3 Best Restaurants in Extremadura, Spain

This jaw-droppingly elegant award-winning restaurant and hotel, housed in a medieval building redesigned by star architect Mansilla + Tuñón, is the crown jewel of Extremaduran hospitality. The ground-floor restaurant specializes in refined contemporary cooking, and the menu changes according to what's in season in chef Toño Pérez's private garden. Venison, partridge, Iberian pork, wild mushrooms, and truffles are recurrent themes. The round wine cellar in the basement is an architectural marvel with a backlit Château d'Yquem "temple" that was the site of a 2021 heist that made international news (the culprits who stole some $2 million in wine remain elusive). There are 14 drool-worthy high-design hotel rooms above the restaurant as well as a rooftop pool; 11 suites were added in 2020 to the tune of €2.6 million with an even costlier expansion—into the 16th-century Casa Palacio Paredes Saavedra across the square—just this year. 

Locals will point you here for fresh, reasonably priced tapas and mains including croquetas (try the wild mushroom rendition) and secreto ibérico (seared Iberian pork shoulder steak). The weekday lunch menú del día—three courses plus wine—is a steal.

Alberca's two-story stone dining room boasts a comfortable minimalist design and a fire-focused menu. Most dishes get some time on the grill, even the local goat cheese with ash and apple. The oxtail croquettes are truly exceptional as well, whether you find them in the tasting menu or order a-la-carte. And the grilled, smoky take on the torrija, a rich Spanish-style French toast, is beyond memorable.