In good weather, Galician cuisine is enjoyed on the beach.
That the water is cold? I'm not going to tell you no. Think that, in a straight line, if you are on the Galician coast you will be closer to Plymouth or Torquay than to Almería That sometimes there are clouds and it's cool? I'm not going to deny you either. It is the toll we pay for that green landscape and for the enormous luxury of sleeping, even in the middle of July, with a quilt on the bed.
Even so, if you dig a little beyond the clichés you will find that summer in Galicia can be very appealing and much more than just sun and sand. With more kilometers of coastline than you would be able to visit, surely you will find some cliff, some beach or some tiny port to your liking. The mountains rising a stone's throw from the coast, the pine forests that almost sink into the sea, those Atlantic Islands (Cíes, Ons, Salvora...) that are one of the jewels in the crown.
Fresh albariño with views of Bueu beach tastes much better.
And the beach bars. Because a beer on the terrace, while the sun sinks into the Atlantic, or a portion of squid with the sea wind refreshing the atmosphere are also part of our summer. Perhaps not as well known as in other parts of the Spanish coast, but just as appetizing. And even, If the day is not sunny, those windows overlooking the fog of the coast have their charm. It's just a matter of knowing how to find it.
RIA DE ALDÁN
More or less halfway between Vigo and Pontevedra, if we follow the coastline, there is this estuary which, in reality, is not an estuary. Welcome to Galicia.
Little frequented coves, impressive blue-green waters and what is surely the highest density of beach bars and bars on the coast appetizing from Galicia are concentrated here, in the little more than six kilometers that there are, jumping from sandbank to sandbank, between Menduiña and the Area Brava beach.
The terrace of the Menduiña Playa, overlooking the ruins of the old pier, is a good place to start if you are looking to combine the traditional offer with something else. Some steamed spits, for example. Or maybe a smoked sardine salad and organic sprouts.
The terrace of the Menduiña Playa, in the Aldán estuary.
One step away –here we could almost apply that of crossing the estuary from end to end jumping from beach bar to beach bar without stepping on the ground–, at the Chiringuito Areacova, the sunset accompanied by some chinchos (fried jurelitos) and a cold beer could well become one of the great memories of summer.
Shall we continue? Well, we continue: an empanada at the beach bar of San Xián, in Pinténs; some xoubas in Areiña, on the beach of Area Brava; some sardines at Bar El Muelle, with views of the port of Aldán and then, perhaps, a rice on the terrace of the restaurant O Con, in the port of Aldán, overlooking the rocks of the same town. I already told you that there was a choice.
RIVER OF PONTEVEDRA
If you have a name from the Galician coast on your mind, there are enough ballots for it to be in this area: Combarro, Sanxenxo, Portonovo, A Lanzada or, more recently and thanks to the tireless ambassador who is the journalist Xabier Fortes, also Lapamán. They sound like you, right?
Well, let's start on the south shore, stopping at the small beach of Beluso, to get to know a seafood classic in Galicia: the A Centoleira restaurant. Whatever you order here, quality is assured. So if you want to go a little beyond the cockles and mussels of any local and you want to explore other species (perhaps some barnacles, maybe some good diving knives...) this is your place.
In the Muiño Vello, In Lapamán, the gastronomic offer is brief. But I'm not going to deny that having a beer here, with your feet in the sand, in the shade of those huge trees, has its thing.
Terrace of the A Centoleira restaurant.
Already on the other shore, the Chiringuito Sinás, on the small cove of the same name, complements the classics of this type of premises with some more current-style tapas. presume to be the last place where the sun sets in the town of Raxó, which allows to extend the afternoons and, if necessary, also the nights, since the place serves drinks and from time to time has live music until dawn.
To finish the route through this estuary, it is worth finishing at El Náutico, in San Vicente. By the luxury that is having anything on your terrace on the beach, for the tradition that decades of success give it and, above all, because one believes that this tiny concert hall by the sea only exists in the movies until it gets here. There are many musicians who come for a performance in the summer and decide to extend their stay for the views, the good atmosphere and the tranquility.
