The 10 BEST Restaurants in Playa del Ingles, Gran Canaria

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Are you heading to the Playa del Ingles or Maspalomas area in Gran Canaria and wondering where to eat? You’re not alone. With so many tourists visiting the area all year around (it is the warmest “part” of Europe in the winter, after all), a lot of people find themselves looking for the best Playa del Ingles restaurants by googling ‘restaurant Playa del Ingles’.

Playa del Ingles and Maspalomas are both very close to each other, and if you are visiting one of the two cities, the restaurants and places to eat in both places are available to you. The area has some of the best restaurants in Gran Canaria, and in this guide, you’ll find all of my favourite restaurants in Playa del Ingles!

Amongst all the great things to do in Maspalomas and Playa del Ingles, finding the best place for some ice cold sangria and fresh seafood might be a forgotten priority. But with so many Playa del Ingles restaurants popping up all over the place, it’s good to know which to avoid and which to book a table at!

I have visited Gran Canaria several times (it is a Scandinavian hot-spot, after all), and most recently in the spring with a group of friends.

On this last trip, we made it our mission to try as many different restaurants as we could in the week we spent in Playa del Ingles. And then I decided to put them all together in this Playa del Ingles and Maspalomas restaurants guide (again, I am kind of covering both areas as they are located so close to each other).

I will admit, however, that there are a couple of restaurants on this list that we revisited after our first dining experience there; they were just too good!

Playa del Inglés and Maspalomas Restaurant Guide

Below I share all the restaurants in Playa del Inglés and Maspalomas that I ate at during our trip, including my thoughts on the food, service, and place in general. I tried to take photos of the food in all the restaurants, but do bear with me and my food photography. There’s a reason people have to take classes for it.

So, without further ado (and in no particular order – even though they are numbered), I give you an overview of some of the great Playa del Ingles and Maspalomas restaurants that I ate at during my trip!

#1 Restaurante OK

On our first night in Playa del Inglés we ended up eating at Restaurante OK. They had a cozy atmosphere, and every single one of us opted for the pizza. I strongly recommend ‘The Cheesy One’, which is basically a Quattro Formaggio Pizza (4 kinds of cheese).

This restaurant also had gluten-free beer and an option to have a gluten free base for their pizza, which is a great plus.

Price wise this restaurant was great value, with a glass of wine, water and a pizza ending up at €22,50 (and a beer and a pizza being €16,50).

You can dedfinitely find cheaper restaurants in Playa del Ingles, but you can also find ones that are more expensive. The value at Restaurant OK was great, and so was the service. It was very busy on the night we visited, and the waiter made sure to let us know that there was a bit of a wait time for the pizzas, which was not a problem at all for us.

#2 Den Danske Kro

Den Danske Kro is a Danish bar found in one of the upper floors of the popular Yumbo center in Playa del Inglés. We didn’t actually eat here, but I feel as if it is worth a mention as we did spend an evening there for drinks. The place overlooks the main square of the Yumbo Center, and is a great place for people watching!

#3 Restaurante Reno

This was one of very few Maspalomas restaurants that we actually visited several times during our stay.

We ended up having lunch here twice, and dinner once (simply because we were exhausted after a long day in the sun and wanted to dine somewhere we knew that we’d get great food and good service).

My favourite thing about this restaurant is that when my iPhone died they went out of their way to find me a charger. For a blogger wanting to share every minute of my trip on Instagram stories, this was greatly appreciated, haha.

Another side note I’d like to add is that Restaurant Reno had amazing sangria. So I strongly recommend to get a pitcher/jug for the table. There is nothing better than sharing sangria under the Spanish sun with your friends.

Since we ate at this restaurant in Playa del Ingles several times, we got to sample quite a variety of their food. And they do have quite the variety. From tex-mex to pasta, they offer some great choices without having so many things to chose from that it removes the quality of the food. I usually find that when a restaurant has 100 different items on their menu, they tend to not specialise in anything. But Reno wasn’t anything like this.

In the photos below you’ll see the above-mentioned sangria (just get it), their chicken with mushroom sauce, the tex-mex mix (which is a selection of snacks and dips with a tex-mex theme), and their spinach and cream ravioli. All equally yummy, and all recommendeded.

So if you are looking for a restaurant in the Playa del Ingles/Maspalomas area, don’t miss Restaurant Reno!

#4 El Churrasco Argentino

Ready for some Argentinian food? Because that’s what you get at El Churrasco Argentino. Literally translated to ‘The Argentinian Steak’, this restaurant Playa del Ingles prides itself on their gret steak and meat dishes. And my friends and I can definitely vouch for it.

The service at this restaurant was great, and they went out of their way to make sure that one of my friends were offered something gluten free to drink. Even if that meant running across the street to buy gluten free beer!

