MANERO ALICANTE - MANERO MOLLÁ On our few-day trip to Alicante, we ate on a Monday evening at Bar Manero Alicante—Manero Mollá —which was quite busy for a Monday. This is an elegant and lively tapa bar in the middle of town, not just in style but also in food quality. The deli counter has carefully prepped plates of food above the beautiful mosaic floor. The tapas menu sticks to the standards but is thriving with every one of them. After sitting down, we had an appetiser.

RESTAURANTE S’ILLOT DES RENCLÍ  S’Illot des Renclí is a stunning, small beach, one of those that captures the essence of tranquil Ibiza.  The entire area is stunning, surrounded by pine trees and fishermen’s huts, with a famous islet offshore that lends the bay its name. The crystal-clear water is perfect for swimming and snorkelling, with a seabed teeming with sea life. There are four jetties where you can put your towel down if you don’t want to sunbathe on the beach.  It i

TITAS GASTROBAR This is the second restaurant our friend Howard Goldsmith, who lives in the area, took us to. It was a completely different experience from the first one, which was very traditional, but both were very good in their own way. Titas gastrobar is in the old historic centre of Villena and serves tasty, well-presented food, whether you are vegan, vegetarian or carnivorous. There’s a real buzz about the place, with many locals sharing tapas at the bar. This gastrob

ALQUERÍA EL BROSQUIL This restaurant is a bit out of the way. You will have to go down an old farm road off the highway, then turn onto a gravel road that leads to a car park inside a beautiful orange grove. It is a bit like a farmhouse in the middle of a town and only 15 minutes from the city centre. You can have drinks outside on the terrace and take in a bit of the sun before taking your seats inside the restaurant. There is also a fun board in the terrace, where you can p

TABERNA CASA MANTECA Cádiz is one of Western Europe’s oldest continuously inhabited cities. The Phoenicians founded it, and archaeological remains date back 3,100 years. During the 18th and 19th centuries, it became a trading port with the Americas. This famous spot in the Casco Antiguo (the older part of Cádiz), within the remnants of the city walls and commonly referred to as the Old Town, is an old-school restaurant and tapas bar (the name means "house of Lard"!). A few f

Pristine sand and dunes with a few good restaurants await you at Playa de Bolonia. RESTAUARANTE LAS REJAS It is a surfer's beach all year round, backed by the remains of a Roman settlement (the ruins of Baleo Claudia, 380 BC). The town had a massive theatre and temples dedicated to Juno, Jupiter, Minerva, and the Egyptian Goddess Isis for the next three centuries. The Romans were equal-opportunity believers. On the shore were the circular stone vats used to salt the tuna. Re

CAL PEP This place has been here since September 1989 and is as much a tapas bar as it is a restaurant. In fact, it is said to be “the best tapas bar in the world” and certainly one of the first of its type. The London restaurant Barrafina is supposedly based on the concept of Cal Pep. There are only twenty of the coveted seats at the bar, so to grab one, you need to queue on most days around twenty minutes before each service, which starts at 1 pm or 7.30 pm. There is also a

45 CURTAIN ROAD We had an excellent long lunch at the new 45 Curtain Road in trendy Shoreditch, London. The restaurant is set on the ground floor of the 45 London Hotel, with a large dining area, bar and open kitchen. The cuisine, led by Executive Chef Alex Furusawa-Cadoni, is a Spanish/Japanese fusion chophouse that combines bold Spanish flavours with Japanese techniques.  From the relatively short menu, we chose, Aonori milk bread, miso & shiso butter. Gilda (Gordal olive,

BAR SAN JUAN After a few local recommendations, we have been meaning to come to this restaurant in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, on the outskirts of Manchester, for some time. On this cold Monday evening in November, we finally made it. This restaurant is a traditional bar, serving authentic tapas. The atmosphere indoors is cosy and full of character, with bullfighting posters. This is a nice place to go to eat in Manchester. We picked quite a few of the tapas: Jamo croquetas (ham croq

TABERNA MANOLO CATECA Tucked away in a corner alleyway, this hidden gem gives you the feel of being a local. The bar has been on this side street since 1920, when it was a wine despacho. In 1952, it became Taberna La Goleta. The current owner, Manuel Navarro, who goes by Cateca (hence the new name), took over around 12 years ago. Although small inside, it always seems popular, day and night, as it is packed with people standing outside drinking and enjoying Sevilla’s nightli