Where? Madrid, Spain
Courtesy of Gridskipper
Visited: August 2008
(Read more on J&J Books and Coffee in our Report from Madrid)
Gridskipper said: "Small, cozy. J and J's Bookstore is the second best thing to being curled up at home in your favorite chair with your favorite book. Perhaps the only cafe/library/second-hand bookstore in Madrid, J&J's has got to be one of the coolest expat hangouts in the capital. Jamie, a UCLA graduate from Alabama and her Spanish husband Javi, are the J and J behind the place that was set-up 3 years ago to cater to expats wanting to speak Spanish, and Spaniards wanting to speak English. So other than being 'THE' place for EFL teachers, that is exactly what it is: a cheap used bookstore. It has over 25,000 new and used books (English) for trade and on sale for as little as a dollar. It has c involving free drinks almost every night, an opportunity to practice your Spanish, and the best pizza on the block. Located just around the road from Gran Via, it is a must stop for expats, if only but to get a free mug of coffee. It is open 7-days a week, all day long, with the best day being the intercambio Wednesday night where it's not jam packed, and you will meet a bunch of crazy Spaniards craving to speak English - something rare across most of Spain."
Once we entered the bookstore's basement, we immediately knew that this bookstore is going to be our favorite in Madrid. Zillions (ok, not literally zillions but almost close to that) of books on any topic imaginable and at very favorable prices (try denying that a novel for 2€ and a Rough Guide to Madrid for 3€ isn't a good bargain!). We were left alone in the basement to explore the delights J&J had to offer for hours. And we enjoyed every moment of it.
J & J opened in December of 2003 but the idea had begun a lot earlier. The founders of the bookstore are an American living in Madrid and her Spanish husband Javi who moved to Los Angeles to buy thousands of books from used bookstores, library sales, yard sales or anywhere else they could find good used books. Then they returned to Madrid and converted a Chinese restaurant into their dream Bookstore/Coffee shop.
J&J Books and CafeAddress:
c/ Espiritu Santo 47
(Metro Noviciado)
28004 Madrid
Website: http://www.jandjbooksandcoffee.com/
Phone:
91 521 85 76
Working Hours:
Mon-Thur 11-00
Fri-Sat 11-02
Sun 12-00
Back to the list of bookstores in Madrid
2 comments:
It's a fun gathering place but any bookstore that has an entire wall dedicated to Danielle Steele is not a bookstore I can love. Petra's is way better.
Thanks for the update Rob. Too bad J&J is not what it used to be... Back in 2008, it was definitely one of our best finds in Madrid - open past midnight, friendly prices, vast (although far from excellent) selection and since we had the whole room to ourselves we were able to find some really good titles... Plus it was really fun to walk up from the empty bookstore into the jammed cafe upstairs.
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