Restaurant in Figueres, Spain
Michelin-recognised value with old-school character.
A Michelin-recognised regional table open since 1961, El Motel is the most credentialed restaurant in Figueres at mid-range prices. The seasonal tasting menu — strongest in autumn — earns three consecutive Opinionated About Dining Europe rankings. Book for a serious, unhurried meal near the Dalí museum without the €€€€ outlay of destination dining elsewhere in Catalonia.
Book El Motel if you want a Michelin-recognised dining room with genuine historical character in Figueres, at prices that leave room to spend on Dalí tickets and a good bottle of wine. It is not a destination restaurant in the way that El Celler de Can Roca in Girona is, but for the town it sits in, it punches well above its weight. The combination of a seasonal tasting menu, a long-standing à la carte, and a cheese trolley that regulars specifically return for makes this one of the more complete mid-range dining experiences in northern Catalonia.
El Motel opened in 1961 and the room has kept faith with that era. The decor reads as deliberate classicism rather than tired neglect: crisp tablecloths, a service style that belongs to a more formal generation, and a dining room that feels structured and calm rather than stripped back or on-trend. If you have spent the morning at the Dalí Theatre-Museum a few minutes away, the contrast is jarring in a useful way — the surrealism ends at the door, replaced by a composed, unhurried atmosphere. For food-focused travellers who want a serious meal rather than a lively room, the spatial register here is exactly right. The formality is not intimidating; it is the kind that tells you the kitchen takes the food seriously.
El Motel's standing in the Opinionated About Dining rankings — #322 in Europe in 2024, moving to #359 in 2025 , reflects consistent quality rather than a single standout season, but the seasonal tasting menu, listed as Sabores de temporada, is where the kitchen shows the most ambition. The menu rotates around what is available in the Costa Brava and broader Alt Empordà hinterland, which means the experience shifts meaningfully depending on when you visit.
Spring and early summer bring the lighter, more vegetable-driven plates typical of Catalan coastal cooking. Autumn is when the menu leans into richer, more complex territory. If you have flexibility on timing, autumn visits tend to deliver more depth; the seasonal larder is fuller and the kitchen has more to work with. Winter visits are quieter and the room is easier to book, but the menu can be narrower. Whatever the season, the à la carte , a mix of traditional Catalan dishes and more internationally inflected options , gives you a fallback if the tasting menu does not appeal on a given visit.
The cheese trolley deserves particular mention. In a region where serious cheese service has largely disappeared from mid-range restaurants, El Motel has kept it as a genuine feature rather than an afterthought. If you skip it, you are missing one of the more distinctive things the restaurant does.
The Michelin Plate in both 2024 and 2025 signals a kitchen that meets Michelin's standard for quality cooking without yet carrying a star. That positioning is actually useful for the traveller: the food has been vetted by a credible authority, but the pricing stays at €€, not the €€€ or €€€€ brackets associated with starred restaurants in Spain. The OAD recognition across three consecutive years (2023 recommended, 2024 at #322, 2025 at #359) is a stronger signal than the Michelin Plate in some respects , OAD rankings are driven by frequent-diner votes and reflect accumulated real-world experience rather than a single inspection.
For context, the restaurants ranked around El Motel on the OAD Europe list include serious regional tables with devoted local followings. The slight downward movement between 2024 and 2025 is worth noting but not alarming , it may reflect a change in menu direction, increased competition, or simply survey variation. The kitchen has not dropped out of the ranking.
Booking at El Motel is direct by the standards of Catalan fine dining. There is no multi-month waitlist, no lottery system, and no requirement to pay in advance. If you are visiting Figueres for the Dalí museum and want a serious lunch or dinner in the same trip, this is the logical booking to make. The €€ price range means a full meal with wine should not require significant budget planning for most travellers coming to northern Catalonia.
The restaurant is located on the Avinguda de Salvador Dalí i Domènech, which places it clearly within Figueres' main visitor circuit. For anyone building an itinerary around the Costa Brava or the broader Girona province, El Motel fits naturally alongside a visit to El Celler de Can Roca (30 minutes south in Girona) as a lower-cost, more casual anchor to the trip. Check our full Figueres restaurants guide for the wider picture, and our Figueres hotels guide, bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide if you are planning a full stay.
If you are a food and wine traveller building a wider Spanish itinerary, El Motel sits at a different tier from Spain's big-name progressive restaurants , Arzak, Azurmendi, DiverXO, Quique Dacosta, Mugaritz, Cocina Hermanos Torres, Ricard Camarena, Atrio, Aponiente, or Martin Berasategui , but it is exactly the kind of reliable, well-credentialed regional table that serious food travellers return to when they are done chasing stars. For regional cuisine done with care and seasonal conviction, it earns its booking. For regional cuisine comparisons further afield, see also Fahr in Künten-Sulz and Gannerhof in Innervillgraten.
Quick reference: Michelin Plate 2024–2025 · OAD Leading Restaurants in Europe 2024 (#322) and 2025 (#359) · Price range: €€ · Google rating: 4.6 (793 reviews) · Booking difficulty: Easy · Leading season: Autumn for the fullest seasonal menu.
Yes, for most visitors , particularly if you are in Figueres for more than a day trip. The Sabores de temporada seasonal menu is where the kitchen concentrates its leading work, and at €€ pricing it delivers more ambition than you would normally expect at this price point. If you prefer to graze across the à la carte, that is a reasonable choice, but the tasting menu gives a clearer picture of what the kitchen is actually capable of. Autumn visits are the strongest for the tasting menu given the seasonal larder.
