Chef Quique Dacosta holds three Michelin stars at his Dénia address, where Mediterranean ingredients become the medium for what he calls the eighth fine art. His signature Octavo tasting menu reinvents itself almost entirely each year, treating cuisine as a multisensory discipline that engages sight, sound, and memory alongside taste. For gastronomes seeking edible artistry on the Costa Blanca, this is the destination.
Alberto Ferruz runs his two-starred kitchen from a restored country house surrounded by landscaped gardens, sourcing fish directly from Alicante's Marina Alta and herbs foraged on the Montgó mountains. Each season brings a new thematic menu—choose between the nine-course Recuerdos or twelve-course El Viaje—both rooted in childhood memories and Mediterranean tradition. A destination for gastronomes seeking emotional, terroir-driven cooking.
Four decades of family tradition converge in chef Kiko Moya's two-Michelin-starred kitchen, perched in a villa on Montcabrer's slopes. His tasting menus — Sabor and Saboer — channel regional memory through dishes like freshwater rice with blue crab and eel, while the signature 'arroces al cuadrado' arrives in rectangular iron trays, oven-finished to crackling perfection. The modernized Potrota dessert with baked pear closes meals with rustic elegance.
Named for the iconic star of Breakfast at Tiffany's, this one-Michelin-star table showcases chef Rafa Soler's creative yet rooted approach to Valencian cuisine. Three tasting menus—Roots, Origin, and a vegetarian Farm—celebrate seasonal Mediterranean produce, while bread baked from a family recipe and house-bottled olive oil from thousand-year-old Traiguera trees add intimate, personal touches to each course.
Chef José Manuel Miguel holds a rare distinction: the only chef to earn Michelin stars in both France and Spain. At Beat, his contemporary cooking channels Mediterranean brightness through a refined French lens—think Normandy butter enriching coastal produce. The luminous white dining room amplifies the cuisine's clarity, while vegetarian and tasting menus offer structured alternatives to the à la carte. Currently closed for refurbishment.
Rimini-born chef Ferdinando Bernardi brings authentic Italian sensibility to the Costa Blanca at this one-Michelin-starred address above Benissa. His signature cuttlefish lasagna and carbonara enriched with mantis shrimp showcase meticulous pasta technique alongside seasonal Alicante ingredients sourced from local purveyors. Two tasting menus—Terreta and Casa Bernardi—unfold on a terrace with Mediterranean panoramas, rewarding the short drive from the coast.
Chef Susi Díaz draws on Alicante's culinary heritage at this one-Michelin-starred table outside Elche, where traditional recipes undergo constant reinvention through contemporary technique. Local fish and seafood anchor a menu finished with aromatic herbs and organic flowers from the kitchen garden. The rural farmhouse setting contrasts with sleek urban-contemporary interiors, while the Origen tasting menu showcases the chef's climate-conscious philosophy.
Perched above Calp with the dramatic Peñón de Ifach as backdrop, Orobianco delivers one-starred Italian-inflected cuisine under Paolo Casagrande's direction. The kitchen bridges Italy and the Spanish Mediterranean through dishes like cuttlefish tagliatelle and watercress risotto studded with red prawns, while spaghettoni in pil-pil sauce speaks to local tradition. Two tasting menus—Short and Long—frame an evening of precise, elegantly composed cooking.
Within the ancient stone walls of a twelfth-century Cistercian monastery, chef Miguel Ángel de la Cruz presents Castilian tradition through a contemporary lens. His tasting menus—Essentia and Centum—draw from an intensely local larder: garden vegetables, Canalejas de Peñafiel truffles, sustainably farmed prawns from Medina del Campo. The signature truffled egg yolk with crispy pork captures his philosophy: elegant simplicity rooted in terroir.
Chef Nazario Cano brings a fiercely personal vision to Italian contemporary cooking at this intimate dining room within the Ritual de Terra resort. His Mediterranean-rooted cuisine draws heavily on Marina Alta's seasonal produce, yielding unexpected creations like razor clam macaroni carbonara and lemon foie gras shortbread with butter brioche. Three tasting menus—Terra, Ritual, and Nazario Cano—allow guests to explore the full range of his inventive repertoire.
The coast divides into distinct zones. Dénia and Jávea in the north offer a more residential, Spanish feel with yacht harbors and rocky coves. Altea draws artists and has a preserved old town. Benidorm provides the full resort experience with two sweeping beaches. Further south, Alicante combines city amenities with the Postiguet beach and a historic quarter beneath the Santa Bárbara castle.
The region enjoys over 300 sunny days annually with mild winters rarely dropping below 10°C. Spring brings almond blossoms to the interior valleys, while September and October offer warm seas without peak summer crowds. The Hogueras de San Juan festival transforms Alicante each June with elaborate sculptures and fireworks.
Arroz a banda — rice cooked in fish stock, served with alioli — originated in these fishing villages. Cocas, flatbreads topped with peppers, tomato, or salted fish, appear in bakeries everywhere. The turrón from nearby Jijona is Spain's definitive almond nougat, produced there since medieval times. For seafood, the red prawns from Dénia are prized throughout the country.
Spain's eastern seaboard stretches from the rocky coves near Dénia down through Altea's whitewashed old quarter to the high-rise skyline of Benidorm and beyond. The Costa Blanca takes its name from the pale limestone cliffs and white sand beaches that catch the light along 200 kilometers of shoreline. Inland, the Serra de Bèrnia provides a dramatic backdrop, its peaks visible from rooftop pools and restaurant terraces throughout the region.
The dining scene here reflects centuries of fishing tradition and agricultural wealth from the surrounding huerta. Restaurants in Jávea's port serve rock fish and gambas pulled from morning catches, while Altea's hilltop streets hold intimate spots with views across the bay. Alicante itself offers everything from century-old tapas bars in the Barrio Santa Cruz to contemporary tasting menus. The local rice dishes — particularly the caldero from the Mar Menor influence and the arroz a banda traditional to this coast — rival any paella you'll find in Valencia.
