Costa del Sol
The excellent climate at the Costa del Sol allows people to spend a large part of their daily life outside. Eating tapas at an open-air restaurant is a popular way of enjoying the Southern gastronomic culture in between meals.
One of the most important ingredients of the Andalusian cuisine is olive oil, which is used especially for salads and for the famous and popular Gazpachos and Frituras. Numerous treasures of the sea form the gastronomic basis of the favourite restaurants of Marbella and the surrounding areas. Crustaceans (langostinos (king prawns), cigales (crayfish), spider crabs etc. are excellent in quality; just like the fish from the Malaga coast, which are the basis of the so-called Pescaíto Frito (anchovies, red mullets, calamari etc.). Sardines are cooked on a skewer. This is a very special way of food preparation, which consists of skewering the sardines directly at the beach and grilling them over the open fire. Equally excellent are sea bass, gilthead sea bream, tuna and anglerfish, which are cooked in various ways: salt-coated, larded, as soup etc.
The wines of Spain are famous all over the world and protected by their designation of origin. There are Riochas of the highest quality and dry white wines. The most popular white wines, however, are sweet, such as the Lágrima or the Moscatal.
The best gastronomic schools of Andalusian cuisine in Spain are represented in Marbella. However, besides the traditional cuisine, there are also many international restaurants of various origins at the Costa del Sol. They range from the exotic cuisine of Lebanon, Scandinavia, Japan and Hungary to the famous gastro-cultures such as French, Chinese and Italian cuisine.
In addition, Marbella is privileged because a number of its restaurants belong to the highest category of the country and are mentioned in the most famous gastronomy guides.