BonAmb

Beautiful setting in Jávea area for this 2 Michelin star restaurant (as of 2024). The service is very attentive and discerning of customer needs. Creative dishes well executed and presented. A small improvement point from my experience is that several dishes felt a bit salty and flavours did not stand out. Overall a great culinary experience worth its rating.

This was a special occasion for me and my family. I felt let down and embarrassed that I choose to come here. Every dish was around 4-7 out of 10. Nothing spectacular. Not a single wow among our table of 4 and around 12 courses. I personally found a distinct lack of variety of texture and by the end of the meal I was tired of getting yet another fish dish in a brown sauce. A particular low light was the goat milk cheesecake with lamb sauce. It tasted worse than it sounds and yes, it came in another brown sauce. Another low was getting cold pasta. When the surely waitress asked if everything was ok I told her the dish was cold. 'Vale' (ok) was her one word response. She clearly didn't care and on one occasion was squabbling with her colleague. Not a good look for a 2 star Michelin restaurant. I'm glad most people enjoy their visit here. I did not. I won't go back and I wouldn't recommend. Easily my worst Michelin star experience. Update: the restaurant tried to get this review removed. They have not commented or apologised in anyway for the poor experience.

We had an evening reservation for 2. Arriving at the restaurant the first impression was a very warm welcome by the staff and the impeccable design of the interior and exterior. The design is very clean & focused, capturing the local esthetics perfectly in a modern style without being pretentious or overloaded at all. Before being seated we received our first amuse-bouche, an ancestral preparation of cured fish & a cucumber honey concoction - a nice touch setting expectations to experience more traditional ingredients & preparations from the region. At our table overlooking the pristine garden & sunset we were presented with the menu, giving the choice of 3 tasting menus mainly varying in number of dishes. A la carte dining choosing from the same dishes was an option. We chose the sol menu which is the ‘medium’ choice featuring 10 main dishes, 4 starters and 4 desserts plus the wine pairing. We requested a couple of changes to include dishes from the larger menu which was no issue. Service - overall we were very happy with the service receiving the right amount of attention including good explanations on the dishes without being intrusive or overbearing. Probably being a good 10-15 years younger than the normal clientele of such restaurants we felt very much welcome and appreciate the enthusiasm of the staff for the regional concept of the restaurant. Wine - due to the seafood focus of the menu, the overwhelming majority of the wines where whites, with only 3 reds. The pairings worked very well and we had a number of very original wines we would not have considered outside of such a setting. Moreover there was a number of original items like a regional sparkling sake or a wine-beer hybrid. Overall we were very happy with the wines. Food - the menu has a strong seafood focus, with the initial dishes showing strong Japanese influences which I enjoyed a lot. The only criticism is that some of the portions might be slightly too large for such an extensive menu. Especially the regional pastry dish - while enjoyable and well made - was definitely too large. A positive surprise was the Spanish caviar and sheep milk dish which to my surprise was very tasty. The mains showcased local ingredients very well and overall with the standouts being the cured tuna & iberico, the radish with egg yolk, the sepia noodles as well as the lamb belly. The dessert taco (pumpkin&sweet potatoe mouse with passion fruit & yuzu) was fantastic and a perfect refreshing bite. The peach mousse with yuzu sorbet was one of our favorite dishes of the meal. Unfortunately the almond cake was not overly inventive or special and a bit of a low point compared to the previous two very amazing dishes. The macaroons were a nice finish to be paired with a coffee or digestive. Overall the meal progression was quite good with the above criticism of some of the earlier dishes being a bit on the heavy/large portion side. Taste and preparation was excellent throughout which is to be expected at this level and - except for one or two dishes - everything was very inventive and unique and along a clear philosophy to be very true to the regional traditional foods and preparation methods while pushing the innovation by introducing Japanese flavors and techniques in a sensible and respectful manner. The price tag including menus, wines, water & aperitif and coffee was around 430 euro for 2 which we considered a fair price given quality of food &service. Overall we can only recommended this restaurant, it was a very good experience start to finish and we left the restaurant after 3.5 hrs very full & happy. When we come back to the region we will definitely visit again.

This is probably one of best fish-based tasting menus you can have around the world. Impeccably gentle and polite service, amazing decoration, plenty of extreme quality food no matter the menu, and desserts that will last in my memory for a good while. Don't even think twice. Investing in this experience is something you will not regret but remember 😃

4th Michelin stop in our little gastronomic tour on the Spanish east coast. Have a look at other reviews to compare and follow the challenges with my lists. What’s extraordinary here? Usually, I’m looking for what’s interesting but here it’s extraordinary. First, a bit of context, in gastronomy, there’s this concept of « Alliance terre mer « (matching food from earth and the sea). It’s a big thing, and most of the 2 and 3 stars try to have at least a dish where they showcase that they master it. I highly suspect that’s a criteria to go from 2 to 3. Especially in France. One of the reasons it’s a really big thing is because you can have a dish with a wider specter in terms of aroma, but you need to match stuff that are really difficult to balance. Well, you’re in the house of one of (if not The) the master of this delicate Art. And I’ve tried a lot of Michelin (most of them, I did not publish a review), so I’m writing with some background here. The craziest is that the chef is a natural. I don’t think he’s thinking of doing it consciously. No, it’s just natural for him. How can I be so sure? Well, two reasons : it’s in the roots and got a tip! The tip came from the right arm of the chef (le second). We had the chance to chat a little bit (she’s French, that helped me..), and during the chat I had a glimpse of the chef creative process. That’s my tip. It has to feel right. And to feel right, it has to be rooted. Which brings me to the second and the main point, it’s in their roots. I had the chance to chat (yes, I do like a lot to speak with the staff… I’m a nightmare!) with the co owner Pablo Catalá, and it stroke me. Pablo was explaining that people around here were working the earth during the days (cherishing their winter tomatoes, etc…) and fishing at night (they have their own techniques). That’s who they are. That’s the chef, Alberto Ferruz , and the co owner, Pablo. That’s the key to understand their food. It’s not instinctive, it’s their culture so deeply rooted that it feels natural. Hence this seemingly unnatural capacity to associate ingredients from the land and from the sea. I did not mention the staff because I was mesmerized by Pablo stories, but he has a great brigade de salle. In my book, it’s a top tiers two stars pushing to three stars, especially since the price point give them margin to grow.

Impressive and absolutely brilliant restaurant. One really can't understand why BonAmb does not qualify to be a top ranking restaurant globally, as it has everything and more to succeed: a beautiful and modern setting, an attentive and exquisite staff, and the most important of all, a menu to impress you. Chef Ferruz and his formidable team are masters of textures. Whether it's the use of vegetables, shellfish, fish or meat, it is a festival of flavor, texture and taste. Pure and constant display of mastery that brings back old techniques to marry them with modernity. I didn't expect this level of perfection and was truly blown away to become a dedicated fan of BonAmb.

It is, with out a doubt, one of the best restaurants in the area. Food is outstanding. The service is impeccable and the sumiller is a star! He always helps us discover new and exciting wines and champagnes! Extra touch: my son is a leftie, they noticed and set up the cutlery accordingly for every dish! Little details that are special.

One of the best restaurant in Spain. You can enjoy the most creative seafood in this restaurant. Everything is a surprise, and I really enjoy it a lot !! As a 2 star restaurant, the price is also very friendly, you should try it !!