This is our selection of the best restaurants in Mar del Plata, including coffee, ice cream, pastries, beer and more. To have a better idea about Argentinean food, you can read about its traditional cuisine in this post.
International
Sarasa Negro: the most sophisticated and expensive on the list, but also one of the best in the country. Extensive wine selection with a cellar in the basement.
Quba: amazing place facing the sea, with the best view among the restaurants on the list. Great food, atmosphere and terrace.
L’Epoque (at Hotel Sainte Jeanne): a delicate fusion of French and Argentinean cuisine. Classy atmosphere, ideal to stop by while walking/shopping along Guemes Street.
Corte y Confeccion: great ambience, service and delicious food in a restored house. Booking required.
Lo de Lopez: located in the close town of Chapadmalal, this is a real hidden gem offering delicious local food in generous portions. I would recommend trying local fish as Chernia or Lenguado. It is normally a set menu and you can choose fish or meat. Booking required.
A la que te criaste: a relatively new “closed door” restaurant. Another hidden hem, only available via reservation in advance. Simple but delicious and homemade food. A great experience. They release their set menu daily (3 courses) and you will need to choose and book in advance.
Fish
Sur: my favourite on the list, they offer much more than fish, but I recommend a good grilled “Chernia”. Quite busy, especially in the summer, so you should book in advance.
Lo de Fran: outstanding seafood, with generous portions and always fresh food from the port, which is 100 metres away.
Viento en Popa: great fish of all kinds. Quite popular and extremely busy during summer. I recommend their “rabas” (fried calamari).
Lo de Tata: delicious seafood in a cosy restaurant with vintage decoration. You can try several small dishes as starters, to then order the fish of the day (“pesca del dia), which is for 2 or 3 people.
Justiniano: excellent seafood at affordable prices. I suggest trying their scallops and “Chernia”.
Pasta
Dei Fiore: probably the best Italian restaurant in the city. Their Tiramisu is unforgettable.
Trattoria Napolitana: very traditional place, run (or used to) by the Italian “Chiche Vespoli”. Best “sorrentinos” I ever had.
Tisiano: great place near trendy Guemes Street. Their pasta and pizza are both quite good.
El Rey del Calzone: authentic and traditional restaurant in Mar del Plata, offering delicious pasta, but also pizza and calzone. Their best and most popular dished are Calzone, Trinity pizza, Cintas con Salsa Langostinos and Arroz a la Renato.
Meat / Steak / “Asado”
La Mulita: quite a small place, but excellent “asado” (barbecue) and steak. If you only want the latter, I would go for a “bife de chorizo” (sirloin steak). The portions are large, so you may want to share.
Parrilla Perales: a traditional local place with one outstanding speciality: cochinillo (sucking pig). It comes “a la provenzal” with fries. Don’t ask for anything else.
Muu: the newest high-end barbecue/stake house in the city. High-quality meat cuts cooked to perfection.
Los Toldos Viejos: meat cooked to perfection, good service and great value for money. I suggest the “entraña”.
La Guapa: slightly more sophisticated (and expensive) than the other two, but high-quality food and a good variety of wines.
Pizza
Timoteo: my favourite pizza. Thick crust and plenty of toppings. They also have “Pizza rellena” (stuffed or filled), and it is also a restaurant (excellent “Caya Chilena”).
Don Joe: another traditional place, offering a fair amount of varieties of pizza and generous portions and toppings.
La Placita de Arenales: as its name indicates, this authentic local institution is located on “Arenales yu Colon”, just in front of Plaza Colon, and offers a great variety of pizza, calzone and pasta.
Empanadas
La Negra Simona: superb “empanadas”. They have oven-baked or fried, although the latter are the best ones. You can buy them to bake at home as well. It is a takeaway-only shop.
La Lucila: another excellent option, I recommend their “canastitas” (basket-shaped).
La Paskana: delicious empanadas, with the option to have them baked in a wooden oven. They also offer traditional “locro“.
Pastelmar: they offer very original flavours, such as “jamon crudo, cebolla y queso cheddar” (parma ham, onion and cheddar), “molleja al verdeo” (sweetbreads with spring onions) and “chorizo a la pomarola”. It is a takeaway only shop.
Burgers
La Hamburgueseria: great variety of burgers with an Argentinian style and delicious bread. They also offer good local draft beer.
El Viejo Dave: craft beer and excellent homemade burgers. Generous portions, that can even be shared. You can choose among plenty of toppings (~30), sides, types of meat, and sauce. It is quite trendy at the moment so it gets crowded.
Mambru: delicious burgers, with large portions in general, and high-quality toppings. Their pizzas are excellent as well.
Crip: traditional shop in town, well known for its huge burgers and “lomitos”. Kind of pioneers in the subject, a long time before the new “burgers and craft beers” movement/wave in Argentina.
Burger Lab: what started as a pop-up shop in its owner’s garage is now considered by many the best burger in town. It’s a food truck located in “El Parque de Punta Mogotes“, a free and open market next to Punta Mogotes beach. They are also available in “Pedidos ya”, the most popular food delivery app.
Coffee / Pastries / Bakery
SAO: known as the best “medialunas” in town, SAO was a traditional bakery located on the main pedestrian street (San Martin), which was close to running out of business until they got rebranded and opened many franchises around the city, becoming popular again. Their “medialunas” remain as delicious as always.
Boston: most traditional “confiteria” in the city. Excellent pastries and biscuits of all kinds. They have probably the best “medialunas” (Argentinean croissants).
La Fonte D’Oro: a newer chain that has become quite popular and has opened shops all over the city. First-rate coffee and pastries, and also salads and sandwiches.
Via Appia: another great bakery, high-quality pastries and bread. I recommend their “Valentinas”.
La Cabaña del Bosque: traditional “Casa de té” (tea shop) in “Bosque Peralta Ramos” (the closest to a forest you have in town). Great variety of cakes, biscuits, cookies and tea.
Manolo: probably the best “churros” in the World. You cannot leave Mar del Plata without trying them, you can easily get them warm and filled with “dulce de leche”.
Ice cream
Lucciano’s: best (and newest and trendiest) ice cream in town. Outstanding variety of flavours. They have tasty icy pops with lots of shapes (i.e. Minions), which are fun for children as well.
Italia: more traditional, but equally outstanding. They offer a variety of “cannoli”, which is a stick of ice cream with fruit and other toppings (cereal, almonds, etc) coated with chocolate. But I need to highlight their best flavour by far, which is “Super Sambayon” (Zabaione: made with egg, yolks, sugar and sweet wine).
Beer
Antares: one of the first and best craft breweries in Argentina, now with pubs all over the country. I recommend their Honey and Barley Wine varieties.
Cheverry: a newer brewery that is now trendy and highly respected. I recommend their English Brown.
Bohr: the newest brewery on the list. It started as a selling point/shop, and they just opened their first bar. They offer a good variety of beers and a small and modest food menu.
La Paloma Brewing Company: trendy and cool brewery, good vibe and a modest but nice patio at the back. I suggest trying their Cream Ale.
Quiche
La Tartería: sweet and savoury quiches of all kinds. It is a takeaway-only shop.
Travel tips and recommendations
- If you are in Buenos Aires, check our post “Best cool and quirky restaurants in Buenos Aires“
- To know the best Argentine food, visit “Top 10 foods you MUST try in Argentina“.
- And if you like good wine, visit “Best value Malbec wines from Argentina“.