Enxebre A Pinta, at the Parador de Baiona

A tavern inside the wall

Enxebre A Pinta is the informal restaurant of the Parador de Baiona and is inside the Monterreal fortress, the walled peninsula that closes the bay to the west. "Enxebre" means something like authentic, of the land, in Galician, and A Pinta is the caravel that reached Baiona in 1493 with the news of the discovery of America. The atmosphere is seafaring and the cooking is Galician: local fish and shellfish and Galician veal, in portions meant for sharing. You do not need to stay at the Parador to eat here.

The grounds are entered through the Clock Tower, the gate of the wall. Turismo Rías Baixas gives hours of 8:00 to 21:00 for the grounds, and the Parador's outdoor parking is free.

Harbour portions

What the menu highlights, according to Paradores:

• Pulpo á feira, with oil and paprika.
• Empanada from the Parador's own bakery.
• Galician cheeses.
• Zamburiñas á grella, grilled.
• Baked scallops.

For a long, more formal meal, the Parador has another restaurant, Torre del Príncipe, with its own menu.

Daily in summer, weekends in winter

According to the Paradores page, in summer it opens every day. The rest of the year it opens Saturday at midday and in the evening and Sunday at midday: lunches from 13:30 to 16:00 and Saturday dinner from 21:00 to 23:00. On weekdays outside summer, therefore, there is no service. We have not been able to check the hours again on 13 November: call beforehand on 986 355 000, which is also the number for booking, or write to [email protected].

With the Cíes opposite

From Monterreal you see the whole Bay of Baiona and, in the distance, the Cíes Islands. Before lunch, the Monte Boi walk circles the base of the wall on the outside for almost two kilometres. In summer, from Baiona harbour, on foot from the fortress, the boat to the Cíes Islands sails. And if the islands' quota is full, the day on the Ría de Vigo with mussel rafts and oysters ends here with a Saturday dinner.