Ramses Life and Food

Most people come to Ramses for the scene, not the food. A hit with the city’s in crowd, the Philippe Starck–designed bar/restaurant/club feels a good deal chicer and sexier than almost anywhere else in town. Low, seductive lighting, killer cocktails and servers who look as if they’d stepped off a runway are complemented by a hipster-meets-goth decor of Victorian candelabras, graffiti-scrawled walls and chairs ranging from gilt Queen Anne to curvy midcentury modern. It’s a bit much, but it’s also a lot of fun.

Surprisingly, the food isn’t terrible. The menu draws from a range of cuisines, from Thai to Italian to traditional Spanish, and in most cases it more or less delivers. When I visited, the ingredients of a tomato salad were not entirely ripe, but the croquetas and carpaccio stood up to those of more food-focused venues, and I heard a couple raving about their Thai curry. Although the dishes will never impress true foodies, visitors to Madrid who want a taste of how the city’s beautiful people live should at least stop by for a drink.