Their concept is great, and simple to understand. Basically, you chose from several meats (with vegetables), then pick your sauce and sides. Everything is priced separately, so it is quite easy to stay in control of your spending. I ordered the grilled chicken breast, with a roquefort sauce and potatoes, in addition to the vegetables that came with the chicken. My total ended at €15, which is not too bad for such a great meal!

My friend Ida ordered the fish in banana leaves, and we were all quite excited when the waiter brought it our and proceeded to unwrap the fish in front of us!

#5 Aloha Hamburger Bar

Next on the list is another one of our favourite Maspalomas restaurants! We randomly ended up at Aloha Hamburger Bar one day when we just wanted something to drink, and loved the place so much we decided to head back later in the week to try their food.

From the name alone, you can guess that they specialise in hamburgers, and trust me when I say that they did not disappoint. One of my friends actually stated that it was one of the best burgers she had ever eaten, and she wasn’t exaggerating. Their sides were also to die for, and we tried both the chili cheese bites and their parmesan fries (so yummy!). The sangria was also amazing, and don’t forget to try one of their fun freak shakes (see the photo below).

Aloha Hamburger bar is located a stone’s throw away from the Yumbo center, which makes for a little quieter atmosphere. Thus, it is a great place to eat if you just want to enjoy great food and a fun time without the crowds.

I also want to give a shoutout to Aloha for their cool interior! As you may know, I have done my best to decorate my own apartment in a bit of a tropical/travel themed way (head this way to see some great travel home decor items), and so this place was right down my street!

#6 Restaurante Italia

Can you tell that we enjoy our Italian food?

We headed to Restaurante Italia after I had spent the day diving in Gran Canaria, so you can bet I was hungry and ready for a great meal. This restaurant is located on the corner of Av. de Tirajana and Av. de Francia, and it is a great, quieter area in Playa del Inglés.

As you can guess from the name, they serve Italian food, and have lots of options for pasta. I love this, because most Italian restaurants tend to only serve a large varieties of pizza, with just a few pasta options (lasagne and spagetti bolognese, anyone?).

Here, they had so many options I struggled to chose one! Restaurante Italia also has fresh fish, and my friend opted for the fish of the day.

#7 Hotel Sahara Playa Buffet

This one is a little unusual, as it is not your usual restaurant. Hotel Sahara Playa is located a 2-minute walk from the beach in Playa del Inglés, and serve both a lunch buffet and a dinner buffet that are quite affordable (I believe the dinner buffet was €13,5 per person when we visited).

I wanted to include it on this list of restaurants in Playa del Inglés because it is a great idea for lunch or dinner after a long day on the beach! Since it is so close, you can simply pack up your beach towels and book, and head up to the buffet. The food was good, and definitely worth it when all you want is to eat and crash back at the hotel.

#8 Ristorante Il Sapore Italiano Da Savino

With such a long name you’d expect this to be a super fancy restaurant, right? But Il Sapore Italiano was surprisingly down-to-earth, with great food and super friendly staff. The restaurant is located on the same street as Aloha Hamburger Bar, which I have covered above.

We enjoyed a quick dinner here, and most of us opted for different pizzas. In the photo below you’ll see the Quattro Stagione, with 4 different kinds of meat. Definitely worth a visit if you are in Gran Canaria!

#9 La Sirena

Another restaurant located super close to the beach in Playa del Ingles is La Sirena. We ate lunch here on our last day, and found that they had some great options ensuring that everyone found something they wanted. It was quite nice sitting so close to the sand dunes, and looking out over them.

Side note: The Maspalomas Sand Dunes are mentioned in this post as a must-see attraction in the area.

In general, I don’t love it when restaurants include photos of their food on the menus, as I find it to add a bit of a ‘cheap’ vibe to the place. But, La Sirena took us by surprise, and we were all very happy with the food we ordered. And location wise it was just great!

#10 Garbo’s Dinner Show

I also want to mention the Garbo’s Dinner Show in this post, even though it is more of an activity than a restaurant. We booked our tickets for the show before our trip to Gran Canaria (it is recommended to book in advance on their website), and it was one of the highlights of our trip.

Basically, at Garbo’s you are served a 3-course meal (ours consisted of a creamy vegetable soup, chicken stuffed with feta cheese and a 3-layer chocolate mousse), whilst the waiters perform a spectacular show on the stage (and around you). If you are looking for a restaurant in Playa del Ingles or are having difficulty choosing between all the Maspalomas restaurants, I strongly advice you to pick this one!

Summing up the Restaurant Playa del Inglés Guide

In short, there are countless of restaurants in Maspalomas and Playa del Ingles for you to chose from, and these are just a few of the ones that I visited and feel like I can vouch for. Food-wise, you’ll find everything you need in the area, from Burger King to gourmet steaks. Regardless of your preference, both you and your (gluten-free) friends will be fine.

I hope you’ll bookmark this post for your trip to Gran Canaria, and pin it for others to find on Pinterest! I know you’ll have a great time!