Restaurante San Antonio — Restaurant in Los Alcázares

Oh dear where do I begin?

This place is an obvious tourist trap. I’m surprised the reviews on here actually give this place such a high rating. When we first came in it seemed busy enough - no problem with that, we received quick service, but abrupt is probably a better way of putting it. There were a number of waiters and each one seemed to cover multiple tables at the same time. Don’t expect a single waiter to take care of you, our first waiter took our drinks order, then another waiter ceremoniously slammed the drinks on our table and soon ran off. The menu seemed wonderfully varied and both Spanish and English was provided that helped. I ordered tapas and my partner ordered a mixed seafood dish. When our food arrived by a trio of waiters, I was surprised at how quickly the food came out. No way was this food prepared properly. I understand chefs need to do proper prep in a restaurant ie pre-cut the vegetables, prepare deserts in advance etc... but the way the food came out it was obviously either stewing there for ages or a microwave was used. My partner was happy with his food, as his was basically a pile of shrimp, mussels, small fish and onion rings. He commented that the fish was tasty but the onion rings were undercooked. My tapas was the worst I’ve ever had in Spain. The beef albondigas seemed to be the processed meat that usually comes out of a tin. The tomato sauce was like a soup with little square vegetables. It felt very 70s TV dinner inspired. My patatas bravas was similar, the potato’s would have made Aunt Bessie proud they looked like mini frozen roasts and were undercooked, raw in the middle. The tomato sauce didn’t have a natural colour. The vegetables I ordered were flavourless and boiled too long after probably coming again straight from the freezer. Now I’m not a terribly picky person but at the prices offered I could have saved money by shopping at Iceland (a English frozen food supermarket) and had the same taste.

Do yourself a favour. Look at the great views by the beach and then go to one of the better restaurants...

Honestly, walking up to the restaurant, I was filled with excitement and awe. It looked amazing and the view from the terrace was great. However, once walking into the restaurant and sitting down at the table, the waiters seemed very nonchalant in the way they asked for the order and brang out the food. We ordered the Anchovies, Jamón Ibérico Croquetas, Chopitos and the sizzling Garlic Prawns. The Croquetas came out first, they were amazing. Crispy on the outside yet soft and flavoursome on the inside, 8/10. Hope was instilled in to me, I thought this was going to be a great meal. Then the Anchovies came, they are one of my favourite picking foods ever but, these ones were hard and chewy, 5/10. Next was the Chopitos which came out chewy and cold, 4/10. Finally the Sizzling Garlic Prawns. Oh what a disappointment. The oil was tepid at best, meaning the garlic was raw and the prawns uncooked entirely. Taking one bite of the prawns, it was apparent tgat not only were they almost cold but the texture was god-awful, 2/10. They were the worst prawns I have ever eaten in my life. We left 80% of the Chopitos and all but 2 of the Prawns. Once the waiter came back for the food, he asked 'Did you not like the meal?' to which I replied no explaining what was wrong. The waiter just shrugged his shoulders and walked off. He came back with the bill and just dropped it on the table and once again walked off. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone who wants an authentic Spanish meal in...

One of the worst meals I've ever had. 2 stars because the croquetas were actually really good but otherwise the food was terrible.

Hoped for some decent tapas but patatas bravas were lukewarm and a bit soggy.

The meatballs came out totally cold. Sent them back and they returned swiftly after a quick zap in the microwave. Piping hot but with all the consistency and flavour of cheap tinned meatballs which the chef had tried their best to disguise by absolutely coating it in black pepper. Maybe I would've rated it higher if I was a cat but the texture of tinned cat food is not to my personal liking.

The prawns in garlic oil were more like prawns in garlic water; floating in some strange watery fluid with whole slices of raw garlic. Certainly not olive oil.

And then came the 'Murcian vegetables'. Finally some locally sourced food, surely. The only Murcian thing about these vegetables is that they were most likely from the frozen food section of the Murcia Makro. Literally just a bag of frozen vegetables emptied onto a plate. Once again the chef attempted to disguise this by coating it in salt. Wet, salty vegetables.

The staff were friendly enough but the whole experience was a bit sad and we paid €55 for the privilege.

Thankfully the restaurant is close to lots of public toilets which you'll probably need to visit on...