If your hotel is in Torremolinos, the lunch-or-dinner question decides where you eat. El Canarias is a beach bar on Plaza del Remo, on La Carihuela beach, that grills a sardine skewer for €8.00, but its kitchen runs only from 12:30 to 17:00. For dinner, Olas de Levante on Calle del Bulto 26 takes bookings, opens Tuesday to Sunday and fries a plate of anchovies for €10.00. In the town centre, El Dorado serves most of its menu as tapas from €4.50, 316 metres from the train station.
Where should you eat in Torremolinos? For sardines and fried fish at lunch, El Canarias on La Carihuela beach, with the skewer at €8.00. For a booked fish dinner, Olas de Levante, with fried fish plates from €10.00 to €15.00. For cheap tapas near the station, El Dorado on Calle del Peligro 2, from €4.50 a tapa.
La Carihuela is the old fishing quarter at the western end of the seafront, and the town centre sits around Calle San Miguel; the two are 1,734 metres apart in a straight line, more than 20 minutes on foot. Each has its own Cercanías station, so a guest staying in Málaga can come for dinner by train and be back at Málaga Centro-Alameda by 01:06.
When to eat on the sand and when to eat in town
The deciding fact is that the beach bar is lunch only: the kitchen at El Canarias runs from 12:30 to 17:00 and the place shuts at night, so any meal after 17:00 means a booked table at La Carihuela or tapas in the town centre.
Spanish meal times run late compared with the UK or Scandinavia: Zabor Fetén, in the town centre, does not open for dinner until 20:00 and serves until 24:00. The pattern across the province, and the three-hour gap between lunch and dinner, is explained in Malaga meal times.
What a fried fish lunch costs at La Carihuela
For sardines grilled on a skewer over embers, the place is El Canarias, known locally as espeto. Its menu lists the skewer at €8.00, a plate of fried anchovies at €13.00, fried squid at €16.50 and the mixed Málaga fried fish platter at €24.00. Tables are given out in order of arrival, and bread is €1.30.
| Dish | El Canarias, on the sand | Olas de Levante, booked table | El Dorado, town centre |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fried anchovies, full plate | €13.00 | €10.00 | €10.90, or €4.90 as a tapa |
| Fried squid, full plate | €16.50 | €15.00 | €10.90, or €4.90 as a tapa |
| Bread | €1.30 | €1.00 | not on the menu |
| Mixed paella for two | €35.00, ordered ahead | no mixed paella | €26.00, 25 to 35 minutes |
Paella at El Canarias has to be ordered ahead, for a minimum of 2 people, at €17.50 a head for the mixed one and €24.00 for seafood. Whole wild fish is sold by weight, from €60 a kilo for bream to €75 for red bream. To tell a good sardine skewer from a tired one, read Málaga sardine skewers.
Olas de Levante, on Calle del Bulto 26, 224 metres from El Canarias, is the bookable option, by WhatsApp or on +34 951 630 689. Its digital menu prices anchovies at €10.00, squid at €15.00 and red mullet at €14.00; rice dishes start at €14.00, or €26.00 with carabinero prawns. A small beer, a caña, is €2.20 and a pint €3.80. It opens Tuesday to Sunday; ask for the kitchen hours when you book.
Los Mellizos Casa Juan, on Calle San Ginés 20, suits a large party: several dining rooms, a big terrace on the square and rice cooked more than ten ways. Bookings go through its website or +34 952 373 512, and the prices are given at the table, since the website does not list them. More places for the classic fry-up are in where to eat fried fish in Málaga.
How ordering a tapa or a ración works at El Dorado
At El Dorado most dishes come in two sizes: a tapa, a small plate for one, and a ración, a full plate to share. Fried anchovies are €4.90 as a tapa and €10.90 as a ración; croquettes €5.50 and €11.90; Galician-style octopus €8.50 and €18.90.
Five tapas for two, anchovies, squid, Russian salad, croquettes and octopus, add up to €28.30 at El Dorado’s menu prices, which makes it the cheapest sit-down meal of the five. Paella serves 2 and takes 25 to 35 minutes, so order it first. The restaurant is on Calle del Peligro 2, 316 metres from Torremolinos station; book online or on +34 952 384 678 and ask for the opening hours then, because the website does not give them.
For a later, more modern evening, Zabor Fetén on Calle de la Cruz 10 serves creative tapas and cocktails, Tuesday to Sunday from 13:00 to 17:00 and from 20:00 to 24:00. Two Mexican-style croquettes cost €4.40 and a ham and cheese board for two €22.70. Which local dishes to order first is covered in what to eat in Málaga.
