A Carmen above the Darro
A Carmen is a walled Andalusian house with terraced gardens, and Mirador de Morayma is one of the few where the concept still functions as it was meant to: you pass through an iron gate on Calle Pianista García Carrillo and the street noise disappears. The terrace looks directly across to the Alhambra, which sits on the opposite hill with nothing between you and it but the Darro valley. In April, wisteria hangs over the pergola. The marble underfoot is cold. The kitchen is inside, but the reason to book here is this terrace and that view.
The restaurant takes its name from Princess Morayma, wife of Boabdil, the last Nasrid sultan of Granada. He surrendered the city to the Catholic Monarchs in 1492. The name is historical rather than decorative — the Albaicín was the heart of Moorish Granada, and this part of the quarter sits directly below the Alhambra's walls.
What to eat
Remojón is the dish to start with. The Granada version uses salt cod, orange segments, and black olives dressed with olive oil — a combination that sounds strange and works completely. Mirador de Morayma does it well, and you will rarely find it executed with this care elsewhere in the city.
The kitchen's other strong cards are the smoked sturgeon salad from Río Frío — a trout and sturgeon farm in the Sierra Nevada foothills that supplies some of the best restaurants in Andalusia — and codfish with almonds, a dish with roots in Al-Andalus cooking that reappears periodically in Granada's better kitchens. The omelette Morayma and blood sausage with apple fill out the menu for those who want something more substantial.
The house wines come from Alquería de Morayma, the restaurant's own estate in the Alpujarras. These are ecological wines made at altitude, and they drink well with everything on the menu. Ordering them here rather than elsewhere means you get them at the source price.
Practical information
The restaurant opens Tuesday to Saturday from 13:30 until midnight. It is closed Sunday and Monday. Reservations are by phone: +34 958 228290. Request a terrace table when you call — indoor seating is perfectly comfortable but loses the view entirely.
The address is Calle Pianista García Carrillo, 2 in the Albaicín. On foot from Plaza Nueva, walk up Carrera del Darro and follow the signs uphill into the Albaicín. Allow 15-20 minutes depending on how often you stop. Budget €25-45 per person with wine.
