Address: 225 Yale Ave.
Claremont, CA 91711
909.624.5500
The Basics: The farther you go from L.A., the less relevant nightlife becomes, not because suddenly you don’t feel like chilling with the cuates or boozing it up, but because there is really nothing worth your while. Los lugares para pasársela chido con los cuates o con tu peor es nada son contados, pero el que busca encuentra. Right in the border between the L.A. and the San Bernardino County, Claremont shines a ray of hope into the Inland Empire area nightlife with an L.A. / Hollywood worthy tapas lounge so good you wouldn’t mind the long wait- which can range pretty much between 20 and 80 minutes. Long wait? Absolutely. But definitely worth the wait.
“Viva Madrid” gets packed for mainly three reasons: great ambiance, superb food/ drinks, and because of the fact that it feels as if this joint was the size of a shoe box. It’s seriously small. Not even the communal tables where able to make some extra (much needed space); however, as small as it might be, it’s also part of its charm. It’s literally a whole in the wall… pretty casual and all.
What to drink: “Viva Madrid” is known for their sangria, so you must have at least a pitcher of that mother. Also, they have a new take on sangria- instead of making it with wine, they make it with tequila— pretty darn good, especially for the alchies out there looking for a buzz to go along with some food.
What to eat: Their menu is mostly traditional Spanish tapas, but they also serve paella and other dishes. Si solo vas de cotorreo con los cuates, es más chido si solamente le llegan a las tapas… it’ll be more than enough.
The “carne vaca vino” has a good and somewhat familiar taste, while the “arroz español” was good while hot, ya frío it was not the same. Pero de igual manera, the saffron rice with green and red peppers, tomatoes, onions, peas and a hint of garlic, te deja un buen sabor de boca.
Aunque las patatas bravas no tenían tanta salsa like in other tapas joints, the ones at “Viva Madrid” were spicy enough and a tad addicting.
However, you don’t know addicting until you’ve tried their “datiles con tocino”— dates wrapped in bacon. It’s sweet, it’s crispy, it’s a total revolution of flavor in your mouth, you’ll need to be frigid not to get a culinary boner after having one of these… beware, they are seriously addicting.
