15 Best Restaurants in Gran Canaria, Canary Islands

One of the Canaries' few great specialty coffee shops (think single-origin beans, seasoned baristas, and Chemex pour-overs), Caracolillo, opened in 2021, is a trendy hangout in the Centro district. 

Freshly dug baby potatoes with mole sauce, tempura octopus with aerated spirulina, smoked salmon aguachile with green apple ice cream—these are a few of the palate-bending dishes you'll find on the menu at El Santo, one of Gran Canaria's most exciting fusion spots. Rustic stone walls give the restaurant an intimate, relaxed feel, while the white tablecloths and professional waiters make it feel like a special occasion.

Halfway up a pleasant pedestrian street in Vegueta, this French café-restaurant with red walls and old photos of Las Palmas specializes in mushroom dishes. Choose from more than 15 preparations, or forgo the fungi and try the meat dishes and giant revueltos (scrambled eggs). Portions are large, ideal for sharing.

Escape to the tranquil, air-conditioned quiet of the Casa Suecia Salon de Té on Tomás Miller 70—near Playa de las Canteras—for comfortable booths, foreign newspapers, picture windows, pastries, breakfast plates, sandwiches, and perhaps the only free coffee refills on the islands.

In a culinary homecoming of sorts, Gofio—Madrid's buzzy, award-winning Canarian restaurant—now has an outpost in the archipelago, inside the Corte Inglés's Club Gourmet. Fasten your seatbelts: This is comida canaria like you've never experienced before: "punk" arepas that arrive DIY-style, panna cotta made with Canarian goat milk, and local avocado stuffed with spiced sea bream.

Tables are hard to come by at this busy restaurant in a typical Triana house: there's usually a line outside the door. The concise, contemporary menu includes truffled gnocchi, baked cod with seasonal vegetables, and steak tartare, a house specialty.

In the center of Playa del Inglés, this modern Basque restaurant has made a name for itself for its well-priced classic cuisine. Interiors are a bit passé (a bit like a wedding reception hall), but there are two pleasant terraces outside. The wine list, with more than 40 bottles from Spain, is worth a look, and cocktails are served daily 7 pm to 2:30 am.

For a sweet treat, try Guirlache. There are at least 20 ice-cream flavors, and many of the cakes are made with that trusty island staple, condensed milk.

Skip the middling tourist-packed cafés and sandwich shops on the Las Canteras boardwalk and instead grab a bite at this sunny, casual storefront that serves tropical fare ranging from tacos to Cubano melts to pad Thai.

Cheap and cheerful sums up this small bar-restaurant at the north end of Maspalomas. It's usually packed with locals, who flock here for good and inexpensive Spanish classics, including revuelto de papas con jamón serrano (scrambled eggs with potatoes and Iberian ham) and bacalao con tomate (cod in tomato sauce), and tapas. The daily set menu, which has two courses, is about €10. Expect generous portions, and if you want to be sure to get in, arrive early—before 2 pm for lunch and before 9 for dinner.

Seafood lovers, look no further: This Galician restaurant serves some of the most pristine fish and shellfish on the island, from rape a la marinera (monkfish cooked in wine and garlic) and zarzuela de pescado y marisco (fish and seafood stew) to various rice dishes such as paella. It's a well-established favorite with islanders—many travel all the way here from Las Palmas just for dinner. It's been run by the same Galician family since 1986 that also owns Las Rías, in Meloneras, to the west of Maspalomas.

Just below the cathedral square is one of the island's best bars for having a beer—there's a huge selection—along with some tapas. The bar feels a bit like a French café, with high ceilings and black and red furnishings. Unusual tapas, like nachos with eggplant and ginger sauce and spinach-and-walnut croquettes, make an appearance. There are indoor and outdoor tables and usually live music on Thursday.

A magnet for vegetarians and vegans, this restaurant has retro decor and a pleasant, shady terrace. Specialties include vegetable woks with tofu, vegan meatballs, and healthy organic breakfasts. There's a great-value daily lunch menu (€12) and soy milk shakes and gluten-free cakes for afternoon tea; brunch, served on weekends, is also popular.