Good food, wine, and location. Thanks to Chtistian for putting up with mi español terrible! He was…read morekind to switch to English when I struggled.

Perfect stop for lunch. The view was incredible, and the food and service was beyond our…read moreexpectations. Highly recommend the turbot, eggplant with honey, apples and cheese, and the lamb meatballs.

Meson El Caserío is at the top of the hill overlooking Cuenca and the hanging houses. My wife and…read moreI stopped by for a beer, some tapas, and THE VIEW on a beautiful day. We visited around 6:30 PM. There are several tapas bars in this area and I will bet it is 95% tourists because the local have many other places closer to town to eat. Plus, this is the area where tourists and busses can park. That said, we really enjoyed the experience. We had the pig ear, which is a Cuenca specialty and the first time in my and my lives to have this dish....but "when in Cuenca...". We liked the dish, but for Americans understand this is the full ear which is basically skin, fat, and cartilage. It was very tender and flavorful. We also ordered the Calamari and it came out perfectly cooked to golden brown. Combined with two local beer and the breeze and the view...a little slice of heaven. Let me say as well it was not crowded when we visited. Crowded, but not overly busy. Our waitress was very kind. We tried to speak Spanish, which was ok for some things like offering beer. She was very quick on service and very nice. In fact, she was probably the most "American nice" type waitress we've had in Spain. Most are very transactional, she actually made a recommendation and interacted with a smile. I don't need a smile per se, but since it was the first one I've gotten in Spain it was unique and special. I rate this a 5 because having a beer with this view is truly special and unique and worth the time. Plus, we also enjoyed our beer and food and that isn't always a given in tourist dominated areas.

Mesón el Caserío is at the top of the hill of the old part of town in Cuenca. There's a large…read morepublic parking lot at the top so you can visit Cuenca below, climb back uphill, and build an appetite before coming here. Parrillada de Verduras: Assorted vegetables are grilled over a wood fire, including zucchinis, mushrooms, red bell peppers, asparagus, onions, and tomatoes. They are seasoned with olive oil, garlic, parsley, and salt, and they pack a lot of flavors and are on the edge between crunchiness and tenderness. Oreja a la brasa: The pig ears are grilled over a wood fire. They are coated with olive oil, garlic, parsley, and salt, and cut into strips. Squeeze a bit of lemon juice on them. They are crunch, slightly caramelized, with a nice chewiness in the center. Zarajos: Lamb intestines are wrapped around a vine stick in a circular pattern and seasoned with olive oil, garlic, parsley, and salt. The round bundles are then grilled over a wood fire. Squeeze lemon juice. The zarajos have a firm texture and funky flavor. Sepia: The cuttlefish is grilled over a fire until the edges are slightly charred, and then cut into strips. They are coated with olive oil, garlic, parsley, and salt, and served with lettuce. The cuttlefish is tender with a nice smoky flavor.   They also have grilled pork sausage and grilled, black morcilla blood sausage.

I have never visited Cuenca before, but it is really beautiful. The Parador, which is an old…read moremonastery, is surrounded by nature. The restaurant was originally a chapel. It is stunning and relaxing. The food was amazing! We tried some seasonal vegetables and "Morteruelo" (Cuenca's most famous dish), a sort of purée made out of bushmeat, topped with a few pinions. Then we tried the "Ajoarriero" cod. I love "ajoarriero", but this is probably the BEST I have never tried. A must in Cuenca! Excellent service, excellent wine... a bit pricey but definitely it is worth! Totally recommended!

Went here after a field trip and it was the perfect place to satisfy our hungry stomachs! We felt…read morethere were numerous options in the plaza, all around the same price for the menu del dia, and we are so glad we chose this one. We had a group of 10+ people and they seated us in a room upstairs family-style. Everyone got the menu del dia. I got: - wine - Tastes fine to me but I'm not an avid wine drinker. It went well with my food! - bread + balsamic - Hefty portion of bread loaves. You pour the oil and balsamic yourself. - paella - My first time eating paella ever! To be honest, it was quite salty but it helped a bit to squeeze the lemon on it. I ate it with bread. I thought starters were meant to be small but I found this portion to be quite big! - lamb stew - The photos online looked small but the portion was decent, especially along with the starter paella. The bones and meat were soft and had lots of cartilage. Potatoes were a good accompaniment. - salad - Just standard salad lol but my body really misses vegetables after being in Spain for a while. The service here was quick, prompt, and overall a great experience! We were worried about our big group but not only did our food all come out at the same time in a timely manner, it was also great talking to the servers! We were all able to pay separately too. I highly recommend this place!

We rented a flat just next door. This place has a very nice decor. A bar at the front and dinning…read moreroom in the back. We went at 7:45 pm and dinning room was closed. Barman told us it would be open in 10 minutes. Ordered a beer and it came with a free boquerones tapa. The have lots of menu choices. From 11 to 25 Euros. We ordered the 20 Euros one and a La Mancha red wine. Amazing. Juan, our waiter, did his best to take care of us. Breakfast is not great but it's inexpensive.

Outstanding!!!! An absolute must. Creative fusion restaurant…read morethat produces dishes that border on orgasmic flavors. A highlight of my time in Cuenca.

