Chiringuito Los Tony's — Restaurant in Marbella

Sometimes you go to a restaurant, dine once.... to never return again. I'm going to try to save you that first trip.

This restaurant, although the location is right on the water and it provides gorgeous sunsets out over the ciity of Marbella, lacks the food and drink quality to justify this one attribute.

Service is adequate but in no way makes up for the poor quality seafood and sides that were served to me this evening.

Although I am not fluent in Spanish, I do know enough to know the difference between large prawns and small ones. In speaking with the waiter, I asked for large grilled prawns, (gambas al a plancha) and inquired as to whether they were large (grande). It came with nothing on the side and was ala carte, so I ordered some fried potatoes...(patatas fritas).

What I was served, after twenty five minutes and inquiring as to the timing....asking for another small loaf of bread to tide me over, was a plate full of approximately 20 small prawns and a lemon wedge. Now, small is relative, but these would be the equivalent of 50 to 60 count per pound in the US...almost popcorn. Of course they were prawns that had heads and shells intact, not deveined or cleaned in any manner.

Now I can get past that as it was semi expected, except that these were so small that by the time you pulled the heads off and the tail and used a fork (no other utensil provided) to try and clean and split the underbelly to peel, they ended up being nothing but mush. The little meat that there was, refused to come loose from the shell.....cooked improperly. When this was mentioned to the waiter, he said that I had not ordered the larger prawns, of which there were 5 on a plate, still needing to be cleaned. He looked at me and said essentially, "You bought it, you got it. No help was rendered.

Entire plate was unedible and remained so., There goes 25 bucks down the drain and I'm still hungry. My $8 plate of French fries ended up being edible and paired with the $7 beer, provided some sustanance. By the way, they bring you an unordered bread basket with a small roll and butter in it, but do not be fooled into thinking that it is "gratis". I was charged for both the 1st and the 2nd one in, ordered in the middle of my 25 minute wait.

Well I guess I should have enjoyed my forty three dollar sunset....

Don't bother with the 1st visit here at all. There are far better alternatives in the immediate area. Los Tony's should be los(t) and...

Disappointing Experience Despite the Stunning View.

We visited Chiringuito Los Tony's yesterday, lured by the promise of delicious seafood paella and the allure of a sunset over the sea. The view did not disappoint—it was absolutely stunning, a perfect backdrop of the sun dipping into the sea. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the rest of our experience.

Upon arrival, we were seated at a table that seemed to have hosted a food fight moments before. Spills of food and drinks were scattered about, and it took several minutes before someone arrived with a cloth (whose freshness was as questionable as a week-old shrimp) to give it a cursory wipe. They then covered the table with a slightly ripped paper cover—not exactly the touch of elegance we'd hoped for.

We started with patatas bravas and grilled gambas. The patatas bravas turned out to be a game of "potato roulette"—some pieces were so hard and dry they could double as building materials, while others were undercooked enough to audition for a raw foods menu. The grilled gambas themselves were fresh and flavorful, a rare highlight, but they were accompanied by a side of over-boiled peppers that had the texture of jelly and the seasoning of plain water. No salt, no pepper, nothing to write home about.

Then came the seafood paella, the dish we'd been eagerly anticipating. It arrived looking more like seafood soup than paella—overly wet and watery, with soggy rice and mussels that didn't inspire confidence in their freshness. The dish lacked any real balance of ingredients, leaving us wondering if the chef had lost the recipe and decided to improvise.

Despite the gorgeous sunset painting the sky, even the breathtaking view couldn't compensate for the lackluster meal. To top it all off, the bill came to 100 euros—and that's without any wine or alcohol to soften the blow.

Overall, while Chiringuito Los Tony's offers a million-euro view, the dining experience left much to be desired. We had high hopes, but sadly, the food didn't match the scenery. Next time, we might just enjoy the sunset from a bench—and save ourselves...

To Tony and or the owner and anyone staying in Marbella considering eating at this rat hole:

Avoid this place like the plague. Went to have lunch with my wife, multiple tables open and available inside and outside, we were rudely told to wait by a little weasel server named Rafa. So my wife and I politely wait to the side while starring at multiple empty tables......5 minutes, 10, 15, 20, 25 minutes later, nothing. My wife then approaches and politely asks Rafa how much longer it would be given we’re staring at 8-10 unoccupied tables that we could’ve been seated at. Rafa again rudely reply’s to my wife that “If you want to eat, then you have to wait!!” Really?! That’s how you speak to a woman and equally important a customer? Wow! Needless to say my wife and I were completely disgusted and decided to leave (he’s lucky we weren’t in a dark alley). As we were leaving, a party of 4 was walking out with us and saw that we had been waiting the whole time and explained to us how horrible there experience was, and that after waiting forever for there food that they originally brought out the wrong dishes to them and then got annoyed at the party memebers from what they told me like it was there fault they screwed up there order. And most importantly, they complained about the SERVICE and how absolutely rude, unorganized and horrible Rafa the weasel and the rest of the staff were. Just standing there waiting and observing them, I can honestly conclude by saying that monkies throwing $h|t at the zoo seemed more organized then these people. Couldn’t tell you how the food was as we never got to be seated by Rafa the weasel. What I can say is that 100 yards away is there competitor, El Laurel which we had the pleasure of experiencing 2 nights prior. They took us in immediately without a reservation and with limited seating. Had delicious food and more importantly, a great staff that welcomed and saw you off with a smile, highly recommended! Hey Tony, you and Rafa the weasel and your staff may want to take your cues from your competitor down the beach. Trust me folks, go to El Laurel, you’ll...