217 Best Restaurants in Spain

This tiny restaurant is beloved by locals for its authentic food. It feels like an old farmhouse, with stone walls and floors, a fireplace, pine tables and stools, and dusty wine bottles (adega is Gallego for bodega, or wine cellar). Appetizers such as pulpo con almejas al ajillo (octopus with clams in garlic sauce) are followed by fresh fish at market prices and an ever-changing array of delicious desserts.

Opposite the city hall, this busy restaurant with swift service has pleasant outdoor seating under orange trees and a modern interior with low lighting. Albores serves innovative, modern dishes with a traditional base. The menu is extensive and changes often, although must-try staples include barriga de atún con salsa de soja y mermelada de tomate (tuna belly with soy sauce and tomato jam) and Retinta beef. Don't miss the crême brûlée with white chocolate and paired sweet wine.

Textbook-perfect paella in...Latina? Madrid is a notoriously disappointing city when it comes to the rice dishes popular on the Mediterranean coast, but Aynaelda slam-dunks with its sizzling paellas flavored with heady aromatics and concentrated stock. Be sure to scrape up the socarrat, that swoon-worthy layer of crisp rice that sticks to the bottom of the pan. Avoid Sunday lunch as there's usually a waitlist.

In this chic, dimly lit barroom that's perfect for dates and boisterous dinners, the move is to order an abundance of tapas to share; non-negotiables include the anchovy-smoked butter crostini, roasted leeks with romescu (almond-roasted pepper) sauce, and grilled pluma ibérica (crackly Iberian pork blade steak).

If gorging yourself on fresh, seasonal shellfish without paying an arm and a leg sounds like your idea of a good time, then Batea is the place for you. Led by two young chefs, one from Catalonia, the other from Galicia, this is the more laid-back sister restaurant of nearby Besta. The menu is made up almost entirely of different takes on spiny sea creatures---from oysters to mussels, razor clams and white shrimp---sourced fresh from either the Atlantic or the Mediterranean. Seafood-loving locals can't get enough of this place, and neither can overseas visitors, so book well in advance to avoid disappointment.

Named for the car-mechanic shop that once stood here, Benzina blends industrial-chic elements with splashes of color and excellent music (on vinyl, naturally) to create a hip but cozy Italian restaurant. The food, however, is center stage: the freshly made pasta is among the best in the city, while next-door Doppietta, by the same owners, is home to one of the hottest brunch buffets in town.

One of the first things you'll notice here is the scent of freshly baked bread, then you'll take in the open kitchen, head-nodding playlist, and cozy interior, with oversized windows facing the street. The chef's modern spin on Catalan cuisine features Peruvian and Asian influences, and the dishes are made almost exclusively using locally sourced organic products.

The atmosphere is relaxed but sophisticated in this invariably fully booked (for good reason!) restaurant with a constantly changing menu that blends the very best seasonal produce from the Spanish regions of Catalonia and Galicia. Freshly caught fish and seafood---think Galician cockles and dry-aged beef, or red shrimp from the Med---take pride of place, as do the seasonal vegetables.

Museum restaurants tend to be underwhelming, overpriced tourist traps, but Bistró—with its exuberantly colorful dining room and meticulously prepared modern Basque cuisine served by a knowledgeable waitstaff—is a blissful exception to the rule. Tartares, roast meats, local seasonal vegetables, and top-grade seafood are the building blocks of the three set menus, the most expensive of which is a five-course degustación for a paltry €40.

A 19th-century bodega (wine vendor), with barrel tables and dusty gewgaws hanging from the walls, Bodega de la Ardosa is a welcome anachronism in modern Malasaña and a tourist magnet for good reason. The bar's claim to fame—and the dish Madrileños make special trips for—is its award-winning tortilla española, or Spanish omelet, always warm with a runny center. The fried ortiguillas (sea anemones) dunked in lemony aioli are the menu's sleeper hit.

A Gros stalwart, the ever-bumping Bodega Donostiarra (with a newer offshoot across the street at number 16) is famous for its down-home dishes centered on Basque conservas such as oil-packed anchovies, piparrak (pickled hot peppers), and bonito del norte (albacore). The three find their way into the \"completo,\" a locally famous mini-baguette sandwich that's deliciously tart, juicy, and salty all at once.

