If you are happy to go for an ever so slightly hairy drive into the hills that are Sierra Cabrera, you couldn’t find a more charming gem than this fantastic restaurant. It nestles in a dip high up in the Cabrera’s, near the town of Turre. The influence of course, is Moroccan and is where Fatima herself hails from. The restaurant is absolutely beautiful – a fabulous terrace to dine or have drinks on in the warm summer and early autumn nights and an intimate bar inside with stunning Moorish tiling for when the evenings are no longer warm enough to be outside. The huge inside dining rooms are immaculate and stylish and would make a magnificent venue for any party, whether it is a formal wedding reception or a special birthday or anniversary do. So all of that without even mentioning the food!
The view onto the terrace from the restaurant
Well, you need a good twenty minutes and a large gin and tonic (served in a wonderful goblet) to study the extensive and inventive menu. It is a joy to read and very hard to decide what to choose and in fact, when deciding, you are in your mind already planning your next visit!
To start you have to select one of about twenty six – no mean feat! Duck foie with blackberry sauce and sweet wine jelly does it for me (but among other things you could have Spanish ham and melon, anchovies, fresh marinated tuna tartare with wasabi sauce, ostrich pate, various delicious sounding salads, prawns, risottos, fresh pasta with pear and cheese….. I could go on.
The beautiful terrace
The house specialities consist of various delicious tagines (lamb, chicken, venison and vegetable), several different types of cous cous, fish pie with Moroccan herbs and spices, confit of duck cooked in onion oil, cinnamon, lemon and honey to name a few.
Then there are the most delicious meat and fish dishes, including suckling pig with mashed apple, lots of beef choices and roast leg of young goat with cous cous. There is fish for every taste, red tuna rolled in sesame with teriyaki sauce, grilled hake, cod, or tuna and prawn kebab.
There is separate dessert menu, if you manage to get that far. I am sure you have gathered that this is a high end restaurant but still offers fantastic value for money.
The service is warm and welcoming and I guarantee you will want to go back again.
Go for lunch if you are scared of driving in the dark, but do go – you won’t be disappointed.
Riad Cabrera telephone number: 950 092 042
Yummy Almeria 
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