Wow!!! Just wow!! This restaurant is phenomenal! If you're looking for a break from the typical…read moreSpanish flavors in the area, this is the place to go. While the menu is small, the flavors are BIG BIG BIG! The services was also impeccable! The woman who served us was full of smiles and patience explaining menu items to us. We had three dishes, the tuna tartare, chop suey, and a pork plate. All were truly amazing and distinct. The tuna tartare was fresh and packed with flavor. The chop suey was not at all traditional and made with zucchini noodles, but came in a creamy delicate sauce. Finally the last, the thinly sliced pork dish was rich and nutty. The Asian influence is readily apparent, but we loved how they created new flavors in the fusion. Finally my husband order the chocolate ice cream. It had broken cone chunks on top and a shot of Bailey's they poured over once at the table. It became almost like a cereal! But a very delicious adult version. We can't recommend this restaurant enough! Be open minded, don't expect traditional Spanish flavors, and you'll love it. Expand that palette

Excellent food!! Great service!! Loved every bit. Would recommend anyone that is visiting Cuenca to…read moregive this place a try.

On our first visit to Spain, this last November, we took a pleasant side trip to Cuenca. This…read moreturned out to be one of our most favored parts of the entire trip. After enjoying a wonderful lunch at LaPonderosa (read my review), we went looking for the old town, and got lost. We encountered a very helpful local that offered to let us follow her to the top of the old town. As it turned out, her father owns this restaurant at the top of the old town, and she works there with her sister. The two of them directed us to some free parking, and gave us directions to the old bridge, hanging houses, and cathedral. We spent a bit of time looking around, walking the old streets, a special route that was pedestrian only. Visited the cathedral, bridge, hanging house, and enjoyed the cool mountain air and majestic views. Returning to El Torreon just in time for a late afternoon snack and drinks. The friendly service, atmosphere, and quality of food convinced us to have dinner there, before traveling on to Madrid. We had lamb, potatoes, and bread - it was cooked to perfection, of the highest quality, and of ample proportions - we actually shared one meal. The two sisters, and the serving staff, are all fantastic! All our way to Madrid, we talked about the things we would like to return to Cuenca and do; and, at the top of that list, revisit the sisters and their father, and enjoy the hospitality and great food of ElTorreon. Traveling to Spain, visit Cuenca, and save a meal for this very special place.

This is where we first went based on Yelp reviews, sorry this is not a 4 or 5 star place. We were…read morecoming from Caceres where we had eaten like kings, and on our way to Barcelona, I believe I know tapas and this place is lacking inventive, menu selection and quality. The pisto we had was more like a glorified tomato sauce, the calamari that came with our drinks were rubbery and overcooked. Maybe another day, different menu selections would have been better, but for us the experience was disappointing. Normally I do not post negative reviews but what I found on Yelp does not in this case reflects reality. The space is narrow, dark and oppressive, we would have been better choosing one of the many places with tables on the sidewalk, in the open, where most of the locals were dining.

Restaurante Mangana is one of -10 street side Cafe's in Plaza Mayor in old Cuenca. We didn't have…read morea way to choose between them so we sat here because it already had a busy crowd. Either the other people had good Intel or we are just all collectively sheep. Anyway, this sheep was very happy with the choice. My wife and I sat outside under one of the many canopies. Our waitress greeted us and instantaneously knew we didn't speak Spanish and without asking brought us an English menu. Very nice! Also she was very patient with us non-Spanish speakers for the entire meal. We sat down around 2 pm which is roughly when people eat their "big" meal of the day. Someone immediately brought bread and table lagniappe (fried potatoes and roasted bacon) and took our drink order. Dos cervezas por favor! For lunch we picked items, 2 each, from their daily menu. I chose the Beans with Chorizo and the Sea Bass as my two. My wife selected the Gourmet salad (walnuts, fresh tomatoes, greens, balsamic) and the roasted chicken. The meal was fantastic. The beans were cooked in a tomato based sauce with flavor coming from the chorizo. The sea bass was prepared with skin-on and was super tender. My wife's meal was equally delicious. One thing we've noticed about Spanish food in general, and it applies here, is that food is prepared so that the natural flavors are dominant. Salt, olive oil, and maybe lemon or vinegar are the primary added flavorings. At Mangana this was the case and the food was beautiful. The corn on my salad tasted like it was just cut off the stalk. As for the European dining experience, this place has it. You are sitting at the entrance/exit (2 way traffic through a single open on the three arches) of a major gathering place of Plaza Mayor. You have the hustle and bustle of busses, cars, tourists, school kids, and motorcycles all passing by and in near proximity with dozens of like minded people enjoying their beer and food out in the open. You will see outside stuff outside, like birds and bugs. Not crazy amounts, but they are there naturally. If you want a more traditional eating experience, they also have a second floor, in-door dining room upstairs. I went up there and there were a few people up there, while most opted to sit in the dry, sun soaked 75F day outside. Downstairs they have very nice bathrooms as well to round out your visit. After the meal we had a couple of coffees to finish out our meal and they were very good as well. I can't say how Mangana compares to all the other places but we definitely had a great experience here.

No bueno. Worst meal of our trip. Wet and old calemares. Not fried all the way. For some reason the…read moreflies were covering the tables, but not those at the restaurant next door? Not sure what the scoop was. Friends ate next door and enjoyed their meal. All 4 of us left most of the food on our plate.