Sa Jambina — Restaurant in Palafrugell

CAUTION: In summary an unclear and misleading menu and waitress that lead to being charged €90 euros for rice which is a complete scam. Overall underwhelming meal and service for the price paid.

We recently dined at Sa Jambina with high expectations, but were unfortunately left disappointed. The location around the restaurant is beautiful, but the place itself has no sea view or special curb appeal.

It was a hot day with lots of flies outside and we didn’t reserve but there was space inside as it is off season and it wasn’t busy. We had to persuade them to let us sit inside (otherwise we would purchase the water we ordered initially and then leave) as they wanted us to eat outside. Eventually they set us up on a bar table which worked well for us.

I’ll try to keep it short in that the menu was very pricey (and that’s fine) but it wasn’t clear whether the items were all tapas style, or starter or main etc so difficult to plan in terms of portions as it was a late lunch and we were not very hungry.

There was no menu for wine by the glass, the sommelier came to ask what we liked, we said a dry and fruity white - he proceeded to pour 2 glasses without even letting us sample it first. The wine didn’t match the requirements and we had no idea how much we would pay for it.

Reading the menu were led to believe it was €23 per person for a portion of rice minimum 2 people. This was some kind of paella with 4 large prawns on top. It was very salty and not very good, the prawns were also undercooked. Not worth the advertised price. We asked the waitress and it seems in the end we were given a rice with S/M marked on the menu instead.

The fish was cooked well and was accompanied by potatoes and roasted vegetables. Again with the fish, we were charged double the price on the menu but it was not indicated that would be the case unlike the rice.

The croquetas at €4.50 per ball were a joke.

We were also charged a supplement for bread and amuse bouche of olives, anchovies and soup that we didn’t order.

Otherwise the ceviche was good and drinks were not expensive - €6 for glass of wine €3 beer €2.50 coffee €5 large bottle of still water

We left feeling quite frustrated which is a shame, as the potential for a great experience was there. It was ok but nothing special. We didn’t get value for money, no desserts, cocktails or aperitif and being charged that amount?! There are other restaurants in the area that I would recommend rather than this one and I myself would not...

Last Sunday, we went to eat at Sa Jambina. The reviews seemed quite good overall, and truthfully, the paella was very well done, and the service was generally very friendly. However, here's where the real disappointment lies, and why we won't be returning to this place, which, in terms of price, was a complete rip-off! The prices on the menu were written in pencil, but we didn't pay much attention to it because we thought it was just the updated price. They brought a small tasting/appetizer plate to our table that we hadn't ordered, and we thought it was a complimentary offering from the restaurant because the waitress spoke very quickly when serving us. The same happened with the paella; on the menu, it said €23 per person, but when the waitress asked about the type of paella, she quickly said €45, thinking it was the total price for two people, especially since the menu said €23, and above all, because the terrace is on a little street without a sea view... In the end, they charged us €6 for each tasting plate, which I want to say - they could have informed us that it wasn't complimentary since we hadn't ordered it, and the paella, the main dish here, was €45 per person... so it was a total rip-off because they weren't clear from the beginning. I wouldn't have written this review if they had been transparent about the prices or reported them clearly...

Sa jambina was the last restaurant we visited on our trip in Calella. The menu and the suggestions looked great. We took som e of the suggestions: wild mussels (really wild, nor cleaned and pure flavour, which was fine and had its charm, but 19 euros for this dish to share is not worth it); squid croquettes which were excellent and nicely presented; baby squid which had a full and mediterranean flavour but was ridicullessly overpriced (26 euros for 1 plate!). As a main dish we also took a suggestion: the wild sea breem, a local fish. Really tastefull but again, expensive (76 euros for 2pers.). We often go to dinner and like to choose the better restaurant, and we don't mind spending a lot money on good food but this restaurant needs to set the prices straight or upscale the dishes. Or maybe display the suggestions with the estimated price, so people are informed. The meals also came too fast. All these plates came within 1 hour. Our wine bottle was still half full when we finished the main dish. The waiter and staff were really friendly and helpfull. Overall, tasty seafood in a nice atmosphere but the check was a cold shower,...