20 Jun Where to eat in Granada – my honest tapas experience
Next stop, Granada.
After eating tapas in Seville, Cadiz, Cordoba and Ronda I had the opportunity to try three places in Granada and a little fast food since I was in a hurry to see as much as I could from the city.
I never thought to write down the name of the fast food so I will have to look for it using google maps but in the end I consider this a cheap, clean, good meal that can fill you up and keep you satisfied for a long time.
Where I ate in Granada
The places I tried in Granada were:
- Los Diamantes
- Bar Avila
- Bar La Riviera
From the start I want to mention one thing that I find extremely important. I am sure that Granada has excellent places to eat. Almost any city has them. When reading my reviews you must understand that I am only focusing on those specific restaurants, bars, bodegas where I ate.
It is very hard for me to judge an entire city after tasting 3–5 meals in it.
According to Trip Advisor Granada has over 1300 restaurants. So in reviewing these particular three you can’t possibly cover all that Granada has to offer.
But what I’m trying to do is something else. I am trying to reach as many restaurants as possible from a certain category.
I never aimed this blog to be an exclusive one or geared towards high spenders.
I believe that everywhere on this planet you can find local restaurants. Small bars, bodegas. Filled with locals, filled with laughter, filled with good food or having a signature dish.
That is my aim. To search the internet before going on a trip, to talk to people, to locals and ask their favorite spots. And from those places to try and sample as many as I can.
All while remaining in the cheap to medium prices category.
Because even though I said it countless times, yes great food adds a lot to your trip, but only if you are not paying a fortune for it.
If for example I would have paid 30 eur per meal in Andalucia I would have spent around 900 eur just on food. Instead I averaged around 20–25 eur/day, which made a huge difference.
Since many people asked me how I choose my restaurants I will write a small post about that as well.
So having this covered we can move with the reviews for Granada.
Los Diamantes review
A little heads up before starting. It is nearly impossible to sample even 1% of all restaurants in Granada, so you just pick a few and try your luck.
If you are looking for Los Diamantes, two places will pop up. The one I visited is on Plaza Nueva 13.
Seeing how many good reviews this place has on Trip Advisor I chose it as my first meal in Granada.
The place is big, bigger than what I got used to in Ronda or Seville.
When I entered I hesitated a bit. The place was full, but not in the same way I was used to. Long shared tables, people sitting together, different atmosphere.
There was also a leak near the entrance so part of the space was unusable.
I eventually found a seat and ordered.
Looking back now I think maybe I didn’t choose the best dish, but I found the prices a bit high.
I ordered a main dish, a side, a beer and received a small tapa from the house.
The shrimps did not impress me. I had better ones in other places like Ronda.
But the tomatoes… amazing. Simple tomatoes with olive oil and salt. Really amazing.
As for the price, 20 eur for this felt a bit much compared to other cities like Seville or Ronda.
I wouldn’t return here, even if I did enjoy the tomatoes.
Bar Avila review
Situated on Calle Veronica de la Virgen 16, Bar Avila is smaller and, for me, a better experience.
I found a place at the bar and ordered a main and two tapas.
Like many places in Granada, you get a free tapa with each drink.
The prices were decent and I enjoyed most of the food.
The beans tapa was really good. The cod was good as well, but I didn’t like the tomato sauce.
One thing I noticed in Granada was the higher number of tourists in restaurants compared to Seville or Ronda.
Still, I would give this place another try.
Bar La Riviera review
I had doubts when entering this place. It was full of tourists, loud music and poor lighting.
The place is fairly big and the staff was OK.
I tried two tapas and got two beers included.
Yes, it is cheap. But I didn’t enjoy the quality of the food.
Even compared to Los Diamantes, the food there felt better.
This is not a place I would return to.
Quick budget option
Before ending I must mention a place where I had a very good kebab.
I don’t remember the name, but it was somewhere near Plaza Nueva on Calle Reyes Catolicos.
At 5 euro for a kebab and Pepsi it was great value.
Final thoughts
This concludes my experience with food in Granada.
Even though I didn’t find amazing places here, I am sure the city has them. I just didn’t hit the right ones.
If you’re planning a longer trip through Spain, I’ve put together a complete Spain travel guide here.
Next I will focus on food and accommodation in Nerja and a restaurant in Malaga.
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