Arco de la Villa Hotel Restaurant

The place

The dining room of the Hotel Arco de la Villa, run by Tugasa, in the historic centre of Zahara de la Sierra. On the Tugasa website and on its menu it appears under the name El Peñón de Zahara restaurant. It stands at the foot of the Nasrid castle, in a building set into the rock, and its dining room has large windows looking onto the Zahara-El Gastor reservoir and the sierra: it is, above all, a viewpoint where you eat.

The cooking starts from the traditional recipes of the sierra, with local produce: Payoya goat and Merino sheep cheeses from Grazalema, game, lamb, Iberian pork, mushrooms and seasonal vegetables.

What to order

The restaurant's menu is published with prices. To start, the board of Payoya and Merino cheeses (€17), the wild green asparagus sautéed with garlic and Iberian ham (€12.45) or the little casserole of mushrooms with four cheeses (€12.45). The Villa soup, with rice, egg, fried bread and Iberian ham (€5.75), carries the house name; there is also ajoblanco and salmorejo with ham shavings.

Game is the most mountain-style part of the menu: venison meatballs, stewed venison, wild boar stew and wild boar chops, all between €13.45 and €14.45. There are also Iberian pork cheek in sauce, Iberian presa cut (€19), Retinta beef entrecôte (€22) and oxtail (€19), which is also served in lasagne. For fish, hake with prawn sauce or swordfish. The Tugasa website highlights as specialities the fried aubergines with cane honey and the venison and wild boar stews.

For dessert, tocino de cielo, cheesecake or flan de la Villa, at about €5, with a muscatel or a Pedro Ximénez from Jerez. The bread and breadsticks service is charged at €1.50 per person. They also have a café menu, handy for a coffee or something light on the way down from the castle.

When to go

It is the natural stop after climbing to the castle on the walk around Zahara de la Sierra, or before crossing to Grazalema by the Palomas pass road. If you have been down the Garganta Verde, it makes a good lunch on the way back.

Tugasa does not publish the opening hours. Book on 956 12 32 30 or with the booking button on its website; ask for a table by the window.