Calle Laurel

Calle Laurel and the lanes around it hold something close to fifty bars in a couple of hundred metres, and the arrangement is specific: each specialises in one or two things, does them all evening, and expects customers to have one, drink a small glass of Rioja, and move on. Bar Soriano has grilled mushrooms with a prawn on top and has served little else since 1972; Angel does the champi, another mushroom variant; Blanco y Negro the matrimonio, anchovies cured and salted together on bread; Letras de Laurel patatas bravas. The crawl is called the senda de los elefantes, the elephants' path, from its effect. Wines are poured in small measures precisely because the point is to keep moving.

What to look for

• The single-dish bars - each place doing one or two things all evening.
• The mushroom bars - Soriano and Angel with their long-running specialities.
• The standing service - eating at the counter or on the street, then moving.
• The small pours - Rioja by the glass in measures sized for a crawl.

When to go

Year-round; evenings from about eight, and Thursday to Saturday are busiest. Lunchtime on Sundays is a local institution. Bars close on different days, so a few will always be shut.

What to expect

The street is packed and loud on weekend evenings, with people spilling outside. Seating is minimal and standing is expected. Bars operate cash and card but queuing at the counter is competitive.

Nearby

Logrono's old town and cathedral are alongside; the Rioja bodegas lie in every direction.

Key facts