Yes, with appropriate expectations. The formal service and composed dining room make it better suited to a serious dinner than most restaurants at this price in Figueres. The Michelin Plate recognition and OAD ranking give it the kind of credibility that makes a special occasion feel well-placed. It is not an intimate 10-seat tasting counter , the room has a classic restaurant scale , but the old-school service and the cheese trolley ceremony both add occasion weight. If you want fireworks-level gastronomy, book El Celler de Can Roca in Girona instead.
Three things: the cheese trolley is not optional, the seasonal tasting menu changes through the year (autumn is strongest), and the room is more formal than most Catalan restaurants at this price. Do not arrive expecting a relaxed tapas atmosphere , this is a sit-down, full-service dining room. The Catalan and international dishes on the à la carte offer good range, so even if the tasting menu does not suit your group, you will eat well. It is easy to book and does not require advance planning beyond a day or two.
The database does not confirm seat count or private dining options, so contact the restaurant directly to confirm group availability. At €€ pricing and with easy booking, it is a practical choice for a mid-sized group visiting Figueres. For larger parties, call ahead , the formal service style suggests the restaurant is used to handling table service for groups, but confirmation is worth getting before you arrive.
Smart casual is the safe call. The room dates to 1961 and the service style has preserved that era's formality , turning up in beach wear or very casual dress would feel out of place. You do not need a jacket, but a neat, put-together look fits the room better than anything too relaxed. For reference, this is a step up from a typical neighbourhood restaurant but not the full dress-code rigour of a three-star dining room.
For Figueres specifically, El Motel is the most credentialed option in the city for regional Catalan cuisine at a mid-range price. If you are willing to travel 30 minutes south to Girona, El Celler de Can Roca is the obvious upgrade, though it operates at €€€€ and requires booking months in advance. Within Figueres, check our full Figueres restaurants guide for the current options. For a broader view of the region, our Figueres experiences guide may help with itinerary planning.
At €€, yes. The Michelin Plate and three consecutive years in the OAD Europe rankings mean the food quality has been independently verified. You are paying mid-range prices for a dining room with real credentials and a kitchen that takes seasonal cooking seriously. It is better value than anything at the €€€€ tier for a visitor who wants a quality meal without a special-occasion budget. The cheese trolley alone is worth the price of admission relative to most restaurants at this tier.
The venue database does not confirm bar seating details. Given the formal, classic-era dining room format, bar dining is less likely to be a feature here than in more modern restaurants , but contact the restaurant directly to ask. The room is set up for full table service, so if bar seating is available it may be limited.
| Venue | Awards | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| El Motel | A family-run restaurant with lots of history that first opened its doors in 1961; as a result, both the classic decor and the service seem as though they are from a different era. The à la carte featuring a mix of traditional Catalan and international dishes is complemented by a menu (“Sabores de temporada”) that focuses on seasonal flavours. Don’t miss the cheese trolley!; Michelin Plate (2025); Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in Europe Ranked #359 (2025); Opinionated About Dining Top Restaurants in Europe Ranked #322 (2024); Michelin Plate (2024); Opinionated About Dining Top New Restaurants in Europe Recommended (2023) | €€ | — |
| Aponiente | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| Arzak | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| Azurmendi | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| Cocina Hermanos Torres | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| DiverXO | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
Comparing your options in Figueres for this tier.
Yes, particularly if you are visiting Figueres for the Dalí museum and want a meal that holds its own. The 'Sabores de temporada' seasonal menu is the stronger choice over à la carte — it reflects the kitchen's focus and earns El Motel its Opinionated About Dining ranking (#359 in Europe, 2025). At €€ pricing, the value case is solid for a Michelin Plate restaurant.
Yes, it works well for a special occasion — the room has deliberate old-world formality (opened 1961) that most modern Catalan restaurants have moved away from, and the service style matches. The Michelin Plate gives it enough credibility to mark the moment without the price pressure of a starred restaurant. Book the seasonal menu rather than ordering à la carte for the full experience.
Two things: order the 'Sabores de temporada' seasonal menu, not just à la carte, and do not skip the cheese trolley — it is genuinely worth your attention. El Motel has been open since 1961 and the room reads like a time capsule, which is a feature rather than a flaw. It holds a Michelin Plate (2025) and has ranked consistently in Opinionated About Dining's European top 400.
The venue data does not specify group capacity or private dining arrangements. Given the classic, formal room inherited from its 1961 origins, it is likely more comfortable for small groups than large parties — check the venue's official channels via the address at Avinguda de Salvador Dalí i Domènech, 170, Figueres to confirm.
The 1961-era decor and table service suggest a step above casual — think neat, put-together rather than jeans and trainers. It is not a black-tie room, but it has the feel of a place where effort is noticed. There is no published dress code in the available data, so err toward smart rather than relaxed if you are unsure.
El Motel is the most credentialled restaurant in Figueres by award record — Michelin Plate and Opinionated About Dining top 400 Europe. If you want to stay in the region and step up to starred cooking, the broader Costa Brava and Girona area has stronger options, but for Figueres specifically and at €€ pricing, El Motel is the benchmark.
At €€ pricing with a Michelin Plate and consistent Opinionated About Dining rankings (#322 in 2024, #359 in 2025), El Motel overdelivers relative to what it costs. You are getting a recognisably serious kitchen in a city where accommodation and entry fees at the Dalí museum already stretch the budget. The seasonal menu in particular gives strong return on the price point.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
