El Mercader — Restaurant in Granada

This is not a typical review, as minimum rating is not for food or service, but for food poisoning. I will write everything in detail. I have been to this restaurant exactly two weeks ago. It was supposedly the best restaurant in Granada (according to Trip Advisor) so I booked a place for two, and went there for a lunch with my wife. As for food, it was really good, really tasty, and if it was just for the taste I would give it five points. Service was also good, very polite, nice, I just can´t say anything else. So, I wanted to give it top score on trip advisor at the moment I was there, but as we had some vine I was really in a good mood, I didn´t care much about this and didn´t do it immediately. So, that night we both got stomach problems, caused by food poisoning. First it was me than it was my wife who had milder sympthoms. But as for me, I felt like I was going to die that night of all the stomach pain and throwing up. Next day I was also the whole day in the house, as I couldn´t go far away from the toilet - not to go further into details :) Anyway, as I was on a business trip for three days, and my wife and kids were in Granada, and this was the first meal we had together in couple of days, I made conclusion that the only possible chance is that we got food poisoning from that restaurant. I didn´t want to think about it at first, but that is really the only logical conclusion. Furthermore, as we shared three different meals, I made conclusion that food poisoning was from beef entrecot, which was very rare in my case, and very well done in her case - I made this conclusion because she had much milder symptoms. So, that is it. I am sorry to say something like this because food and service were really good, but every word I said is nothing but the pure truth. By the way, I wrote similar story on tripadvisor, but I have seen that they haven´t published it for two weeks (whatever might be the reason) so I wrote it again here, because I just must say it, I just feel responsible to say it, because of all the other people that might end up just like me. So, that is it, it is up to you to make a decision, I just wanted to tell to everyone what...

Reinventing traditional Spanish recipes: this remarkable restaurant, with a tiny dining room, has quickly become our favorite in Granada. Here is how to deal with it wonderful quirks:

The recipes on the menu all reinvent a classical recipe, most if the time Spanish, but sometimes I. The recipes present a combination of textures and tastes with lovely balance and unexpected touches, for us always a delightful discovery: we always try to convince the friends we take there to order different dishes so we can all taste everything!

The owner and his wife, the chef, change the menu every few months. A few mainstays remain, but the rest rotates: we love trying everything new. In addition to the menu, there are also dishes and deserts of the day, which we have always found interesting to try!

Because the place is so small, it can be a challenge to get reservations (the place is almost always booked same day). What he have found us best is to walk over when the restaurant is open, and simply ask when there are openings :-)

We have been told a few times that the owner can be brusque. We are foodies, and found the truth to be quite the contrary: he is a foodie also, and really enjoys discussing his recipes and why they work. Every time we have been there we have had a delightful experience and our discussions with the owner and his wife have been fascinating.

Our guests always find the menu to have too many attractive choices. We have found the owner's suggestions to be excellent, both to pick a good menu and to pair it with local wines, surprising in their range and quality. Our preference, in general, has been for Spanish recipes, but we have also really enjoyed others.

El Mercader is our to-go place in Granada. I am almost hesitant to recommend it because I don't want to attract even more...

Amazing food and wine, paired with lovely service. Run by a husband and wife - just the two of them. Hence the small number of tables, but they manage it really well. My boyfriend doesn't speak Spanish so the owner kindly described everything in perfect English to us.

Nice that you can share all courses if you want and they'll bring them out one at a time. We were served a complimentary amuse bouche of creamed peas & mint with "salmon pudding" which was delicious and delicate. It amazes me how they made the salmon mousse into cubes!

For our starter we had the apple and goats cheese "millefeuille" (though it's more like a tower). It had so much flavour and was quite sweet for a dessert but the goats cheese balanced it out nicely.

We then had the cinnamon marinated boar with chestnut puree, quince jam, crispy kale and sweet potatoes. A delicious dish with beautifully cooked meat (medium rare) and delicate accompaniments.

The second main was the deer lasagne in a bechamel sauce. It had just one lasagne sheet but I like that it wasn't too pasta heavy.

Finally we finished with the marinated pineapples, which was like having a pineapple carpaccio! Loved the spice of the cardamom and the slightly bitter almond ice cream. So unique.

Le Gardeta Syrah is a lovely wine to have with it all!

Highly recommended and you should definitely book ahead of time. They only accept telephone bookings from 1100-1400...