Just down the road from the Picasso Museum, Bodega La Puntual might look like a tourist trap, but it's a classic, specializing in hearty portions of Catalan fare, made from seasonal, locally sourced produce. Top menu choices include the fresh marinated anchovies, the plate of premium hand-cut Iberian jamón, and trinxat: a traditional Catalan dish made with potatoes, cabbage, and pork meat, served with a fried egg.

A block east of the Plaza del Potro, this traditional old bodega with high-quality service is the epitome of all that's great about Andalusian cuisine. The dining rooms are in barrel-heavy rustic rooms and leafy traditional patios (take a look at some of the signed barrels—you may recognize a name or two, such as the former U.K. prime minister Tony Blair). Magnificent vintage flamenco posters decorate the walls. Regional dishes, starring local produce, include solomillo del Valle de los Pedroches dos salsas y patatas a lo pobre (local pork with two sauces—green and sherry—and creamy potatoes) and pâté de perdiz (partridge pâté) with Pedro Ximénez wine. Vegetables come from the restaurant's own market garden, and it makes its own Montilla. There's also an excellent tapas bar (from €3.50).

A five-minute drive from the Casa del Vino, in the township of El Sauzal, you'll find this award-winning winery and restaurant perched on a bluff overlooking the ocean. After a lunch of crackly pulled (local heritage-breed cochino negro) pork and roasted potatoes, waddle over to the bodega for a tour and tasting, and if you're looking for a gluggable souvenir, snap up a bottle of the tintilla, a smoky, complex red aged in French oak barrels that's nearly impossible to find in shops.

It's been in a permanent feeding frenzy for more than 30 years, intensified by hordes of tourists, but this loud, hectic bar manages to keep delivering the very highest quality tapas, year-in and year-out. Be prepared to wait up to an hour for a place at the counter; reservations for the tables in the tiny back room and on the outdoor terrace are accepted, but the counter is where the action is.

In this ivy-covered stone-and-mortar farmhouse perched over a deep gully in nearby Rocabruna, feast on carefully prepared local dishes like vedella amb crema de ceps (veal in wild mushroom sauce) and the Catalan classic oca amb peres (goose stewed with pears). In winter, spring for the civet de porc senglar (stewed wild boar) or any of the wild mushroom dishes.

Approximate a vacation to northern Spain by dining at this true-blue Asturian restaurant (or at the more casual sidrería in the bar area), where that region's unsung comfort-food dishes—such as fabada (pork-and-bean stew), Cabrales cheese, and cachopo (cheese-stuffed beef cutlets)—take center stage. The obligatory tipple is sidra, bone-dry Asturian cider that's aerated using a battery-powered gadget designed for this task.

Whether you pull up a stool at at the marble bar or sit down for a soup-to-nuts feast in the azulejo-lined dining room, you're in for some of Madrid's finest traditional tapas with a twist here. Madrileños come from far and wide to share heaped plates of ensaladilla rusa, a house specialty, as well as textbook-perfect croquetas and hefty steaks served with sherry gravy and house-cut fries. Vermouth (on tap) is the nonnegotiable aperitif, and there are always several Spanish wines to try by the glass.

You’ll mainly hear Catalan conversations in this 10-table establishment that feels like eating at a Spanish relative’s house, with food as locally sourced as its clientele. Rice dishes are the main event, particularly the squid-ink variety and, if you're lucky, the seasonal special topped with perfectly cooked steak.

Whether you approve of bullfighting or not, the culinary excellence of Casa Salvador—a checkered-tablecloth, taurine-themed restaurant that opened in 1941—isn't up for debate. Sit down to generous servings of featherlight fried hake, hearty oxtail stew, and other stodgy (in the best way) Spanish classics, all served by hale old-school waiters clad in white jackets.

Once you find this spot, tucked inside the boutique Wittmore Hotel at the end of a tiny alley, you’ll be rewarded with a wonderfully creative menu of small plates and hearty baked pastas. Dishes are served in the lounge-like dining room or out on the courtyard patio with its twinkling lights and impressive vertical garden.

