Let’s start with the figure that explains everything. We counted every food venue around both Madrid venues, and the difference is not an impression, it is measurable:
- Movistar Arena (WiZink): 121 places to eat within a 450-metre radius.
- Riyadh Air Metropolitano: the nearest place is 128 metres away… and the next one, 572. In between, nothing.
The Metropolitano is surrounded by industrial estate, motorway and parking. It is not that there are few options: there is a gap, followed by one very specific oasis. Knowing where that oasis is makes the difference between eating and not eating.
How to read this guide
We tell you what is there and where it is, not the opening hours or the prices. Restaurant hours change constantly and we are not going to hand you a figure that is probably out of date by the time you read it: check that yourself on the day. No sponsored links and no deals with any venue here.
Inside the stadium
The stadium has a McDonald’s next to gate 39, in the Fan Zone area. It is the food point inside the venue that stays open latest and, unlike the rest of the indoor options, it runs every day, not just on event days. For a concert ending around eleven, it is practically the only thing at the venue that will still be serving you.
There is also a Malvón Argentine empanada stand at gate 42, a couple of minutes away. That one is for eating beforehand: it closes fairly early, so do not count on it on the way out.
El Gran Escenario: do not assume it on a weeknight
The stadium also has its own restaurant, El Gran Escenario, and it is tempting to assume it is open whenever there is an event. From Sunday to Thursday it closes mid afternoon, well before a concert. It is only a real option at night on Fridays and Saturdays, and on high-capacity dates they ask you to book ahead. If you are going on a weeknight, rule it out.
Ten minutes away: the Plaza de Grecia cluster
This is where the real options are, in the Las Rosas neighbourhood, about 600-700 metres from the stadium (around 10-11 minutes on foot). And it has a double advantage that almost nobody makes use of: you are heading in the direction of Las Musas and Canillejas, the very stations that get you out without the stadium queue. You eat, and you save yourself the bottleneck at the same time.
Around Plaza de Grecia and along Calle de Suecia you will find practically everything: a VIPS placed right there for the stadium crowd, Goiko, Burger King, 100 Montaditos, Volapié, Urban Poke, a pizzeria, Domino’s and several neighbourhood bars. Of the whole cluster, VIPS is the one that keeps its kitchen open latest consistently, midweek included.
The strategy that works
- If you have time: eat beforehand at Plaza de Grecia and walk to the stadium. Ten minutes, and you already know the way back.
- If you leave the concert hungry: the stadium’s McDonald’s, or head towards Plaza de Grecia on foot, which is the same direction that suits you for the metro anyway.
- On a weeknight: do not count on El Gran Escenario.
Do not trust a venue's own claimed distance
We came across a restaurant in the area advertising itself as “5 minutes from the Metropolitano”. Measured from the stadium, it is over 1.4 kilometres away: about 23 minutes on foot. When a venue states its own distance, check it on a map.
In short, if you read one thing
There is no improvising here. Either you eat inside the venue, or you walk ten minutes to Plaza de Grecia. Wandering around the stadium itself will get you nowhere.