La Taberna del Gourmet in Alicante: An Honest Review (2026)
An honest, fact-checked look at this Alicante old town institution, compared with Casa Del Mar in Torrevieja.
La Taberna del Gourmet: is it worth the hype?
If you've spent any time in Alicante's old town, you've walked past La Taberna del Gourmet. It's right on Calle San Fernando, in the middle of everything. This place has been going for over two decades and it shows. It knows exactly what it is, and it hasn't needed to reinvent itself to stay busy.
The idea is simple: traditional Spanish cooking with a gourmet twist. Think tapas and regional dishes done a bit more carefully than you'd get at a basic bar. The room is cozy and rustic. It feels like an old town spot, not a tourist trap dressed up to look like one. That distinction matters more than people think when you're picking somewhere to eat in a part of town that's full of places chasing passing foot traffic instead of repeat customers.
The numbers back it up
A Google rating of 4.4 from 7,077 reviews is a big deal. That's not a handful of friends leaving five stars. That's thousands of people, over years, landing on "this is good." When a place pulls in that many reviews and stays above 4, you can trust that average more than you'd trust a spot with twenty reviews. Two decades of consistency and a rating that hasn't slipped is the kind of track record you can't fake with a marketing budget.
How it compares: Casa Del Mar in Torrevieja
Casa Del Mar in Torrevieja is a different kind of place. It's small and intimate, with a seaside feel, more like eating at a friend's place near the coast. It sits away from the busier restaurant strips, which some people will love and others will find inconvenient if they want options within walking distance.
Casa Del Mar holds a 5.0 rating, but that's from just 3 reviews. Worth being honest about that. A perfect score from three people tells you those three people had a great time. It doesn't tell you much else yet. La Taberna del Gourmet's 4.4 from over 7,000 reviews is the more reliable number if you're deciding where to book tonight.
Which one should you pick?
Want a proven old town spot with a long track record? Go to La Taberna del Gourmet. Want something smaller and quieter down in Torrevieja and don't mind the trip? Casa Del Mar is worth a look, just go in knowing the review count is tiny.
Who each place actually suits
If you want one solid, no-argument choice for dinner in Alicante's old town, La Taberna del Gourmet is the easy pick. You're not gambling on a place nobody's tried. Thousands of people already have, and that number keeps climbing. It's a good option if you're new to the city, hosting visitors, or just don't want to overthink where to eat tonight.
If you're the type who likes finding places before anyone else does, Casa Del Mar fits that mood better. Just go in knowing you're relying on a much smaller sample size than you get with a place rated over 7,000 times. Neither approach is wrong. It depends on whether you want certainty or you want to take a chance on something quieter.
Looking for more solid places to eat in the area? Check out Best Wine Bars and Cocktail Spots in Alicante (2026) or Where to Eat and Drink in Playa de San Juan (2026).