Bar Anita — Restaurant in Santa Eulària des Riu

For context: I live on Ibiza, and have done for many years. I'm a self-confessed foodie, and eat out probably on average twice a week, year round. I've not eaten at Bar Anita for probably 4 years, although have popped in to meet friends for drinks during this time. However yesterday I stopped by for lunch.

Venue: Perhaps what first springs to mind is the gorgeous wisteria covered terrace at the entrance, with low wooden tables and the traditional low, weaved Ibicenc chairs. A great place to indulge in a drink, and quick tapa, although being relatively tall, I soon find these chairs somewhat uncomfortable. This terrace, certainly when the weather is good, is invariably busy. Yesterday I elected, at lunchtime, to go into the heart of the restaurant (passed the bar, turn left - if you go up the stairs, it leads to the toilets)

Ambience: Right off the bat, despite being an out-of-season Monday, the Bar Restaurant was busy; a healthy mix of locals and end-of-season tourists. Staffing levels were surprisingly high however, and as I relaxed, none of us waited for anything. How refreshing!

Food: Starters: I ordered Boquerones (fresh anchovies, marinated in vinegar, olive oil, and garnished with finely chopped parsley and perhaps a hint of garlic) This dish can often be overly fishy and oily, so is served with local bread. To my surprise I found the Boquerones extremely subtle, fleshy and utterly delicious. Typically I wouldn't wolf down a whole plate, for it's also a rich dish, but complimented with a red wine (yes, red!) I happily polished the lot off. They were the best boquerones I've had in years - and better than I recall them at Bar Anita. A delightful start. Mains: On advice of the staff, for the menu is relatively broad (meats, fish, pasta, pizza's - a typical spanish cafe, please everyone air to its design) I elected for the fresh squid of the day. Typically caught early in the morning and delivered fresh to the restaurant, it's served with chips, or salad, or if you ask nicely, both. I asked nicely ;-) I'd anticipated 1 or 2 squid, but as they were of medium size, was surprised by three. It should be noted that all portions at Bar Anita are generous! I ate the first two quite quickly and they were, ... they surpassed expectation! I guess being a 365-day-a-year "cafe", one expects "OK" food - it's typically secondary to the social occasion, the friends and family focus. However, these were better than that. Easily. I was then interrupted and had to pause, returning to the 3rd squid some 20 minutes later. I inwardly cringed at the thought of cold squid, but being the foodie I am, couldn't resist a nibble. It remained delicious! I scoffed the lot. Cheerfully. Dessert: two glasses of wine, starter and mains done, the interior of the restaurant buzzing with workers popping in for lunch, and families have a catch-up I decided to indulge in a dessert (not typical, for me) I erred to the in-house flao - a flan-ish 'cheesecake', moist, crumbly, with understated hints of anise and mint. It either does work, or it doesn't (too often the latter, so I was taking a risk) But this one did work. Fresh, subtle, if you like a rough cheesecake, thinner than elsewhere, with hints of anise and mint, it's a must have.

Finishing off my meal with a cafe bonbon (espresso coffee, with an unhealthy but indulgent dollop of condensed milk, my more typical 'dessert', and a great way to stave off the food coma / siesta) I conceded that every dish, plus excellent service had completely surpassed my expectations, and indeed memories of meals at Bar Anita.

I'll not be leaving it so long before I return for another meal at Bar Anita's, and considering the vast range of eateries on the island, that's about as high a compliment as I can pay a venue.

All-in, cost just tipped 30e, and as I walked out, I had a sense of great value, and a very pleasant interlude...

AVOID TOURIST TRAP

IF YOU WANT SOMETHING LOCAL TRY 👇🏻

• S’ESPARTAR • ES LLAUT D’EN MARC TALAMANCA FISH BULLIT PAELLA • CAN PILOT MEAT • EL ZAGUAN MONTADITOS

I wanted to test try Bar Anita for my clients and based myself on the reviews.

I am sorry for those who commented anything positive beside of location and history of the place the real food is bad and industrial. Hence why I put all the restaurants you won’t find on google because of its popularity amongst tourists which may not know better.

What to say. I have many reviews behind me and most of them if not all because I am positively impacted by restaurants or beauty salons.

This was not the case with Bar Anita. Probably people like the location for its history. The location and atmosphere is nice and maybe other dishes are too.

I ordered the entrecôte and coming from Luxembourg I know how an entrecôte is and is supposed to be. And it is not supposed to taste, look or feel like literally a shoe or eraser. I mean the meat was HORRENDOUS I couldn’t cut through it let alone chew it. The mushroom sauce was package one.

When I told them it was not entrecôte or they defrost it (not fresh) they said it was entrecôte.

This is the problem in Ibiza hard to find real good food at equivalent quality prices.

Definitely will go eat meat at Can Pilot next time which is not the best I have eaten but it’s good and price quality reasonable.

Bar Anita very disappointed and as a Representative for a tourism company will NEVER recommend it...

You can't fail to notice this place when you drive past as it looks authentically Spanish and is always, and I mean always, busy.

Anita's is somewhat legendary on Ibiza and has always served good, honest, unfussy Spanish food to locals and tourists alike.

Its small atmospheric vine covered courtyard hides a larger restaurant within and no visit to the island was complete without a visit for lunch, even if the food is only ever average.

Which was fine until now - simple, tasty food is a great thing at a restaurant like this. But now it comes at a price which isn't justified - single course lunch for two with a single beer and soft drinks at €60 was surprisingly steep.

So much so that it became the barometer of value for the rest of our trip - every restaurant bill was then inevitably compared to Anita's in terms of quality and value - and I'm afraid just about everywhere else we went was...