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Málaga is best for traditional Spanish cooking, with a wealth of bars and seafood restaurants serving fritura malagueña, the city's famous fried seafood. Torremolinos's Carihuela district is also a good destination for lovers of Spanish seafood. The area's resorts serve every conceivable foreign cuisine, from Thai to the Scandinavian smorgasbord. For delicious cheap eats, try the chiringuitos. Strung out along the beaches, these summer-only restaurants serve seafood fresh off the boats. Because there are so many foreigners here, meals on the coast are served earlier than elsewhere in Andalusia; most restaurants open at 1 or 1:30 for lunch and 7 or 8 for dinner.
This long-established vegetarian restaurant has a large, pleasant dining space decorated with vibrant artwork. It's best known for its excellent, vast, and bargain-priced lunchtime buffet, which includes salads and hot dishes like red-lentil croquettes, vegetable paella, and soy "meatballs." Leave room for the house-made desserts, all delicious. Vegans are well catered to. Biodynamic wines and beer are available, as are more mainstream Spanish varieties.
The modest, old-fashioned exterior of this local favorite is a bit deceiving: inside you'll be greeted not with stodgy decor but with spacious dining rooms with soccer memorabilia, photos of famous patrons, and tanks of fish. Seafood choices include fried or grilled squid, spider crab, lobster, sole, red snapper, and sea bass. If you're not a fish eater, though, you'll have to make do with little more than a roll and dessert. The latter includes homemade rice pudding and chocolate mousse. This is a popular venue with locals and tourists, so go early to be sure of a table—especially if you want to dine outside on the lovely terrace on the plaza.
Around the corner from the Mercado de Atarazanas, this is Málaga's oldest bar, founded in 1840. Málaga wines and finos flow straight from the barrel, and the walls are lined with sepia photos of old Málaga—including some of Picasso. Wash your wine down with plates of cheese, shrimp, or cold cuts.
Tucked away to the north of the old quarter, a block from the Museum of Glass and Crystal, this bustling restaurant offers a range of traditional tapas and sharing plates, plus a good choice of rice dishes, all served in generous portions. The decor inside is eclectic, with vintage children’s bikes and amateur artwork taking center stage, while the small outside terrace (tables for two only) provides a quieter dining option. Despite the large number of tables inside and the rush of locals at weekends, service is efficient and always with a smile.
Popular with malagueño families who flock here on weekends for the legendary fresh seafood, this restaurant seats 170 inside and 150 outside in an attractive square, one block back from the seafront. Try for a table overlooking the mermaid fountain. This is a good place to indulge in fritura malagueña (fried fish) or arroz marinera, one of 12 different rice dishes prepared here; others include lobster rice, vegetable rice, and black rice flavored with squid ink. The generous set menus feature different types of seafood, fish, or rice dishes. Service can be brisk and impersonal.
Right on the sands at the southwestern end of La Carihuela, this family-run restaurant has been serving up fresh fish and seafood for more than 50 years; not for nothing is it a regular winner of the best espetero (maker of grilled sardines) prize. Sit in the bright and airy interior dining area, furnished in jaunty nautical navy and white, or grab a table outside on the beach to soak up the Mediterranean vibe. Highlights on the menu include any of the grilled fish (ask for daily specials) and a good choice of rice dishes. Finish with a cocktail on the frontline “armchairs” as you watch the waves.
Fresh seafood and crisp fried fish star on the menu at this busy chiringuito (beach restaurant) on the western seafront near the tall chimney. Eat inside in nautically themed decor or outside on the terrace on the sand. Sardines grilled over olive-wood charcoal are the best in town in season (May to August), and barbecued whole fish is also worth trying. There’s a good selection of salads including pipirrana de pulpo (octopus). Desserts aren’t so good, but nearby Marcello and Maiten serve ice cream. Service is always swift and efficient even when the venue is packed. If you like quieter dining, go midweek.
Just a block from Plaza de las Flores, a 200-year-old building hides this sleek, modern wine bar, serving some of the best tapas in town. Choose from a long list of hot and cold pinchos (small snacks)—the rabo de toro en hojaldre (oxtail in pastry) and graten de bacalao (cod gratin) are perennial favorites—tostas, and miniburgers, or from the à la carte menu, where meat dishes star. The wine list has more than 300 labels (including some of Spain's best), and the friendly staff can offer advice on pairing options.
Tucked away in the casco antiguo, this small venue with upstairs and downstairs dining offers a taste of Córdoba tapas and Montilla wine in Marbella. There is a good choice of tapas (from €4) and sharing plates, including homemade croquettes, cold cuts, fried fish (the squid is particularly good), and the house pisto (ratatouille) served with a fried egg or pork.
Tucked into the elbow of a narrow street near the main church square, this restaurant serves up superb local dishes, including alcachofas salteadas con jamón y langostinos (braised artichokes with ham and shrimps), tartar de salchichón de Málaga (cured sausage), and berenjenas con miel (eggplant with sugar cane syrup). The three-course daily menu with a half bottle of wine (€19.50) offers a wide range of choices. The interior is warm and rustic, with lots of dark wood and beamed ceilings. The tapas bar comes with a tempting display of light bites (from €4), and the wine selection is well conceived and extensive.
A firm favorite with locals who flock here for the value cuisine, Taberna Gaspar offers a long list of traditional seasonal dishes on a handwritten menu. Portions come hearty, so go for sharing plates, or ask for the dish of the day (weekdays only) if you're less hungry. Sit outside on the shady terrace or inside under lofty ceilings and next to eclectic antiques such as matador outfits, telephones, and glass siphons. Service is friendly and efficient even when every table is packed to capacity.
Perched on the hillside on the way up to Benalmádena-Pueblo, next to the small municipal golf course and with panoramic views of the coast, this restaurant is a favorite with locals for lunch in winter and dinner in summer. The glass-box-on-stilts exterior gives way to a modern interior, where wooden beams and steel pipes crisscross the ceiling. Start with a classic ensaladilla rusa (potato salad), and follow with spicy pimentos with shrimp or the house oxtail stew. Most dishes come in half or full portions, ideal for sharing. Closing time is 9 pm, so late dinners are not an option.
Come to this sprawling, noisy restaurant for the experience rather than the food, which is fine but not spectacular. There's no menu—waiters circle the restaurant carrying various dishes (tapas and main courses) and you choose whatever looks good. The bill is totaled up according to the number and size of the plates on the table at the end of the meal. On the El Palo seafront, Tintero specializes in catch-of-the-day seafood, such as boquerones (fresh anchovies), sepia (cuttlefish), and the all-time familiar classic, gambas (grilled prawns). Be warned that it's packed on weekends with expats and boisterous Spanish families.
A bright and airy venue offering traditional Spanish staples—croquettes and patatas bravas—as well more modern takes on quick bites. Try the pulled-pork bao with honey nuts and hoisin sauce or the torta de boquerones y anchoas (anchovy toast). There's also a good selection of salads and mains, where grilled octopus with paprika and tenderloin pork with sweet wine and raisins are star dishes.
On a river bend between the hamlets of Árchez and Corumbela, this friendly venta offers traditional country cooking at its best. Sit outside on the shady terrace for stunning views of the valley as you dine on generous portions of grilled meats (pork, veal, and chicken) and salads or tapas. Finish with a house dessert such as natillas (custard) or crème caramel. The staff don't speak much English, but their friendliness more than makes up for possible language barriers. Book if you plan to eat here on weekends or go midweek for a quieter lunch. Be sure to check out the Mudejar churches, with their minaret towers in Árchez and Corumbela, before or after your meal.
