Tinto y Tapas Principe — Restaurant in Madrid

Ordered an empanadas and a pizza. Food was decent and service was very attentive.

However, what left a sour note to our visit was that the staff took an extra €5 from our change without us knowing. Usually we pay with card but we were informed they only accept cash payment before we were seated and we were fine with it. Total bill came up to €22.50 so we paid with a €50 bill and we realised that they only gave us a €22.50 change after we left and checked. At first we were only offered a high table at a very small corner next to the stairs but suddenly after informing us that they accept only cash, suddenly we were offered a table in the basement level which is totally empty (can see from my picture which shows only the entrance of the empty basement), which made me feel like it was kind of shady or they were somewhat screening the guests before seating them. Not sure if all of this is accidental or coincidental but it certainly left a sour taste and I felt the operation was...

I had high hopes, but this place was a DISSAPPOINTMENT. I'll start with the good: customer service was moderate at first. They were friendly enough but not as attentive as you would think for a place that serves only 10 people in total. The chicken empanada was good, and the prices seemed fair.

The not so good: The pizza was so soft it was difficult to cut, even with the pizza cutter.

The bad: we were almost done eating by the time the chicken tosta came out. The tosta was overcooked, and the chicken seemed microwaved (but okay, flavor)... until halfway through, we found a 7 inch strand of hair. We quietly asked for the $8 meal to be taken away and removed from the bill. We finished our drinks and even said we might come back for coffee the next day. We noticed the staff whispering and looking at us and the plate but paid it no mind. As we began to pay, the manager looked over and said that the tosta wasn't on the bill. We thank him for that, and he says, "Don't thank me, you DECIDED not to pay" in an aggressive tone with so much attitude. We were so confused and asked why we should pay for a meal with a long hair in it, especially after no one even apologized for it. We didn't care about the $8, but it was the principle. As we left, he tried to shake out hand, but we just walked out. Perhaps they didn't care because we were not from Spain, but it was unfortunate.

Tenía muchas esperanzas, pero este lugar fue una DECEPCIÓN. Empezaré por lo bueno: el servicio al cliente fue moderado al principio. Fueron bastante amables pero no tan atentos como se podría pensar para un lugar que atiende solo a 10 personas en total. La empanada de pollo estaba buena y los precios parecían justos.

Lo no tan bueno: la pizza estaba tan blanda que era difícil cortarla, incluso con el cortador de pizza.

Lo malo: casi habíamos terminado de comer cuando llegó la tosta de pollo. La tosta estaba demasiado cocida y el pollo parecía cocinado en microondas (pero estaba bien, el sabor)... hasta que a la mitad encontramos un mechón de pelo de 7 pulgadas. Pedimos en silencio que se llevaran la comida de $8 y la quitaran de la cuenta. Terminamos nuestras bebidas e incluso dijimos que podríamos volver a tomar un café al día siguiente. Notamos que el personal susurraba y nos miraba a nosotros y al plato, pero no le dimos importancia. Cuando comenzamos a pagar, el gerente miró y dijo que la tosta no estaba en la cuenta. Le agradecemos por ello y él nos dice: "No me agradezcas, tú DECIDISTE no pagar" en un tono agresivo y con mucha actitud. Estábamos tan confundidos que le preguntamos por qué debíamos pagar por una comida con un pelo largo, especialmente después de que nadie se disculpara por ello. No nos importaban los $8, pero era el principio. Cuando nos íbamos, él trató de estrecharnos la mano, pero simplemente nos fuimos. Tal vez no les importó porque no éramos de España, pero...

Edit: 21/09/22 their datáfono/card machines appear to have been down for at least 2 weeks now, so they are cash only. This place is fishy and seems to have no issue ripping tourists off. Go with caution.

Had the unfortunate chance of dining here tonight. The food is nothing special but it’s the service that really sucked. There was the younger waiter who was just kind of a jerk to everyone and really rude - they were messing up orders at every table, including ours, the whole time we were there. We ordered and spoke in Spanish, but the young waiter begrudgingly responded to us in English. The older waiter eventually helped us and he was great. The whole dinner felt tense and the food was okay, but we got overcharged by five euros for the surtido de jamón. Overall there are so many other options around this area + they need to work on their service. Also the bathrooms are right by the kitchen and where they put the...