Victoria Station — Restaurant in Parcent

If you don’t know much about El Paraiso (and its sister bar, Bar Planet, which we’ll talk about later) then in my opinion you haven’t been anywhere close to the heart of Spain or even the Costa Blanca for that matter.

Now some of you may remember my brief review of L’ancora run by the one and only Samantha Lange (Belle), who is but one part of a legendary duo called The Lange Sisters. Well now’s the time to take a little trip with me fifteen minutes inland to meet the eldest of the two. Meet the legendary Victoria Reeley.

The legendary lady Vicky owns and runs both the restaurant and the aforementioned Bar Planet but she mainly works at the bar. Both the bar and the restaurant are in a supercalifragilisticexpialidocious location overlooking the beautiful and picturesque Jalon valley just about half a mile down the road from the quaint little town of Parcent itself. This is most definitely a very special place in my book I can tell you that right now.

Now that’s your little bit about the background of the restaurant. This time I shall explain about the visit. Do please take note however that this next paragraph refers to Bar Planet rather than El Paraiso due to the relocation of the premises, which has as of 2015 been finally completed. That little sentence was just a heads up on what to expect from this little piece of writing. If you’re still interested then read on.

It was 2nd January 2014 when Auntie Belle took me to see Auntie Cinderella. On first impressions the bar was actually very big, bigger than L’ancora in fact and Auntie Cinderella was there to meet us. There is even an upstairs part but that was burned out unfortunately and at the time Cinderella was just in the process of getting it repainted redecorated and revamped. I can finally say that it has now been fully upgraded painted and decorated to reasonable standards and things have never looked better for my legendary Auntie Cinderella, my cousin Chip (Arran) and her lovely legendary husband David.

When we got there we had fish and chips to eat and it was just marvellous. The presentation of the food was outstanding and the service was second to none. We all couldn’t have been happier. To make the visit more enjoyable I brought along three books: Sir David Jason’s autobiography and two Disney books and also some Disney CDs I made myself via my computer. I even had a Sony Portable DVD player and ‘Beauty and the Beast’ on Disney DVD. After dinner we sang and danced along to the CDs, which were playing throughout the meal. None of the other customers seemed to mind that I can tell you. I even gave Cinderella her own Disney Princess certificate, which I got for her from The Disney Store back in Churchill Square.

So all in all a good visit. I would personally totally recommend this place and I rate everything with a colossal 100/100 score. However be sure not to visit on a Burning Day. Not long after our visit another fire broke out tragically and this time it was in the kitchen. But thankfully it’s all been sorted.

Finally the time has come to finish this review and I’d like to thank my dear Auntie Belle, now Mummy Belle, for taking me to see Cinderella and I’d also like to give them both my love. I shall see you soon Cinderella. Big kisses to you.

Love...

We've been to VS many times and enjoyed the atmosphere of the exterior dining experience. Due to the rain this time we ate indoors. The restaurant is very dated with a "white wedding party" decor vibe. On previous occasions, the food has been reasonable value for money but this time all four in our party were disappointed. We started with what amounts to a tiny crispbread with a bit of cream cheese on it, served on the same 'Banksy style' flour stencil they've not updated in years. The palette cleansing lemon sorbet was served frozen solid with sugary sprinkles on top and the tomato served with the bread and aioli was just a wet mess. I get that these are all complimentary nibbles, but they shouldn't be detrimental to the food ordered from the menu. Also, the initial place setting has plastic picnic plates. In a restaurant? Starters were acceptable, but the main course was disappointing for all. The vegan burger was served on a dry bun and trimmings were spartan, whilst the three bean chilli was tasteless and felt reheated rather than freshly cooked. My wife described her vegan stirfry as "terrible and salty" and my stepson was despondent to find his sole had been stuffed with salmon and served as a fish 'log' - over engineered and over cooked. The three-course menu, including extra nibbles, should represent good value at 25€ per head, but not at the expense of the quality offered. We would gladly have traded the extras for a more lovingly prepared main course. We declined the desserts as we'd had enough of the experience by then. In hindsight, we could have complained while at the restaurant, but it was so poor that I just didn't want to get into a confrontation. Maybe we should have been less 'British' but we just paid and left. On a positive note, the waiting staff were courteous and we have enjoyed their Sunday lunch in the past -...

Visited this restaurant with friends this evening, on their recommendation. Set amongst farmland and the village of Parcent, the restaurant oozed with rustic charm, helped along with a traditional Spanish guitar soloist. It is a family run business. The waiting staff were amazingly friendly and helpful. The food was outstanding; the chef is brilliant at his/her job and should have come front of house to receive a standing ovation; everything cooked to perfection and beautifully presented. I have read one or two comments about a longer wait time. However, if you want the standard of food presented tonight then give the chef the time needed to make sure your food is perfect or eat elsewhere! You cannot complain when presented with nine courses from cheese crackers, pan y alioli, to dessert and coffee at the end. Your taste buds have a constant stream of excitement to the point that time seems so insignificant. The set menu has a great selection of dishes on offer. My fillet steak just melted in my mouth. How much did such a wonderful evening in a beautiful restaurant with good friends end up costing? Including one bottle of wine and four beers, the total bill came to only €126. Wheelchair friendly, great on-site parking, clean bathrooms. Book early to avoid...