Come with us and taste Spanish specialties off the beaten track, in the most popular high-end tourist town of the Costa del Sol. Yes! It's possible!
Marbella caters to high-end tourists, who come mainly for the climate and the beach. Costa del Sol is one of the only places in Europe, where you can be sure to enjoy outdoor dining all year round.
With international visitors outnumbering the locals, it might be hard to discover authentic Spanish places that cater to the residents. After 10 years of exploring, learning the language and seeking out places off the beaten track, here is our shortlist of restaurants for those who want to do Spain like the Spanish.
Do not expect sea views, menus in Russian or German, or finding hundreds of reviews in English on tripadvisor.
The Spaniards know that each place has it's specialty. They go "there" specifically for "that"... The place with the best ham, might not have the best fish. So if you order other dishes you might have another experience!
When's Dinner? Local mealtimes might seem strange...
These local places usually open for lunch around 2 to 4pm, and dinner 8 to 11pm.
If you are used to having dinner at 5 or 6 pm, this might take some getting used to. There are plenty of alternatives in Marbella that serve food all day long if that is your schedule! On the Paseo and in town, tourist-oriented businesses have kitchens open all day. But it won't fit for Spanish family run places. Let yourself fall into what we call "Andalucia hypnosis" and it's 8pm before you even know what happened to the day!
Spanish Specialties not to miss!
People love to enjoy seafood and fish on the Costa del Sol , you will find it everywhere. Of course you will find fried calamari and gambas "pil pil", but why not try whole fried baby calamari, which come under the name of chopitos or puntillitas. Tiny sardines also come
fried, heads on. Delicious with a nice cold cerveza (beer) on the beach! Everybody knows "Gazpacho", but do you know... Salmorejo? This is a cold soup made from dry bread and olive oil emulsion, with roasted peppers and tomatoes, garlic and onions... An incredible unctuous treat. It is usually topped with little slices of bellota ham, and a hard boiled egg. Sometimes it comes with bits of tuna on top. See our blog post dedicated to Salmorejo, and self-guided Salmorejo walking tour. Acorn fed ham called Bellota or Iberico is also a delicacy, and in our opinion has a more distinct taste than Italian parma ham. Very expensive, 10-15 euros for a little plate, but this is the "foie gras" of Spanish cuisine. Manchego cheese can be young or aged. A very good aged Manchego is comparable to a good wedge of Parmesan. Virgin olive oil and fresh squeezed lemon juice are the preferred seasonings for everything from salad to fried fish. Maldon salt flakes add texture and seasoning, it really makes a difference when a restaurant uses these salt flakes instead of iodized salt-shaker salt. Cantabrico anchovies are an incredible delicacy, huge and meaty without the bones you find in normal "pizza" anchovies. They are very expensive 1-3 euros a piece, but the experience is worth is. Steamed octopus Pulpo a la Gallega is served lukewarm on a bed of boiled potato slices, with smoked paprika, maldon salt and olive oil; in the best places this should come on a wooden plate and be served just warm, with smoked paprika and maldon salt and olive oil. Most of the beach chiringuitos do this right, as does Los Mellizos on the paseo. If you are staying out in Elviria, El Barracon does this dish perfectly if you order the media or the racion (not the tapa). If it is served on a normal plate, or if the potatos are hot home-cooked, or if the salt is from a salt shaker and not Maldon salt, you went to the wrong place. Beach restaurants have open fires and cook seafood over skewers all day and night. The sardine skewer is the most famous and in our opinion just as delicious as pricier fish!
Eating Spanish-style in Marbella
Here is our short list of local tapas bars and restaurants, where you will meet essentially Spanish diners, and where simple food is king and each place has it's specialty.
Bar Jamon y Vino - Bajadilla beach district, Alameda park
Jamon y Vino - just behind the Paseo in center Marbella near the park and taxi stands. Artisanal specialties and cold tapas, this is where to go for Iberican ham and Manchego cheese. Go here for the cantabrico anchovies, served on toasted baguette with salmorejo sauce. Addictive. And for the aged Iberico ham, you can choose between young, older, oldest. The aged Manchego cheese is divine. Love both? Order the “matrimonio“ or “marriage” toast which has iberico ham and manchego cheese doused in the best olive oil on a slice of toasted country bread.
Go here for the artisanal and pork-based charcuterie…
If you decide to stay and have something more consistent try the most basic items on the warm menu. The meatballs with Andalusian almond sauce are also delicious, as is the pork cheek (carillada), with hints of Moroccan spices. Do not order Pulpo a la Gallega or other fresh seafood here.
La Sacristia
La Sacristia by Casa Curro - Is a neighborhood tapas bar with barrels and stools on the sidewalk - originally located behind Boulevard Soriano where the law and notary offices are. This is a residential neighborhood with lots of retirees, and the mixture of clients at this place is great; young professionals, families, retirees that live in the building next door...
