THE TERRACE TAPAS & WINE BAR During our brief visit to Ilfracombe, we tried what I believe is the only Spanish restaurant in town. We were served surprisingly good tapas, which was somewhat unexpected in North Devon.  Clive Chilcott runs the Terrace Tapas & Wine Bar alongside his partner, Dawn Mullen, who is the excellent chef. Together, they have owned this restaurant since 2016, striving to bring a little piece of sunny Spain to Ilfracombe and North Devon. It seems they hav

VANDAL PALMA A guest review by Siddu Amin. We grabbed a seat near the open-plan kitchen at Vandal in Santa Catalina, where the menu reads like a map of the world with influences from South America, Asia and Europe. It’s loud, so it’s not the place for an intimate dinner, but it’s fun. To start, we had, Gazpacho de puerros y patatas como pre-entrante (leek and potato gazpacho pre-starter). Followed by, Taco mexicano de pescado adobado con auténtica tortilla xólotl de maíz nixt

SES OLIVERES A guest review from Siddu Amin. This beautiful terraced restaurant has a handful of tables outside the entrance, which may appeal to those wanting a closer look at the old wooden trams that descend from Sollér up in the hills. We arrived on Sunday afternoon, having tried and failed to book a table over the phone the previous day. There is no online booking option, so you’ll need to call or book in person. Thankfully, the manager squeezed us in on the day, and we

RESTAURANTE LASAI Michelin Plate While we were in Bilbao, we had lunch at Lasai. The entrance is in a basement down a side street, so it’s not easy to find. Once inside, there is a lovely, relaxed vibe and a good atmosphere. The team behind this concept is Bilbao native and chef David Garcia, who holds one Michelin star for Corral de la Morería and serves as the gastronomic director here. The head chef is Igor Méndez. Once settled in, we chose the Crystal tasting menu. To

HOTELA M&UGA We stayed for three nights in the Basque Country town of Elorrio. The Town stands out for its unique medieval and modern heritage. In 1964, it was declared a Medieval Heritage Site. It is set in a green valley with the river Zumelegi running down its centre. It is a delightful walk through the streets of palaces and ancestral houses, built of stone and carved masonry from the 17th and 18th centuries. We chose to stay in the M&UGA Hotela. The hotel is a minute’s w

AZURMENDI Three Michelin Stars Chef Eneko Atxa Azurmendi was the youngest Spanish chef to obtain 3 Michelin stars in 2012. You will discover why when you arrive at this subtropical glasshouse, which overlooks the stunning Basque countryside 25 minutes outside Bilbao. Azurmendi is an ecosystem by itself, based on sustainability. It is environmentally friendly, uses renewable energies, recycles any generated waste, harvests rainfall, and heats and cools the facilities using

CASA JULIAN In March 2025, we returned to this remarkable, easy-to-miss little restaurant, now famous on TV, in the Basque countryside town of Tolosa, 28 km inland from San Sebastián. Tolosa is a town and municipality in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa in northern Spain . It is located in the valley of the Oria River , and Casa Julian is directly across from the river. Once you find the restaurant and walk in, you might think you are in the wrong place. You will see an are

BAR CAN TONI - THE HEART AND SOUL OF THE REAL FORMENTERA This place is in the small village of El Pilar de la Mola, almost opposite the hippie market (open on Wednesdays and Sundays). It is run by an Italian (like many other places on the Island). They serve food all day. Bar Can Toni is the heart and soul of Formentera. It is where the locals go to eat, drink, chat, play, and watch live flamenco music and dance. The place is friendly and ideal for a drink and to eat a few

NOU MANOLÍN    Michelin Plate IIO This well-known spot in Alicante’s city centre has two distinct areas. Upstairs is a chic destination restaurant serving consistently excellent, creative seafood dishes. Downstairs, you will find a casual, come-as-you-are type of bar. We r ecommend sitting at the bustling bar counter on the first floor. (It is wise to turn up when they open the doors in the evening. We started with good ostras (oysters), then buñuelos de bacalao (deep-frie

CAN SALINAS MANUEL EL REY DE LA FIDEUÀ To find this restaurant, head past the church on the way to Ses Salinas. It is on the left, just before the turnoff to Platja des Cavallet, just before Salinas Beach. This family-run restaurant serves excellent Valencian-style paella and fideuà away from the busy summer crowds of Ibiza. Fideuà is a dialectal pronunciation of the Valencian or Catalan word fideuada (which means a large number of noodles). It is a seafood dish originally fr