Don Santiago Restorante — Restaurant in Fuengirola

POOR TREATMENT OF STAFF This review is not about the food, but how the owner treats the staff. 20th of May this year, we experienced excellent service from a very service minded young man. Suddenly we could see a change in the atmosphere, and a waiter who looked terribly sad and unhappy. In the following minutes we could see the female owner chatting with the waiter, and it was obvious that the conversation was about the table with us four guests. It was obvious that the waiter was reprimanded for something, and we could not see that there shuould be any reason at all to reprimand the waiter, from whom we received fantastic service.

We asked the waiter for the bill, and we guessed that he would not be allowed to come to our table with the bill. And we were right, because while the waiter was on his way to us with the bill, the owner took the bill from him to hand it to us by herself.

Then, the waiter immediately finished work and left the restaurant in a frustrated and sad state of mind. We asked the owner to explain what had happened. We were then told by the owner that "the waiter should have recommended us something to drink”, and that it was not the restaurant's policy to recommend something to the guests that the guests did not ask for themselves.

WHAT???

So, when customers ask for something to drink, which the restaurant don't have the raw materials to make, and when we as customers ask if the waiter can suggest something similar to drink, then this is perceived by the owner as if the waiter has pushed us /tried to get us to order more than we really wanted ourselves???

Even if the food at the restaurant would have been at Michelin quality (obviously it was not): treating the employees like that, we feel a moral duty to show disgust by such management and such treatment of staff. We told the owner that her version of the story was NOT correct and due to the owners behaviour we would never be coming back to this restaurant. The owner didn't even bother to be interested in hearing our side of the story, and just replied "That's fine with me", turned around and walked away from our table.

We were recommended this restaurant by a friend who regularly goes there to eat. Of course, we shared our experience to our friend who recommended us to go there. To our surprise, it turned out that our friend were not surprised by our experience at that restaurant. And I doubt our friend and family will visit that restaurant again and probably never recommend this...

This is a tricky one to rate. On one hand, the food we had at Don Santiago was genuinely good. Everything was well-presented, tasted delicious, and we had absolutely no complaints about the quality coming from the kitchen. Based on the food alone, this would be a much higher rating.

Unfortunately, the dining experience is about more than just the food, and this is where things became inconsistent. Our evening started off well. We were served by a young waitress who was pleasant, helpful, and attentive. She made a small mistake with our drinks order, but was immediately apologetic and offered to replace them. We were actually happy with what we received, so it wasn't a problem at all, but we appreciated her professional and friendly attitude. However, at some point during our meal, a different waitress took over our table, and the quality of service dropped dramatically. She was unfriendly, seemed completely disinterested, and gave us the distinct impression that our presence was an inconvenience to her. The shift in service was so noticeable that it soured the experience for us. We had planned to leave a tip for the excellent service from our first waitress, but ultimately decided against it because of the poor attitude of the second.

Combined with a general lack of atmosphere in the restaurant, the overall experience was just average. It's a real shame, as the kitchen is clearly producing high-quality food, but it's being let down by inconsistent front-of-house service. Your experience here could be great or poor, and it seems to entirely depend on which member of...

We came to Don Santiago for many years, but this year (September 2025) was for sure the last time.

We ordered: Garlic Bread with Mozzarella Penne Alfredo Pizza Barbacoa 2 House Red Wine

In the Garlic bread of my husband was a huge splinter of glass. Thank god nothing happened. Told the waitress about the incident. She reported this to her boss and he told her they are sorry, but no clue were it came from. Sadly I forgot to take a picture!

My Penne were soaked with pepper. Not really edible. Only got a shrug from the waitress when mentioned.

The red wine we ordered came fresh out the fridge. Not drinkable.

Summary: the chef never came to our table. We weren't offered a coffe nor a dessert. They were simply not interested in a...