Go here for the Huevos Rotos Pil Pil - a plate of homemade french fries with fried eggs and gambas pil pil poured over the top. Crazy and delicious! One plate is enough for 2 people! Also excellent here: the Chicharonnes, or pork rinds, more like a cold terrine of cured pork. The salmorejo is highly recommended, pulpo gallego is served in the rules of the art, the simple tomato and ventresca tuna salad (or try the fish roe if you are adventurous) is a masterpiece and when you order it you might notice the waiter and barman running down to the corner to pick up the tomatoes from the greengrocer next door.
Altamirano, old-town Marbella
Bar Altamirano is the place for seafood in the old town. A bit more touristic because of its location, this is nevertheless a well loved haunt of the local population. No point arriving before 8pm. There are often flamenco dancers or street performers on this picturesque square in the old town which makes for an enjoyable evening.
Spanish families flock here to share generous seafood platters. The bar is decorated with Spanish tiles and football paraphernalia. Go inside to the display case, to see what is on offer today. You can order anything they have fried to serve or plancha. Go for the fried baby calamari (chopitos), the fried anchovies (boquerones) or calamari. If you like prawns look first and ask for the price of what you are ordering - by the piece, priced by weight. If you ask first you won't be surprised. Go for the Malaga red shrimp or the Caribineri king prawns. Excellent. This place is all about the fish. Do not order anything with potatoes here as they come from a tin. For a more formal dining experience, shhhhhh... we are going to give away a local secret.
Taberna Gaspar
Restaurant GASPAR caters to local families and some in-the-know tourists. Fresh country food, hand-written menu, vegetables from the finca, classic Spanish specialties, and with a moroccan chef in the kitchen the best couscous this side of Ouarzazate. The portions are so incredibly huge here you must (frustratingly) order one dish for two people. Average cost for 2 course dinner and drinks rarely goes above 35 euros. Go here with a relaxed attitude, prepare to wait for your freshly cooked meal, try to speak a little Spanish... you won't be disappointed!
Our favorite dishes: the ensalada malaguena, the couscous, the pistou, the fresh tuna steak from Tarifa when they have it, the chick-pea soup with chunks of fried salt cod...
In a tiny side street of Marbella old town, you can touch the walls on both sides with your hands! This minuscule restaurant has grand Spanish cuisine and moderate prices. Taberna Nina del Pisto only has a small number of tables so reservations are necessary! They don't always answer the phone so better to pass by and reserve a few days ahead when they are open. Go here for the oxtail (rabo de toro), the home-made french fries, the roast goat cutlets (cabri), the baby cuttlefish in red pepper sauce, the artichokes (in season).
Service is particularly surly, so go here for the food and the atmosphere of the street, and expect to be treated poorly!
There are many other similar restaurants in these little streets, right across from Nina is the El Estrecho bar which is also highly recommended!
Another Basque establishment in the well known basque restaurantes of Marbella (LeKune Pintxos, Back tapas bar are a few of the other best known), this one, the most authentic of all. La Sidreria Usategui has spacious dining room with rustic wooden tables. Brash lighting, Spanish style... no romance, music or candles here! The Sidreria is to Spain what the Beer Hall is to Germany. Amazing thick cuts of meat and a huge open fireplace for grilling it on. Gigantic kegs of cider, from which you serve yourself! A 1,50 euro glass of cider is in fact a bottomless glass - go help yourself all night! The cider is delicious, cold, refreshing, and not sweet. Like apple beer! Brewed by the property. Serious waiters who are serious about their food, will appreciate if you can muster a few words in Spanish and will love you if you show appreciation for their food. Go here for the lamb cutlets, the peppers stuffed with oxtail.. order the house tomato salad to get some fiber with all the meat! This restaurant is hard to find, in a Spanish residential apartment building next to the Marbella bus station.
Chiringuitos on the beach
We have never had a bad meal at any of the Marbella beach chiringuitos... If you stick to the simplest and most frequently ordered dishes, you will never be disappointed. Enjoy the sea views and have lunch just a few feet from your sunbed, or head down in the evening to enjoy the barbecued fish and open fire on the beach at night.
Some chiringuitos are very cheap, while some are chic and expensive. We recommend looking for a place with a barbecue fire and ordering fish on the skewer, you won't be disappointed.
At a plain chiringuito, order the seafood - fried calamari, anchovies (boquerones), baby squid (chopitos), especially the sardines on a skewer (sardinas a l'espeto) if the chiringuito has a barbecue fire. Try the roasted pepper salad, seafood salad, or maybe a fish done on the plancha. Clams are usually good (almejas). Don't go for luxury offerings in the "plain" places - you might wind up paying a lot for frozen king prawns.
Book our apartment now, to try all of these great places to eat, make your own self-guided tour!
When you have finished your meal at these great Marbella establishments, you can just stroll off the extra calories on the Paseo Maritimo (boardwalk) to get home to your wonderful apartment in the best neighborhood, Sunny Corner Marbella Center.
Click here to book your Airbnb holiday at this fabulous apartment steps from the beach and surrounded by these great restaurants: