I'm commencing this review with the disclaimer that our visit took place on a hot day in mid July vacation season so perhaps it was not at its best. However I'm compelled to write because google seems to have given this spot a whopping 4.3 stars.
Unfortunately, those stars don't resonate with our experience. This food is pretty much only to be enjoyed if you like your dishes deep-fried (as many do!) and served without the merciful respite of any sauce whatsoever. Everything came with a serve of french fries which was about the only thing we could eat. The croquetas with jamón had a slightly disturbing, tangy meat flavour while the baccalo was effectively just deep-fried fish - thickly battered and bland with dry, white flesh inside - and no salt. The berenjenas con miel (aubergines with honey) were incredibly overdone, with the honey used so sparingly that it just felt like eating the world's saddest tempura vegetable.
Half portions are huge - so we would at least advise starting with one plate before proceeding further.
As for the coffee: the cappuccino was served with whipped cream on top - unusual even for a country which gets overly enthusiastic about froth, yet this was probably about the only palatable thing about an otherwise bitter brew.
The accompanying bread offered no solace (nor was there any sauce to dip it into, anyway) - mere white toast bread, and dry at that.
Allowing for the fact that a lot of Spanish tabernas
serve cheap, simple coffee and deep fried fare - this seemed to be particularly tough to stomach.
However the place was busy with many people enjoying the place, and it was situated in a gorgeous little square in central Gaucín. Here's hoping we only caught it on an off day. read more