Besaya Beach belongs to a very select number of fine dining restaurants right on the beach of the Golden Mile. This combination of setting, service and excellent food says it all.
Picture stylish décor that blends the ambience of a restaurant with that of a sophisticated chill out lounge. Add the sound of waves breaking just a few metres away, attentive service and fine food, and you have the makings of something very special.
As a restaurant owner, you couldn’t wish for better ingredients, yet Besaya Beach not only lives up to its privileged location, it does it proud.
Situated at the western entrance to the Golden Mile, this exclusive beachside restaurant is both secluded and lively, for though it is set on a private stretch of beach, the nearby promenade allows for a gentle coming and going of strollers and joggers who ebb and flow like the rolling waves of the Mediterranean.
And it has to be stressed, location wise it doesn’t get much better than this – from within the elegant restaurant you look straight out across a beautiful expanse of sea.
Location and Occasion
Besaya Beach offers a sense of arrival, for as you cross its threshold you enter a world of relaxed beachside sophistication. Many choose to gather for a drink beneath the sails at its outdoor lounge and cocktail bar, and it’s a popular thing to do before continuing the meal inside.
In the winter, when the folding doors are closed, you are indeed inside with the amazing sea views, but as spring sets in and the breeze is free to play with the linen curtains you become one with this spectacular setting.
Not surprisingly, most people opt for a table near the windows that are now folded back, the better to take it all in. Up to this point Besaya Beach is an absolute winner and I’m glad to say that it doesn’t disappoint as a restaurant either.
Quite the contrary. If you can tear yourself away from the views you’ll find the classic menu is just the right size, offering a good selection of Spanish-Mediterranean and Asian-fusion dishes designed to perfectly match the setting.
So close to the sea, much of the offering is of course focused on fine fresh fish and seafood, but it is well thought out to also include a good deal of choice for meat lovers, vegetarians and children.
You can pop in for a stylish snack or lunch or do as we did and enjoy a memorable dinner by the sea. On a particularly balmy night we ordered a bottle of Enate 234, a refreshing chardonnay from the Somontano D.O. in Aragón.
Light and crisp for a chardonnay, it proved just right for the octopus carpaccio and assorted grilled Mediterranean vegetables we chose as starters. The former, by the way, comes with a lively passion fruit vinaigrette that adds a wonderful twist and does for the carpaccio de pulpo what lemon does for its beef equivalent.
Such light but beautifully prepared and presented dishes are just what you would wish for in a setting like this, and the portions are neither too small nor too big. The first can leave you cheated and quite frankly hungry, while the second creates a sense of waste or gluttony, but I think Besaya Beach gets it just right. This is also true of the main courses, although they were so delicious this gourmand could have easily found room for more.
I savoured the wonderful prime cut of steak dressed in herbs that you finish off on the hot stone to your own preference. Hot, full of flavour and accompanied by colourful vegetables, it becomes clear why this is one of the restaurant’s favourite dishes.
But this wouldn’t be a quality seaside restaurant if the fish wasn’t also excellent, so not surprisingly the wild Alaska salmon tataki was deliciously succulent and tasty too.
The chef is right not to put Texan steakhouse portions on the table, as after this highlight you still have space for one of the tempting offerings on the dessert menu. Having changed my mind several times, I finally settled on a lemon and lime Semi-freddo with a raspberry coulis, while my companion chose a cheese platter with membrillo quince.
Once more the standard was upheld, and we left this fine dining venue on the Golden Mile beach very contented. In many ways Besaya Beach is the perfect Marbella summer restaurant.
Words Michel Cruz Photography courtesy of Kevin Horn
Urb. Coral Beach, Km 176, Marbella. Tel: 952 777 299.