Restaurante Cala Bandida Jávea-Xàbia — Restaurant in Xàbia / Jávea

We visited this restaurant recently and overall had a really good experience. I ordered a hamburger and was genuinely happy with it—the quality of the meat was great, the bun was fresh, and everything was well-seasoned. Definitely one of the better burgers I’ve had in the area. The highlight of the place, though, is without a doubt the beautiful sea views. It’s the perfect spot to sit back, relax, and enjoy your meal while overlooking the water. A lovely atmosphere, especially on a sunny day.

The service was generally friendly and polite, but we ended up giving 3 out of 5 stars because of the delay in getting the bill. There weren’t many people in the restaurant at the time, but we had to ask twice—once to one waitress, and then again about five minutes later to another. In the end, I had to walk up to the counter myself to request it. That part took around 15 minutes, which was a bit frustrating.

Still, the food was excellent, and I’d come back again for the views and the quality of the meal. Just hoping for a smoother service experience next time!

Went to this restaurant with my family and had an absolutely delicious meal. I ordered the grilled octopus, and it was honestly the best I’ve had in a long time—perfectly cooked, tender on the inside with a slight crisp on the outside, and full of flavor. It was served beautifully and paired really well with the sides. A definite must-try if you're into seafood!

We went back another day just for drinks and a few small bites. I had a mojito, which was decent—not the best I’ve ever had, but still refreshing and enjoyable. Along with that, we ordered croquetas and grilled chicken, and both were really tasty. The croquetas were crispy and creamy inside, and the chicken was well-seasoned and juicy.

Overall, the food quality here is really solid. The kitchen clearly knows what they’re doing. Combined with the amazing sea view, it’s a great spot to unwind and enjoy a meal. I’d definitely recommend it for the food—especially the octopus—and the lovely setting. Service could be improved a little (based on our last visit), but the food keeps us...

My two star reviews begins with thus:

Upon entry into the facility, we were pleasantly greeted by the site of blue. Blue, blue, blue. Ocean, ocean, ocean! How wonderful!

However, in a stark contrast with the views came the food. The tables starters were a variety of different things, fried chicken pieces, tempura veg, prawns etc. However they seemed to use the same sauce on multiple dishes which showed the lack of creativity in this kitchen. For mains, I had a chicken burger which turned out to be the exact same starter (small chicken pieces) but just in a bun. You can't just put anything in a bun and call it a burger! Well, you can but come on man! Segwaying over to the vegetarian dishes on our table - truffle mushroom pasta. The sound of a freshly made pasta was enticing to say the least. But upon the first spoonful, they knew something was awry. They tried to plough through and continue the dish, but it was the overuse of SALT that made it challenging to go forth. Another member of our group also had the same dish and she too could not go forth. Both dishes were sent back. I cannot fault the service though, they were happy to return our food and take it off the bill. So no qualms there. It is regrettable that such a divine spot overlooking the sea, in such a bustling area, would provide less than satisfactory food leaving the pallet encrusted with salt. Change the chef/menu and all will be restored.

Ps love the...

Lovely place but there is clearly a payment by card scam going on. Unfortunately due to having waited over 2 weeks since emailing (multiple times) with no response from the restaurant, it has left me with no choice but to write a negative review. We visited Cala Bandida on a few occasions during our trip. Each time we paid cash. On our final night, we had a small celebration therefore ordered a bottle of Cava with a couple of other drinks for our small table of 3. Lovely location, and what seemed to be lovely staff but when our contactless card payment didn't go through after a couple of attempts (trouble we had no where else) I tried to insert but they said no, resulting in no other choice but to pay with cash (borrowed from a our friend). As we flew home very early the next morning, we did not see that we had been charged by card as well. As soon as we saw, we contacted our bank and the restaurant but over 2 weeks later, NOTHING. DO NOT PAY BY CARD. Might not happen on bigger bills but given this was just a 25€ transaction, I expect they thought it would go amiss. When we visit Javea again, we will unfortunately not be visiting Cala Bandida. Such a shame as its a lovely location and the staff all seemed friendly enough and the small amount of food we had in the day too was nice (paid by cash). Feel completely let down and foolish that they have scammed us like this, also ruining our last evening with a our...