boqueria in Barcelona in Madrid? And if there is, where would it be? I will be staying near St Louis University. Although we will be going all around the city, is there anything near the school that is a must go to place for food, tapas, drinks etc. Thanks!

Mercado Maravillas on Bravo Murillo is the biggest market in Madrid, its not as pretty as La Boqueria, but its still good to go and eat in one of the bars etc.

The newly reopened Mercado de San Miguel is beautiful !! And the food is wonderful . I went recently friends and we had oysters and champagne ( cava ) . It´s Metro Sol or Opera ( Very central ). Mercado de la Paz in Calle Ayala is also great and if your into fashion there are some high class designer stores around the market as well as some great restaurants .

Meant to add Maravillas is not far from you , a 10 min walk

markets like Boqueria are plenty more or less, I know for sure these over the years when have a chance always go back to them

Anton Martin, Calle Santa Isabel 5
La Cebada, Plaza de la Cebada, 15
Chamartin, Calle Bolivia 5
Las Ventas, Calle Virgen de la Alegria 10

there are many more all in its colorful way;not exactly Boqueria but close to it.

Thank you for the information on the markets, apparently La Juliana has been to Maravillas, but did not remember the name or where it was. It will be wonderful to visit.

Yeah. Madrid doesn't really have anything which compares to Barcelona's Mercat de la Boquería. (I was in there just yesterday!)

All markets in Madrid have at least one bar but none of them have the number or the quality of bars (or bar food) which La Boquería has. Still, all Madrid markets are colorful - with the exception of the new, modern, wine-and-cheese-tasting market (notice that's in italics) Mercado de San Miguel which now has something like ONE fish counter, ONE meat counter, and ONE fruit counter. The rest is .... well, it's just doesn't deserve the "market" name anymore although it is/was one of Madrid's finest. I remember it then... as I will always remember it. Sure, it's very pretty now, very clean, lots of wines and foods to choose from, but it's hardly a working market anymore.

Saludos, MadridMan

Saludos, MadridMan