The Best Restaurants in Begur: The Ones We Keep Coming Back To
We have been lucky enough to spend our summers in Begur for more than twenty years now, and in all that time one thing has never changed: we plan each day around the next meal. Begur’s restaurant scene, however, is always evolving. Places come and go, chefs move on, and old favourites find new life under different owners, so it felt like time to update our list of favourites. Some are new, some are old friends under new names, and a few are simply too good to leave off.
Pizzeta and Alfok
For years I resisted Pizzeta. Why eat pizza in Spain when there is cochinillo and paella to be had? But our guests kept recommending it, so we gave in, and we’ve been going back ever since. It is still going strong and still as good as ever, with pizzas cooked properly in a wood-fired oven and a garden lit so beautifully that every table feels as though it has its own olive tree. An early evening table with the children, as the sun drops and the whole place fills with warm light, is hard to beat.
But if you only have one evening for this kind of food, these days we’d send you to Alfok. It is run by Vaughn, who used to manage Pizzeta, and to our mind he has bettered the original. It sits just outside town in the little village of Esclanyà, a short taxi ride away, and it’s worth every minute of the journey.
Restaurant Costa Brava, Sa Riera
For lunch by the sea, our hearts used to belong to Es Bas on Sa Riera beach. Es Bas has gone, but happily the same owners now run Restaurant Costa Brava on the same stretch of sand, and the spirit of those long, lazy lunches has come with them. The cooking is unfussy and local, exactly as it should be a few steps from the water, and the paella is superb, the pan arriving crowded with langoustines, mussels and prawns on rich, deep-red rice.
Recer de la Mar, Sa Riera
Next door is Recer de la Mar, where the cooking is among the most imaginative you’ll find in Begur. If Restaurant Costa Brava is our choice for a classic seaside lunch, Recer is where we go when we fancy something a little more creative. Between the two, you could happily lose an entire afternoon here which, more often than not, is exactly what we do.
Map: Recer de la Mar
Cap Sa Sal
For sheer setting, though, nothing in the area touches Cap Sa Sal. It is tucked into the pines high above Aiguafreda, one of the prettiest little coves on this coast, with the sea glittering through the trees below. When the heat allows, we walk there, taking the coast path for an hour or so and turning lunch into a small adventure. It certainly does no harm to the appetite.
The food more than earns the walk: paella served with whole fish, and magnificent sharing steaks brought to the middle of the table for everyone to pull apart. A beautiful walk, a stunning setting, and a meal worthy of both.
Map: Cap Sa Sal
Bar de Plaça
Right on the main square in the heart of Begur, Bar de Plaça is our go-to for a quick, casual bite. There are no bookings: you simply turn up and wait for a table, but it is worth the wait. The tapas are relaxed and the prices reasonable, the food is surprisingly good, and best of all you are perfectly placed to sit back and watch the comings and goings of the square. As good a spot for people watching as you will find in town.
Map: Bar de Plaça
And the rest
This barely scratches the surface. Half the pleasure of Begur is wandering into somewhere new and making the discovery your own. But whether you’re staying at Villa Begur or Villa Sa Riera, I hope this gives you a taste of what is waiting for you, and a good excuse to start planning your meals before you’ve even arrived.
If you discover somewhere we’ve missed, we’d genuinely love to hear about it. Begur’s restaurant scene is always evolving, and that’s one of the reasons we never tire of coming back.
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