Best Restaurants on the Arenal, Jávea

Caramel et Chocolat, on Avenida del Arenal just back from the sand, opens at 8am and runs the best pastry case on the strip - filled baguettes big enough to split, and a warm brie-and-jamón version regulars order by name. Be clear-eyed about the coffee itself: it comes from a capsule machine, not a barista station, so treat this as a bakery stop rather than a coffee destination.

Chabada, right on the sand at Paseo Amanecer, opens for breakfast at the same hour and stays loud through the day - British breakfast plates, fresh tostadas, smoothies, and salsa on the speakers by lunchtime. Sit on the beach-facing terrace and order for the view, not the espresso.

For a sit-down family lunch, two addresses on Paseo Amanecer have served paella since before the promenade had a name for tourists. La Fontana has specialised in paella and fideuà since 1963 and still runs a proper family setup: high chairs, big shared tables, and no pressure to turn the table over fast. A few doors along, Posidonia covers the same Valencian rice dishes plus fresh fish and tapas, useful if not everyone in the group wants paella that day.

Both kitchens need a minimum of two people for rice orders - standard practice on this coast - and both fill up by 2pm on weekends. Book ahead, or get there by 1.

La Perla de Jávea, at Avenida de la Llibertat 21, sits directly on the seafront with a sunset-facing terrace and a Michelin Plate for both 2024 and 2025. It has been run by the same family since 1984, and the reason to go is the fish: whatever came off the boat at the Jávea auction that morning, plus rice and fideuà dishes built for two, at a mid-range €€ price point. Ask for a window table and book at least a few days ahead in season - walk-ins do get seated, but not at sunset.

One street back at Avenida de la Llibertat 36, Tula is smaller and far harder to get into. The dining room seats around five tables, the Michelin star arrived in 2024, and the full menu changes twice a year around whatever the couple running the kitchen find at the market that week. The seven-course tasting menu runs about EUR 68 a head, or order half-portions à la carte and build your own spread - ask if the shisho-leaf taco with smoked eel is on. Book three to four weeks out, longer for summer weekends; this is not a table you find free on the night.

Three more worth the walk. Lungo Mare, at Avenida de la Llibertat 13, does Italian - pasta, pizza, whole fish - inside a dining room styled after an old fisherman's workshop, right on the sand; book ahead for a terrace table. Buddha Palace, a short walk back from the beach near the Jávea tennis club, serves Nepalese and Indian food and regularly ranks among the top two or three restaurants in town on TripAdvisor - a real change of pace after a week of rice dishes. Bohemians, at Avenida de Ultramar 2, mixes French and Spanish cooking with sea views and a weekday lunch menu around EUR 24 for three courses; the à la carte bread costs extra, so ask before it lands on the table.

Check opening hours before you walk over. Kitchens on the Arenal shift with the season, and a handful close for a break in January.