Malaga Food & Tapas Tours: What to Eat & How to Book

The short version: a Malaga food tour tastes the best of Andalusian coast cooking, from pescaito frito (fried fish) and espetos (sardines grilled on a skewer) to local cheeses, jamon and sweet Malaga wine, usually with a stop at the Atarazanas market. A guide takes you through the old centre and the tapas bars locals actually use. Here is what to eat and how to book.

At a glance

What you taste

Malaga is a coast city, so seafood leads: pescaito frito (lightly fried fish) and, in beach chiringuitos, espetos (sardines skewered and grilled over driftwood embers). In the centre you taste jamon, Andalusian cheeses, chilled salmorejo, and the city’s famous sweet Malaga wine, poured from the barrel in century-old bodegas. The Mercado de Atarazanas, a beautiful iron-and-glass market, is the usual starting point.

How a Malaga food tour works

A guide walks you from the market through the old centre, stopping at tapas bars and a traditional bodega, ordering each place’s specialty and pairing it with local wine. It is the quickest way to eat the real Malaga and get your bearings in the centre.

Our pick: the Malaga Wine & Tapas Tour (4.9 stars, 1,200+ reviews) visits four local bars with eight tastings and four wines.

For wine country, see Malaga wine tours and Ronda wineries.

Frequently asked questions

What food is Malaga known for?

Fried fish (pescaito frito), grilled sardine skewers (espetos), salmorejo, Andalusian cheeses and jamon, plus the sweet Malaga dessert wine.

How long is a Malaga food tour?

Most run 3 to 3.5 hours, usually starting at the Atarazanas market and moving through the old centre’s tapas bars and bodegas.

What is Malaga wine?

A traditional sweet wine made from Pedro Ximenez and Moscatel grapes, poured from the barrel in the city’s historic bodegas.

Book a Malaga food tour

Compare Malaga food and tapas tours, or browse more Spain food and wine experiences. Nearby: Granada tapas tours.