Where to Dine in Spain

As far as this travel, food, and wine writer is concerned, Spain has surpassed most traditional European countries lauded by gastronomes for food and wine excellence.

Whether your food preferences go toward classic dishes or innovative modern cuisine, Spain has many eating establishments from lowly tascas to its 15 establishments (as of 2024) with three Michelin stars that will titillate your palate with their culinary expertise and the treasures of their wine cellars.

What I find extremely interesting is the strip along the southern foothills of the Pyrenees from Barcelona to San Sebastian. I have eaten in many towns and villages along that strip and found many eateries offering exceptional dishes, both in quality and variety.

Starting in the Catalan/Tarragona region, the culinary pinnacle would now be the three-Michelin-starred El Celler de Can Roca in Girona. It’s the domain of the third generation restaurateurs Roca brothers about an hour north of Barcelona at the outskirts of the city of Girona.

In the past, Ferran Adria’s El Bulli in the same region was the undisputed “Kingdom of Gastronomy.” But now, the El Celler de Can Roca has been called “the Best Restaurant in the World” twice, in 2013 and 2015, and the second best restaurant in the world many more times.

Juan Roca is top toque in charge of the kitchen, Josep Roca is the sommelier and front-of-the-house manager, and Jordi Roca is the pâtissier. All three excel at what they do!

Eating at El Celler de Can Roca is serious business. Please note that it only has about 40 seats, so reservations are imperative and should be made well in advance.

Tasting-menu-wise, there are two options when dining there. You can try the Classic tasting menu, or you can do the Feast tasting menu. I have tasted both at different times and can confirm that you can’t go wrong with either one. Most of the dishes are based on seasonal ingredients, so you won’t have the exact same dish repeated in successive visits even though different dishes might appear on the menu under quite similar names.

Juan Roca cooks many classic regional, national, and international dishes, many of which were initially offered by his parents before the brothers took over and innovated the menu with creative twists.

Drinking is also serious business there. Josep has accumulated an exceptional collection of both Spanish and international libations. Long verticals of the best wines from around the world and certainly Catalonia and Tarragona are found both at the in-restaurant cellar and stashed at a temperature and humidity-controlled warehouse near the restaurant.

Most of the times I ate there, since the Wines of Catalonia were our host, a table was set up in the restaurant’s wine storage space, and our hosts brought wines from their winery libraries. Josep also brought gems he selected from the restaurant’s library to wash down our meals.

Once we asked to see the wine list, and a piece of furniture holding a huge tome was rolled over where we found every exceptional wine possible.

But Can Roca is not the only striking restaurant with spectacular dishes in the area.

Disfrutar in Barcelona by the Ninot Market just received their third Michelin star. They have been starred for many years, and it has also been named “Best Restaurant in the World” at least once.

A meal at Disfrutar is like a performance: there’s fire, ice, smoke, and lots and lots of flavor. Oriol Castro, one of the three exceptional chefs helming the kitchen, is an affable young man I met a number of times at the annual Gastronomika conference in San Sebastian. All the chefs at Disfrutar had their early culinary experiences at El Bulli’s kitchens. That training has been the springboard of this clearly avant-garde Mediterranean kitchen, where the dishes stand out for their exceptional character.

However, having Michelin stars doesn’t mean that starred establishments are the only restaurants at the apex of Spanish culinary excellence and worth trying.

I have eaten in numerous other restaurants in or near Barcelona that I would consider as good as any starred eatery. It’s often the unassuming tascas, local eateries and secluded tavernas that serve dishes rivaling Michelin’s finest, without the formal recognition and ensuing high prices. Many great Spanish chefs have not accepted Michelin-honors or other such laudatory designations as they feel they do not need the pressure and their usual customers would not pay the resulting high prices.

Southeast of Barcelona, nestled atop Triassic limestone cliffs overlooking a river, is Siurana, a charming medieval mountain town perched high on the mountain top.

With just 32 permanent residents, its crown jewel is La Siuranella — an intimate eight-room boutique hotel, complemented by the breathtaking Els Tallers restaurant, a culinary haven. It offers a genuine taste of Tarragona’s culinary arts and a well-curated cellar of Priorat and Monsanto wines with food that has a modern flair at tempting prices. See my more in-depth review of Els Tallers.

