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Churros y chocolate

What: Churros and chocolate is a breakfast tradition for which the world has Spain (specifically, Madrid) to thank. Churros—fluted, ridged, deep-fried dough that’s well-dusted in sugar while hot—are crispy on the outside, warm and soft on the inside, and best dunked into a steaming cup of hot chocolate.

Where: Our photo is from the much-beloved, 75-plus-year-old Churrería el Moro (Eje Central Lázaro Cárdenas 42, betw. Uruguay and Venustiano Carranza, map) in el Centro Histórico, where the churros are thin and crisp (a little too thin and crisp, for some) and the excellent chocolate available four ways (the bittersweet especial, the thick Francés, the sweet Español, the milky Mexicano). The place is an institution and therefore fun to visit—say, after checking out the majestic Palacio de Bellas Artes nearby.

When: Open 24 hours, but your best bet is to visit early for breakfast or late at night.

Order: A Mexicano with four churros (60p). Giving your churros a rich chocolate bath is essential.

Alternatively: Look for churros on the street, or, in Coyoacán, try the churros y chocolate at Churros y Restaurantes El Dorado (two locations including América 191, map); the restaurant also offers churros rellenos—churros filled with ingredients like chocolate, durazno (peach), zarzamora (blackberry), and more. Or, in the southern district of San Ángel, you might try the namesake sweets at the popular Churros El Convento (Plaza del Carmen 4, map).