Cafetería Iris

Cafetería Iris represents everything that I love about the life in Spain [1] and the hospitality of family-​run businesses and restaurants. In a down economy, no matter where in the world you are, I believe that it is the quality of service that will differentiate the restaurants that succeed from the restaurants that fail. Okay, I will step off of the soapbox now.
My waiter was an older man, who was extremely attentive, cheerful, and ensured that my glass was never empty and I left with my stomach full. The other young lady working the bar (possibly his daughter or niece) also checked up on us periodically.
With two types of Estrella Galicia on tap, I was elated. The caña is not the cheapest around (due to the restaurant’s proximity to Plaza America), but it is under 2 euro. In the typical Galician style, we were presented with small (and free!) slices of tortilla española (this tortilla was incredible) and a bar snack mixture.
The bocadillos, however, are excellent and a tremendous value. For 4 euro, I had a jamon, queso manchego, and tomato bocadillo that could have fed me for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for two days. The bread used is typical pan gallego, from the bakery down the street (I saw my waiter stop to purchase some extra loaves quickly.). The slices of tomato cost an additional 20 cents (a little steep), but were extremely fresh and juicy that upon my first bite, I stopped complaining.
A bocadillo may seem like a fairly simple, idiot-​proof alimentation, but trust me, it is possible to create a horrible bocadillo if one uses ingredients of inferior quality. Here at Cafetería Iris, everything was fresh, flavorful, and served in a warm and inviting environment.
For me, Cafetería Iris is a tremendous departure from the NYC Eyeroll, the «Let Me Throw the Cheque at You Before You’ve Started Eating,» and «Where’s my 18%?» Although IVA is included, the service I received warranted another euro or two.
[1] As busy as you are, no one dares to interfere between the hours of 2 and 4:30. I have been working and studying so much that I have substituted sleep with café solo, but the lunch time hours are a time to recharge and relax.