Chef by Divot — Restaurant in Marbella

Great food, but incompetent and insensitive service

The food itself — especially the veal chop and guacamole — was excellent, but the experience was completely overshadowed by the service, which was both disorganized and indifferent.

I ordered a starter (potato foam) and a veal chop as the main course. After 30 minutes, an unfriendly waitress informed us that the starter wasn’t available. I found it unacceptable that it took half an hour just to learn this. I then switched to guacamole as a replacement starter. Three minutes later, however, the main course — the veal chop — arrived.

It was supposed to come with a mixed salad on the side, but instead, they served grilled vegetables. When I asked whether that was the mixed salad, the waiter insisted, “Yes, this is the mixed salad” — seriously. When I pointed out that it was warm and clearly not a salad, he just walked away. Another waitress later understood the issue and replaced it with the actual mixed salad.

By then, we had the veal chop sitting alone on the plate, no salad, and no starter beforehand. The mixed salad arrived after the veal was already eaten — and only then, shortly after, the guacamole appeared, long past when a starter made sense.

Frustrated, I asked for the bill and mentioned that given all these mishaps, they could at least offer a small gesture — a coffee or a digestif — or adjust the bill. They brought a “corrected” bill, but nothing had changed except that the grilled vegetables were replaced by the same-priced mixed salad.

This is simply not acceptable. I understand this isn’t a Michelin-star restaurant, and I didn’t expect it to be, but the service staff seemed clueless and indifferent throughout.

It’s a real shame, because the kitchen clearly produces excellent food — yet the experience was ruined by poor service. Sadly, I cannot...

Last night, we decided to dine at the new restaurant Chef by Divot with our two families (9 adults) and we were so pleased with the entire experience. We were greeted with a very large smile and seated on the well lit terrace and rapidly 9 fresh glasses of cava were brought to the table. Was a great way to start the viewing of the menu.

Menu has a really nice variety of starters and reasonably priced. We then ordered a huge tomahawk steak, 2 picanhas and 1 filet mignon along with several sides of vegetables and Mac and cheese plus pomme frittes. We also ordered from their nice wine list - great options and reasonably priced.

They brought 3 pots filled with burning charcoal and a small grill on each one. The meat was served ‘rare’ which allowed for each person to grill the meat to their own preference. Every person absolutely loved all of the meats - excellent quality and large portions. In the end we enjoyed 4 desserts as well.

The atmosphere is very enjoyable and we will definitely be back many many times. Amazing chef and serving staff. Very friendly and efficient.

Overall cost was about 60 euros per person and we left very very content happy...

Oh Chef de Pivot, where do I even begin? Dining here was less of a culinary experience and more of a psychological endurance test. From the moment we arrived, we were greeted with what I can only describe as Olympic-level attitude — not just your run-of-the-mill rudeness, but a fully committed, customer-repelling performance. Bravo!

The food? Let’s just say if disappointment had a flavour, it would be this entire menu. Lukewarm, underwhelming, and frankly, unappetising — but somehow still not the worst part of the evening. That prize goes to the staff member who single-handedly managed to ruin the meal before the food even had a chance to. Sarcasm was on the house, but any semblance of customer service clearly wasn’t.

We didn’t even stay to eat. That’s how bad it was. Problem-solving? Non-existent. Empathy? Laughable. I’m convinced the heat got to someone’s head because the chaos was unreal. It was like a hospitality horror show, and we were the unlucky guests.

In summary: if you’re hungry, go literally anywhere else. If you’re in the mood for an overpriced attitude served with a side of incompetence, then congratulations — you’ve...