Eat and Drink Cabanyal
Paella
Start the day with a Desayuno (breakfast) of tostada con tomato (tomato puree on toast) served with a coffee and a fresh orange juice.
Order Almuerzo from 10.30am until 11.30 am. This is generally a filled bocadillo ( baguette) another coffee and a glass of wine or beer.
Wine comes in smaller measures here and is usually ordered with a snack. Beer is either a Cana – a glass of lager from the tap or a Tercio – a bottle.
Lunch or La Comida. Is the main meal. Look out for the Menu del Dia – menu of the day – displayed outside cafes and restaurants.
A typical menu includes three courses, bread, a glass of wine, beer or a soft drink and perhaps coffee too. Portions aren’t huge, but there’s plenty to satisfy your appetite and the bill will be anything from 7 to 12 euros a head.
Dishes range from paella, fried fish, a grilled chicken breast , a fillet of pork or perhaps a steak. A delicious fresh salad, perhaps a bowl of mussels and a pudding such as flan – Spanish crème caramel – make this into a meal nearly fit for Christmas dinner. Of course after all this food, everyone is in the mood for a sleep –the legendary siesta.
Food consumption eases up after lunch, but the bars around El Cabanyal still have tapas on offer.
Restaurants don’t start serving dinner until 8.30pm.
Seafood
In El Cabanyal expect to find All y Pebre – a delicious dish made from peppers and eels, Pimientos Padron – (roasted, salted green peppers) fried or grilled squid with lots of garlic and big slabs of tortilla. If you find yourself eating paella in the evening, you’re on the wrong track as Valencianos regard this as strictly a lunchtime dish.
Eating out is generally affordable and you can budget for £15 to £25 a day per person.
You can’t move for great places to eat in this convivial neighbourhood. Whether you’re looking for Valencia’s best tapas bar, a swish seaside café or a basic bodega, you’re in just the right place.
Casa Montana
Casa Montana
Carrer de Josep Benlliure, 69
This Cabanyal institution is a legend and has been in business since 1836. They serve a range of heavenly wines, some stored enticingly in huge barrels behind the bar.
The menu features Valencian specialities as well as dishes from right across Spain and everything is excellent. You’ll find hams and cheeses, delectable Habas (beans), sizzling grilled peppers, fresh and delicious anchovies and perfectly cooked Sepia(cuttlefish) on the wide menu.
Casa Montana is affordable and you can eat and drink well for around £20 a head.
Casa Montana interior
Bodega De Pascuala
Bodega La Pascuala
Carrer d’Eugenia Viñes 177
Monkey nut shells litter the floor and brandy bottles line the walls in this charming, atmospheric family run El Cabanyal favourite.
It’s famous for bocadillos as big as your arm and the
hearty menu del dia includes paella as a speciality.
Book a table if you can and order paella in advance as there’s no guarantee of either.
Open from 9am to 4pm only, closed on Sundays
A three course menu del dia costs £8
Bodega De Pascuala
Ca La Mar
Ca la Mar
Just y Vilar 19
Serving delicious, authentic Valencian food as well as the wonderful home-grown Turia beer, this bright, inviting bar is a vibrant addition to the local restaurant/bar scene.
As well as good inexpensive wines, they offer herbal infusions, delectable home-made cakes and more substantial main dishes at lunchtime. It’s a popular spot and one of El Cabanyal’s best bets for food, drink and fun.
Lunch for around £6
Bodega Lapeseta
Bodega Lapeseta
Calle Cristo del Grao 16
Bohemian cool at bargain prices
in this lively and attractive bar.
Wonderful tortillas and tempting tapas
including interesting vegetarian options.
Lapeseta regularly hosts live bands and
stage concerts.
Eat and drink for £5
La Paca
Bar Lapaca
Calle de Rosario 30
The sister to Lapeseta with the same variety of tapas and quirky interior, dished up with a warm welcome. It’s a cool hot spot but the clientele spans all ages.
Eat and drink for £5
Mayca’s sunny welcome in Cafe Contigo
Cafe Contigo
Calle de la Reina 33
This bright and sparkly cafe is as cheerful and welcoming and as its beaming, friendly owner
Maycu. Her healthy freshly-made salads feature tropical fruit and goats cheese
alongside a range of pastas and home-made burgers, sticky cakes, appetising
sandwiches and freshly squeezed juices. A book exchange and
occasional intercambio nights add to the inviting atmosphere of this likeable neighbourhood favourite.
La Mase
La Maceta
Calle Mediteraneo 22
Seaweed, tofu and mango enhance the intriguing flavours of tapas on offer in this vibrant bar/cafe. La Maceta’s open plan kitchen enables you to watch the smiling chef invent the dish of the day, using ingredients freshly delivered from the Mercado del Cabanyal.