A long list of seasonal Mediterranean small plates, ranging from coal-grilled octopus to calamari with green-curry mayo to traditional Catalan sausage stew, is chalked up on the boards each day. Inside, it's casually hip, with exposed brick walls and vintage furniture; there’s a small back patio for alfresco dining as well as tables out front on the Rambla del Poblenou for excellent people-watching.

This superb restaurant run by the congenial brothers Jorge and Nacho Rodriguez moved down from the hilltop to a new venue right on the seafront in early 2018. The light and airy dining room has stunning sea views, and there's an outside terrace as well. The dishes, all creatively presented, include traditional options like grilled sardines, oven-baked lamb, and braised oxtail as well as more innovative choices like skate in Champagne sauce, which goes well with the excellent local white wine, Calvente blanco. The desserts are sublime, particularly the cheesecake and the selection of tropical fruit. The three-course menu (€15) offers a particularly good value.

An invitingly cozy space awaits behind the ancient stone facade of this restaurant, 200 meters (656 feet) from the main plaza. Part of the house is original, but much has been renovated, providing an attractive combination of traditional mountain design and modern construction. The menu is all well-priced highland comfort food—think leeks in vinaigrette, braised beef tongue, and cocido lebaniego (braised meats, chickpeas, and vegetables). The lunch menu is one of the best values in the area.

There’s almost always a line outside this old-school, family-owned tapas bar, a local favorite since its founding in 1940. If you can’t get a table, sidle up to the long wood bar, choose from the display of bite-size, toothpick-speared pintxos and eat them standing, or walk one minute down Carrer d’Angel Vidal to its terrace-restaurant, Els Jardins del Retiro, for an excellent outdoor prix-fixe lunch deal.

This tavern in Segovia's historic Jewish quarter is owned by La Casa Mudéjar Hospedería hotel and has won awards for the region's best tapas. The extensive menu highlights Segovian specialties like cochinillo, as well as traditional Sephardic Jewish cuisine (though it's not a kosher kitchen), plus a variety of well-executed raciones (shared plates).

Chef Andreas Christodoulides' intent here is to recreate the dishes he grew up eating as a kid in Athens but don't expect a setting of clichéd blue and white Greek Island decor. Instead, the setting is bright and casual, allowing the classic food to speak for itself.

El Tubo, the area surrounding the intersection of Calle Estébanes and Calle Libertad, is tapas central. Try to stick to one tapa per bar so you can sample as many spots as possible. El Champi (Calle Libertad 16) isn't much to look at, but this tiny establishment serves killer griddled mushrooms stacked on bread to soak up the garlic-infused oil. Bodegas Almau (Calle Estébanes 10) has shelves heaving with wine bottles and a bar stacked with gargantuan pinchos, which regulars gobble down in the standing-room-only barroom. The vermut con anchoas (a small plate of anchovies and a serving of house vermouth) is classic. La Republicana (Calle Casto Méndez Núñez 38) is a quaint antique space with a wide selection of tapas and migas (fried breadcrumbs) that rival those of the more famous La Miguería (Calle Estébanes 4), laden with garlic, olive oil, crispy chorizo, and optional lacy fried egg. A few steps away, Taberna Doña Casta (Calle Estébanes 6) fries up a lengthy list of inventive croquettes. Sin Nombre (Calle Libertad 7) serves cheffier tapas than the aforementioned and accompanies them with a varied wine list. 

One of the eastern Costa del Sol’s foodie treats sits in a pleasant central square with its signature ruby-red feature wall. Chef Sergio González combines the best of local produce with more exotic touches to perfection: the tuna tataki comes with custard apple; and duck, local mango, and grilled avocado accompany the tomato salad. Red tuna takes center stage on the seasonal menu, where you’ll also find fresh fish, grilled meats, and a short list of vegan choices. There are also good-value tasting menus (€70) and an extensive list of tapas that are a gourmet world apart from the rest of the bars in town and on a par with the best in Andalusia.

Offering an extensive menu of “tapas & platillos,” Gourmet Sensi has been a local favorite since its opening in 2015. The bright, modern space features floor-to-ceiling windows giving you a front row seat to foot traffic along Carrer de Milans. Expect Catalan staples like padron peppers and jamón ibérico along with some creative dishes like their vegan “roasted chicken” croquettes with vegan curry mayo.