We decided at a last minute idea to attend the 8th International Tapas Day down the road in Torrevieja, for a couple of reasons basically. First of all was my sister was across visiting on holiday and she was going to miss out on the wonderful Benijofar Tapas Trail. The second reason was it was the opportunity for Soph and myself to visit a couple or so bars that we hadn’t tried out previously.
Unlike the other tapas trains, trails and routes that tend to last a weekend, the International Tapas Day is just that, a single day event.
Venues We Visited As Part Of Our International Tapas Day Experience
We only managed 4 locations, for a number of reasons, but as we’re not residents of Torrevieja, we don’t know the best places to park to get to some of the venues and so we decided to head out to those where we thought we might find parking.
Another reason was the event finished at 4pm, so unlike the tapas trails we usually attend that then go on until evening, this was a much shorter day.
We visited these in order of travel, and for no other reason. The Hotel Laguna we drive past weekly and it’s just on the edge of Quesada, heading towards Guardamar. The fact that we were there so long, also limited us as to how many other places we could visit.
Hotel La Laguna Spa & Golf
Well, this was a real comedy of errors to begin with. We walked into the main foyer, but there was no signage to advertise the event. Soph went to the reception desk with the leaflet in her hand and the guy on reception looked totally blank, so suggested it will probably be held in the main bar. We went to the bar only to be told by another member of staff she had no idea about the event and as it is food based, it’s probably in the hotel restaurant. This was despite a stack of the event flyers on the bar area.
Not to worry, we walked past reception to the restaurant which was locked. A manager appeared from another door, asked of he could help, so we showed him the leaflet and he said it was taking part in the hotel bar ( where we had just come from ).
We then walked to the bar with this manager who explained to the bar server what was supposed to be taking place, mentioning to her the prices etc. After we took our place at one of the tables, the server came and took our drinks order and also our tapas order, and we all went for the milhoja de pulled pork y cebolla caramelizada con crema de pistacho y queso be cabra.
She brought out a plate with a knife and fork on it for the three of us. We waited, sat there chatting and waited and waited. Then out of the door behind the bar a staff member appeared with a plate with 3 croquettes on and apologised for the delay and said this was to put us on.
The croquettes were quite decent, nicely cooked and tasty. We then had another wait for the actual tapas to come out, which was the pulled pork and caramelised onion millefeuille with pistachio cream and goat cheese. Again, this was well presented, subtle flavours and quite tasty without any component being too over powering.
Drinks we had a Rose wine for my sister, Soph and I both went for the soft drink option. The wine was served in a small glass. The bar was quite a chilled out place, service was fine once they were aware they were actually taking part in the event, but we were there for half an hour at least.
Scores On The Doors
Service: 6/10
Ambience: 7/10
Drinks: 8/10
Tapas: 8/10
Overall score out of 40 possible points: 29
Náufragos Beach Club
This is a wonderful place literally on the beach. It was busy when we arrived with a lot of tables reserved for lunches. I had a cana of beer, my sister Rose wine, which she said was very nice, Soph offered to drive so had a Coke Zero, which was the 330ml can.
Service here was very functional, quick and staff used a PDA to take the orders.
The tapas choices here were;
Bacalao arjoarriero sobre toasta de pan de cristal y gamba Which roughly translates as arjoarriero cod on glass bread and prawns. We chose this for all three of us and it was a delightful tapas. The fish was light, flaked easily and had good flavour.
Second on the list was the saquito de pasta filo relleno de rabo de torro en su jugo ( a filo pastry bag with oxtail in a jus )
While we were enjoying our wonderful cod tapas, the people on the next table ordered the oxtail, which looked and smelled delightful, Needless to say we just had to stay for another round and each tried this. This was a very tasty tapas, the oxtail melted in your mouth.
Scores On The Doors
Service: 9/10
Ambience: 9/10
Drinks: 8/10
Tapas: 9/10
Overall score out of 40 possible points: 35
Luna Creciente Gastrobar
Just a very short stroll along the beach is the Luna Creciente Gastrobar.
The tapas offering here was nube de huevas rotos con jamon, so the Spanish dish of broken eggs but this was with fish roe and jam. The second choice was boquerones tempurizados con espuma de ajo negro. This is anchovies in tempura with black garlic foam. We all selected this dish and it was very good. I like boquerones as it is, but this was something slightly different and suprisingly good.
Slight downside here was the drinks. Soph had a Coke, my sister had a Rose wine and I fancied a soft drink, so asked f they did Aquarius. The server said they did, but what I received was a cheaper version of this drink. Friendly service and the server spoke good English.
This is a lovely location, the views from inside are amazing.
Scores On The Doors
Service: 8/10
Ambience: 9/10
Drinks: 6/10
Tapas: 9/10
Overall score out of 40 possible points: 32
Restaurante Martini’s
This is a couple or so minute walk further along the road, but across on the other side. To be blunt, this didn’t have the kerb appeal of the other places, it was in the shade, but busy with people having lunch. There was a party of 15 sat together under the sun shade, some wearing jumpers and a couple in coats.
Service was a little slow, I had to catch a servers attention after we’d been there for 5 minutes waiting to be served.
The tapas on offer here was mejillones a la plancha ( grilled mussels) or gamba blanca ( white prawns ). Julie had the prawns, while Soph and I went for the mussels. The mussels were delightful, you could smell the grilled aroma as they were brought out to the table. The prawns were big.
Drinks we had a Coke for Soph, a Rose wine for my sister and I asked for a beer. My beer was a Cruz Campo small, 20ml bottle and the bottle and label was old, I have no idea how old this was as the best before date was non existent. I am still alive, so obviously this didn’t make me ill or kill me!
Scores On The Doors
Service: 6/10
Ambience: 6/10
Drinks: 6/10
Tapas: 7/10
Overall score out of 40 possible points: 25
Final Thoughts On International Tapas Day In Torrevieja
Due to time limitations, we only managed a handful of dishes. Our winner from those we visited was Náufragos Beach Club with a very close runner up being Luna Creciente Gastrobar.
We do try to announce and also attend many of these events, our next couple are the Benijofar Tapas Route and then a couple of weeks later the Catral one.
What Next In Torrevieja?
The Torrevieja Winter Tapas Route 2024 will take place from the 7th to the 17th of November.
Once again, the streets of Torrevieja will be full of people going out for tapas in this winter edition of the Torrevieja Ruta de la Tapa 2024.
From 7th to 17th November 2024 (Thursday to Sunday)
Local bars and restaurants
Opening hours: from 12h until closing time
TAPA + DRINK = 3,5€
These events are a great way to try new dishes, visit new bars and restaurants and catch up with friends.