Maceta means plant pot in Spanish and you’ll see them effectively used as part of the delightful interior alongside retro plastic tablecloths and mismatched painted chairs.
The freshly prepared, eclectic menu reflects La Maceta’s vibrancy which spills out onto the sunny pavement, where the upbeat clientele gather from morning until late at night.
Lunch for 10 euros
La Fabrica is fun, functional and funky
La Fabrica
Calle Santo Cristo del Grao 14
Valenciano interior designer Emilio Gonzalve creates and reconditions stylish industrial lights and furniture in his studio/garage in Barrio Carmen and sells them in this striking bar. It’s as much emporium as eatery, although the food is also a highlight. Balcalhoa (cod) is the speciality amidst a range of quality tapas cooked up by Anna and Carlos, the friendly chef/front of house team. Funk, jazz and soul are on the menu on Thursdays nights.
Food and drink for around 15 euros
Tasca Reina
Tasca Reina
173 Calle de la Reina
Fresh fish and seafood by the kilo, Titaina, (El Cabanyal-style tuna ratatouille) and home-made hummus, zingy vegetable pizza and spicy boquerones(anchovies) in a piquant tomato sauce are served with style in this new offering from the La Paca/La Peseta stable. Seafood tapas in a sunny, seaside setting. make a sensational Sunday lunch or late-night supper.
Food and drink for around 10 euros.
Nehuen Tasca
Nehuen Tasca
Calle Cristo del Grao 14
A full range of vegetarian tapas is served in this laid-back local favourite, opposite the Mercado del Grauh
Lunch for around £8
La Mussola
La Mussola
Calle de la Barraca, 35
An atmospheric restaurant serving Spanish food mixed with French dishes at both lunch and dinner. At night, the four course menu on offer is hearty and refined and the cooking is skilled.
Dinner for £18, lunch for £12
Casa Guillermo
Casa Guillermo
Calle del Progrés 15
Specialising in fresh, local anchovies, this famous bar/restaurant does a good selection of Valencian tapas and raciones.
It’s a pricier option but if you’re on a mission to find anchovies at their finest then this is the place to head for.
Dinner for £20
La Pepica
Paseo Neptuno 6
A seafront favourite, mainly because it’s the former haunt of Valencia devotee Ernest Hemingway. They serve paella and other hearty rice dishes in a laid-back but classic setting. The tiled interior is atmospheric and beautiful, authentic and charming – worth a look even if
you don’t eat here.
Around £25 a head
Bar Hermanos Haro
Bar Hermanos Haro
Calle de Columbretes 16
Popular, family run café bar, buzzing with local workers and a great spot for Almuerzo or a filling breakfast. Huge bocadillas filled with bacon and egg or tortilla.
Almuerzo for £4
La Otra Parte
Eugenia Vines
Cool, atmospheric laid-back bar, opposite the sea with a stylish interior and an interesting range of tapas including good vegetarian choices and a delicious hummous platter
Dinner for £15
El Mercado Bar
Bar Mercado
Centro Mercado Cabanyal
Bustling market bar selling hearty, delicious, traditional tapas and good, strong coffee. Calamares filled bocadillo and freshly squeezed orange juice are on the menu alongside a top notch classically British egg and bacon sandwich – just the ticket if you’re feeling homesick.
Breakfast for 4 Euros
Casa Calabuig
Casa Calabuig
Avenida del Puerto 336
Famous bar and café founded in 1903 that serves traditional food in its beautiful, original modernista interior, handy for the port.
Lunch for £9
La Regadera Cultural Association
Calle Progreso 23
A welcoming community restaurant offering exclusively vegan food in a bohemian chic environment. Locals must join the association in order to eat in this delightful spot but tourists can just visit to enjoy the set meals, herbal teas and home-made cakes.
The idea here is to
pay what you can afford. Expect to contribute around £8 to the cost of your meal.
La Regadera
La Mas Bonita
La Mas Bonita
Passeig Marítim de la Patacona 11
Yummy Mummies and Valencia’s most beautiful flock to this airy beachfront café, with a delightful courtyard garden and seaview terrace. It’s pricey but worth paying more for stupendous cakes and invigorating smoothies
Coffee and cake for £6.50
Estrella de Mar
Estrella del Mar
Just y Vilar 39
A smart café with pavement seating, selling a good range of cakes, pastries and savoury treats, including empanadas filled with spinach.
Also see
Dr J J Domine, at the end of Avenida del Puerto is a strip of lively small restaurants with sunny pavement tables. As well as being perfect for outdoor eating, each one offers a good value menu del dia with views of the port.
If you want to be closer to the sea, you’ll find a range of restaurants all along the Paseo offering typically Valencian rice dishes as well as fish dishes. There’s a mix of local customers and tourists here and they can be overpriced. The Neptuno at the port end of the seafront has a well-respected restaurant, and a sunny bar for coffees and cocktails.