According to one of the area's newspapers, Nerja continually receives the highest marks for overall tourism satisfaction on the Costa del Sol. And no wonder, given the clean, safe, more or less authentically Spanish (as much as you can get on the coast) absence of those horrid high-rise barracks housing Eastern European discount tourists, low crime rate, excellent prices and as we have discovered, a great selection of places to eat of all descriptions. Being restauranteurs and cooks ourselves, we do know good food when we encounter it, and equally important, recognize value for money and all those factors that go into making a decent restaurant experience. And so here are our recommendations thus far....(and we are far from finished doing our research!).
Breakfast: Many restaurants advertise the "Big British Breakfast" which is essentially a classic bacon/sausage/ham and two eggs/toast combination. What makes it British is the addition of fried tomato and (canned) baked beans. Prices range from 3 Euros to about 8 Euros. The cheaper ones don't include the juice and coffee so you'll still end up paying about 7 Euros once they tack that on. Best deal AND best breakfast for our money is the Jamaica Cafe on calle Manuel Marin down by the Hotel Monica near Torrecilla Playa. Total cost for two breakfasts with juice and coffees was 8 Euros. And they throw in all the extras such as jam and butter which a lot of the other places skip. We've also had supper at the Jamaica and although it was nothing noteworthy, it was good value for the money and the food (thin crust pizza in this case) was tasty enough. It's a tremendously popular place with Spanish families and it's always busy and lively, both indoors and on the enclosed terrace.
On the subject of pizza, the Bella Roma, down near the Plaza Cavana does nice thin-crust and they are also very popular and very busy. We were disappointed with the fish we had there one evening as it was non-descript and served with some really boring french fries and nothing else. They have a pleasant atmosphere and a nice terrace and are generally packed in the evenings.
We've eaten paella at Ayo's much touted place on Burriana and found it a greasy disappointment despite the rave reviews some other people give it. I think they turn out such vast quantities of it that any finesse goes right down the drain. You can however, eat as much as you want of it for about 8 Euros...sooo...
There's a little corner place open for lunch almost beside the Bella Roma called The Mandarina and we like going there for lunch. It's a little place with some well-placed tables in the sunny square (almost too sunny on hot days as it has no canopy or umbrellas) and they make a lovely tapas plate for 3 Euros. They also have nice fresh baguettes with ham and cheese and other goodies for 3 Euros. Good budget food, freshly made.
Last winter we had a great dinner at El Encanto, which is tucked into a narrow street downtown. I had rabbit and Tom, again, had lamb. Good food, freshly and creatively cooked and a pleasant atmosphere. Well recommended.
We may not have time to try these others on this trip but if anyone has eaten there, please let us know what you think of Sollun (new and impressed by their menu and by the fresh herbs growing in the window boxes), Casa Luque??? Sloans and Langhams. Happy eating!!!