Bar Cañete has a great reputation as a local Barcelona joint. If you come early, you may be surrounded by tourists, but by around 10 pm, the majority of your fellow diners will definitely be speaking Catalan. Tapas are what to order here and wash them down with a local bottle from the large wine list or a cold beer.

A foodie favorite for years, Mont Bar has slowly been making its name as a standout gastro-tapas bar in Barcelona. The Michelin people have finally awarded it the star it has long deserved. During many of my earlier visits, this space was rowdy and a bit cramped. The tables are more spaced out these days, and the clientele is more buttoned up.

It’s still a very good tapas bar, just a more elegant version. With the Michelin star came a tasting menu, in this case consisting of 15 dishes. But Mont Bar still offers à la carte options with fairly inexpensive bites!

Zaragoza, in Aragon, further west than Barcelona has another Spanish culinary treasure. Zaragoza was noted for its “Leaning Tower,” a clock tower built in the 16th century. It was taller than the Leaning Tower of Pizza but was dismantled by the end of the 19th century because of fears that if it fell, it could demolish other buildings around it and injure or kill local inhabitants.

It was notable because it was built by masters who belonged to three different religions – Muslim, Christian, and Jewish. There is still a sculpture of a boy sitting on the paved plaza looking up at the tower as if it still existed.

Since 1919, La Despensa De Montal has been a historic restaurant and gourmet shop in downtown Zaragoza across the square from where the “Leaning Tower” was. It provides traditional Spanish food that includes tasty seasonal menus based on local ingredients served in what was an ornate, centuries-old palace.

You can get a menu in Spanish, English, or French. We ate there one evening during a visit to the Cariñena winery about 3/4 of an hour from Zaragoza. Montal serves high quality Spanish charcuterie, cheeses, and croquettes, as well as many classic Spanish main dishes. These include lovely pork chops, migas de pastor a la casa (breadcrumbs softened in water and wine and then sautéed in meat drippings with paprika, garlic, and grapes), giant beans with clams, Iberian pork cheeks in Port, and a number of spectacular rice dishes.

There is also a tasty table-d’hôte menu. It is a bit pricey, but the restaurant is elegant and very picturesque. In the building’s basement, there is a very well-stocked wine and delicacies store.

Another interesting find was Cervecería Marpy, a delightful tapas emporium. I loved their Pulpo a la Brasa, Pimientos de Padrón, Chipirones a la Plancha, and some of their barely seared tuna tapas.

Madrid, the capital at the country’s center, has a number of iconic restaurants that have fed Madrileños and visitors for ages. There are many dedicated to classic, time-tested Spanish recipes, as well as ones specializing in modern dishes using international ingredients.

My personal preferences are the old fashioned classics like Sobrino de Botín, Cervecería Alemana, Café de Oriente, Chocolatería San Ginés, and a number of other places of the same caliber.

But if you wish to eat really well in an exceptionally plush environment, there is one restaurant to make a reservation in this city, the garden restaurant of the Mandarin Oriental Ritz Madrid, in the summertime. Since way before Mandarin Oriental took over this legendary hotel’s management, the kitchens of the Ritz have served spectacular and sophisticated food to locals and guests. It now sports 2 Michelin stars, but it has always been one of the places where the upper crust of the Spanish capital has gone for spectacular meals.  

And then, there is San Sebastian, the Basque city on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean. This city and the area around it are famous for the quality and number of exceptional eating establishments. Most of the restaurants in Spain with 3 Michelin stars are situated in this region. From luxury hotel dining rooms to hole-in-the-wall tapas bars, I have not eaten better in Spain. Read more about San Sebastian’s renowned chefs and restaurants.

They are perhaps the reason one of the most influential European food conferences is annually held in this city. The Gastronomika Conference attracts top chefs, food journalists, and food lovers from around the world. It takes place every October, and for a food aficionado, it is heaven as receptions, chef demonstrations, sampling booths, and visits to spectacular area kitchens are part of the proceedings.

If you are curious about the chefs attending, their presentations of new dishes, or the concurring food expo, anyone can buy tickets through the conference’s website or approved outlets. You can attend a wide range of events and activities, including master classes and workshops, live cooking demonstrations, tastings, and exploring the meals that local restaurants sponsor.

You can choose between full-access passes for the entire duration or a single-day pass. Either way, I’m sure you will not be disappointed. (The photo at the top of this article is of tuna tartare and Beluga caviar at Gastronomika taken by by Manos Angelakis.)