Which places have a menu in English
All five places publish an English menu. The El Canarias menu is printed in Spanish and English, El Dorado writes both languages on every line, and Olas de Levante and Zabor Fetén offer English and French versions, so ordering does not depend on speaking Spanish.
Where to eat with children in Torremolinos
With children, El Canarias has a menu for under-12s: a plain omelette for €7.00, eggs and chips for €9.00 and a cheeseburger for €12.00, served beside the sand. Of the five, it is the only one that does not take bookings at all. More family options are in kid-friendly restaurants in Málaga.
How to come from Málaga for dinner by train
The last Cercanías C1 train leaves Torremolinos station at 00:43 and reaches Málaga Centro-Alameda at 01:06, a 23-minute ride. Renfe’s timetable runs a train every 20 minutes until 22:43 and every 30 minutes after that. For a guest staying in Málaga, the evening works like this:
- Book the table first. Olas de Levante takes bookings by WhatsApp or on +34 951 630 689, Tuesday to Sunday; El Dorado on +34 952 384 678.
- Catch a C1 towards Fuengirola before 23:30. That is the last train from Málaga Centro-Alameda to Torremolinos.
- Get off at the right stop. Montemar Alto for La Carihuela, 642 to 733 metres from the fish restaurants; Torremolinos for El Dorado, 316 metres away.
- Leave the table in time. The last train to Málaga goes from Montemar Alto at 00:40 and from Torremolinos at 00:43. Which of the five Torremolinos stations suits which beach is set out in the train to Torremolinos, Benalmádena and Fuengirola, and the beaches themselves in Torremolinos beaches.
What might put you off
The beach bar does no dinners and takes no bookings, so a group of 8 turning up at 15:00 depends on free tables; its paella also needs ordering ahead. Olas de Levante closes on Monday and is a table in a street, 224 metres from the sand, not a beach terrace.
In town, rice at El Dorado is always for 2 and takes up to 35 minutes, and Zabor Fetén closes on Monday and cooks tartare and Mexican-style croquettes rather than Málaga fried fish. If you came for the old town rather than the food, see Torremolinos old town, and for eating in the city itself, where to eat in Málaga. Choosing a base among the three resorts on the C-1 line is covered in Fuengirola, Torremolinos or Benalmadena as a base.
Frequently asked questions about eating in Torremolinos
Is La Carihuela good for dinner?
Yes, but not at the beach bar. El Canarias on La Carihuela beach stops cooking at 17:00 and closes at night. For dinner, book Olas de Levante on Calle del Bulto 26, where fried anchovies are €10.00 a plate, or Los Mellizos Casa Juan on Calle San Ginés 20, which takes groups.
Do restaurants in Torremolinos have menus in English?
Yes, at these places: El Canarias prints its menu in Spanish and English, El Dorado writes every dish in both languages, Olas de Levante has an English and French menu, and Zabor Fetén offers English and French versions alongside the Spanish one.
What time do restaurants serve dinner in Torremolinos?
Later than in northern Europe. Zabor Fetén in the town centre opens for dinner at 20:00 and serves until 24:00, Tuesday to Sunday. The beach bar El Canarias does lunch only, with its kitchen open from 12:30 to 17:00, so an early dinner on the sand is not an option there.
How do I get from Málaga to La Carihuela by train?
Take the Cercanías C1 from Málaga Centro-Alameda towards Fuengirola and get off at Montemar Alto, the closest station to La Carihuela, 642 to 733 metres in a straight line from the three fish restaurants. The last train back to Málaga leaves Montemar Alto at 00:40.
How much is a beer at La Carihuela?
At Olas de Levante on Calle del Bulto 26, a caña, the small draught beer most Spaniards order, costs €2.20 and a pint €3.80, according to its menu. A jug of sangria is €18.00 and a glass of house Rioja €3.50, so a round for two with tapas stays cheap by northern European standards.
Where can I eat cheaply in Torremolinos?
At El Dorado on Calle del Peligro 2, where most dishes come as a tapa: fried anchovies for €4.90, Russian salad for €4.50 and croquettes for €5.50. Five tapas for two add up to €28.30. On the beach, the sardine skewer at El Canarias is €8.00.
Lunch belongs to the sand at La Carihuela; after 17:00, Torremolinos is a booked table or a tapa near the train.