Local bars and restaurants

Generally bars in rural Spain are open from around 8:30 am until midnight, or later if they have clients to warrant it.  They all serve coffee, as well as alcohol, and most serve at least a minimum selection of tapas.  Restaurants tend not to start serving evening meals until 9 pm.  Most bars serve food as well as drinks but, when there is not a restaurant, the menu is usually very restricted and serving times may vary.

The bar at the top of the lane from the house, Los Caminos, is excellent for drinks and tapas.

100 metres further down the road to Iznajar is Bar/Restaurant El Montesillo.  The inside is basic but the food is good and reasonably priced.  There is a small restaurant area at the back and a new, more comfortable restaurant area at the side.

Past the two bridges at Iznajar and on up the hill towards Rute is the restaurant "El Charcon" which has a turret, looking a bit like a small castle.  The steaks, with either the pepper sauce or the roquefort sauce, are superb.

Some of our visitors have highly rated the bar Meson la Boega in Iznajar.  Their tapas are very good.  It can be found half way up the hill in the centre of Iznajar.

Venta Asador “Los Tres Pollos” (about 5 mins away), just before Salinas, serves a reasonable meal and has a lovely setting (view from the terrace is shown on the right).

A number of new bars and restaurants have recently opened in Salinas where previously there was only the café/bar "Mejias" which we have tried only for coffee.  Restaurante Casa Manolo was very good when we visited, rivalling the restaurants in Riofrio for price, quality of food and friendliness.  Their tapas are also excellent despite being served for no extra charge on top of the price of your drink!

Riofrio (approximately 15 mins away) has a number of very good restaurants, particularly for fish.  We have tried a few, as have a number of our visitors ... everyone has given good reports on any restaurant they have tried in Riofrio.  Meson Alazor (shown on the left) is probably the best of the those we have tried so far for both food quality, ambience and value.  Paco Rama is also very good but a little pricier.  Los Fernandez serves a very acceptable meal on a Monday night when most restaurants seem to be closed. 

There are many restaurants in Antequera (around 25 mins away), two memorable visits have been to Madrona, at the bottom of the town, and the restaurant on the square near the big church at the top of the hill (Santa Maria), El Escribano.  

If you go shopping in Loja, do take the country route back to the house (signposted to Iznajar) rather than the motorway.  Not only are there stunning views of the lake but Bar Pepe, about half way between Loja and the house, serves wonderful tapas.

There is a pin board in the kitchen where we are asking people to pin the business cards of restaurants they visit, with a quick comment on the back, so that others may benefit from their experience too!