And for those of us who are not musicians, the programming is one of the best of the estuaries. For this summer, among others, O'Funk'Ilo, Amparanoia, Wyoming & Los Insolventes, Tarque, Depedro, Juan Perro, Marlango, Coque Malla, Anni B Sweet, Mikel Erentxun, Dorian, Los Secretos, Delaporte...
Views of El Náutico, in San Vicente do Mar.
OR BEARD
The Serra do Barbanza is the one that separates the Arousa estuary of Muros and Noia; a slightly less touristic version than the southern regions, in which the gastronomic offer is also of interest.
Start, for example, with a portion of mussels at the Cabo de Cruz Náutico bar, right in the dock of the port with the largest discharge of this mollusk in Spain. Or, if you go in a group, order a good churrascada at O Jasafello (thanks for the tip, Tom. Nothing like having friends everywhere), a beach bar in the pine forest of A Illa beach, between A Pobra and Palmeira.
At Club Nautico Boiro, in Cabo de Cruz.
On the other side of the mountains, the great classic is, surely, the bar of the Hostal As Furnas, on the homonymous beach. You've seen it in the movie Mar Adentro and, if you were hooked on the Fariña series, you'll remember it as the bar where drug traffickers used to meet. But even if you're not too mythomaniac, a squid or octopus sandwich here, overlooking the sunset from its windows, is quite an experience. Or, if the wind allows it, ask for it to take it outside. Although there is no terrace, who needs it with rocks like this?
DEATH COAST
They say that the sunsets from the terrace of the Bar Playa de Lires are the best in Galicia. I don't know if it's true or not, but they are spectacular. An omelette with those views always tastes much better.
Further north, a stone's throw from the village of Barizo, is the Seiruga restaurant. It only opens during the summer months and has made a name for itself thanks to rice such as cuttlefish and wild asparagus, monkfish and shellfish or lobster broth . With that and some crabs from the Malpica fish market, for example, it is difficult for you to leave unhappy.
Spectacular sunset from the terrace of the Playa de Lires Bar, on the Costa da Morte.
Caión is an old whaling village that has now been converted into one of the most atmospheric towns in the area during the summer. Built on a peninsula between cliffs, it has had one of its flagship stores in the Café Asteria for 20 years.
It is not a beach bar in the strict sense, but a breakfast on that terrace overlooking the beach, a beer with its omelette skewer or perhaps, if necessary, a portion of raxo (sautéed loin with potatoes) is good for us to pass the time.
THE NORTH
To the north of Ferrol, where the Atlantic gradually becomes the Bay of Biscay, there are also plenty of options.
Casa Claudina, for example, at the foot of San Xurxo beach, It is famous for its fresh fish. Although if you are looking for a surfer atmosphere, your beach is Pantín and your stop to recharge your batteries, Las Olas. In winter, when the storm tightens, a portion of tripe resurrects a dead person. But the rest of the year some squid or a simple sandwich, such as roast beef with cheese, and a Galician Star fulfill their function very well.
Coelleira Island, in O Vicedo, one of those secret Galician places that no one wants to share.
O Vicedo, already in the Bay of Biscay, is one of the Galician 'covered' ones. One of those places with infinite beaches, coves with transparent waters (Google “Praia do Caolín” and go planning your next getaway) and also has a very nice beach bar in an area where these are not as common as in the Rías Baixas.
La Bodeguita del Puerto is already a classic. Low prices, friendly service and summer must-haves like sardines. Ask if they have a cockle omelette.
We finish the route at Casa Fanego, a traditional restaurant a stone's throw from the beach of San Román, near Viveiro. In this case we will not be stepping on the sand, but we will supply it with a menu of local cuisine and quality products: tuna roll, grilled sardines, tuna salad or Roman squid, served with freshly made chips.
Terrace-boat, in the Bodeguita del Puerto de O Vicedo.