Restaurant in Mahón, Spain
The rice dishes answer the question.
El Rais holds a Michelin Plate for 2024 and 2025 and a 4.4 rating from over 1,400 reviewers, making it the most reliable choice for contemporary Menorcan cooking in Mahón. The rice dishes — arroz de senyoret, black rice, rice with Iberian pork pluma — are the reason to come. Book ahead; the harbour terrace fills quickly and the kitchen earns every table it turns.
Yes — and if rice dishes are your benchmark for a kitchen's technical ability, El Rais is the clearest answer in Mahón. Holding a Michelin Plate in both 2024 and 2025, and rated 4.4 across more than 1,400 Google reviews, this harbour-side restaurant from owner-chefs Marco Antonio Collado and Oriol Castel delivers contemporary Menorcan cooking at a €€€ price point that sits comfortably within what the island's better restaurants charge. Book ahead: the Michelin recognition and the waterfront setting mean tables fill reliably, even outside peak summer weeks.
The kitchen's focus is Menorcan recipes reframed through a contemporary lens, and the rice dishes are where that approach is most confident. The arroz de senyoret — a traditional Menorcan preparation in which the seafood is shelled before serving, so the diner never has to work for it , signals a kitchen that understands both local convention and practical hospitality. Black rice and a rice with Iberian pork pluma and Triguero asparagus round out a programme that locals return to repeatedly, which is a more reliable endorsement than any award sticker.
The setting matters here in a way that is genuinely functional rather than decorative. The outdoor terraces face the moorings of the Club Marítimo, which means you are eating with a direct view of the working harbour rather than a curated approximation of one. For a food-focused traveller, that context , Menorcan produce, Menorcan recipes, a Menorcan port , is the point. If you want that alignment of place and plate in a single sitting, El Rais delivers it consistently.
El Rais is classified as farm-to-table, and on Menorca that framing carries specific weight. The island's protected landscape and relatively small agricultural economy mean sourcing decisions are visible in the food in a way they are not always in larger cities. The Triguero asparagus paired with Iberian pork pluma, for example, is a combination that works because both ingredients are handled with restraint rather than transformation. This is not the kind of farm-to-table cooking that announces itself with a provenance card on every dish; it is cooking that simply reflects what grows and what has always been eaten here.
For the food-focused traveller who has eaten at the larger farm-to-table operations on the Spanish mainland , say, Quique Dacosta in Dénia or Cocina Hermanos Torres in Barcelona , El Rais operates at a different register: more modest in ambition, more local in reference, and considerably easier to get into. That is not a criticism. Menorca is not the place you come to replicate the experience of a three-Michelin-star dining room. It is the place you come for cooking that could not exist anywhere else, and El Rais delivers that.
Rice dishes are structurally the worst candidates for takeaway or delivery. The arroz de senyoret and black rice at El Rais are almost certainly finished to order, timed to serve at the correct texture, and plated for immediate eating. Rice that rests loses its defining quality within minutes. If you are considering off-premise for any reason , a boat, a picnic, a late return to accommodation , this is not the kitchen to attempt it with. The dishes here are worth eating on the terrace, at the table, with the harbour in front of you. That is the format they are built for, and that is the format worth paying €€€ for. For Mahón dining that travels, look elsewhere; for a sit-down meal that earns its setting, El Rais is the right call.
Booking ahead is recommended, and given the Michelin recognition and the harbour location, that advice applies year-round rather than only in high summer. No booking method is listed in the available data, so check current availability directly with the restaurant. The address is Moll de Llevant, 314, 07701 Maó , on the harbour front, accessible on foot from the old town. Hours are not confirmed in current data; verify before travelling. Price range is €€€, consistent with Mahón's mid-to-upper dining tier. For a broader view of where El Rais sits relative to the island's restaurant scene, see our full Mahón restaurants guide. If you are planning a full trip, our Mahón hotels guide, bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide cover the rest.
Quick reference: Michelin Plate (2024, 2025) | 4.4/5 (1,418 reviews) | €€€ | Moll de Llevant, 314, Mahón | Book ahead recommended | On-premise only for rice dishes.
Start with the rice dishes , specifically the arroz de senyoret, which is the kitchen's clearest statement of Menorcan technique. The black rice and the rice with Iberian pork pluma and Triguero asparagus are both worth ordering if your group has the appetite. These are the dishes locals return for, and they reflect what the kitchen does most confidently. If rice is not your priority, the contemporary Menorcan menu offers alternatives, but the rice programme is what distinguishes El Rais from other €€€ options in the harbour area.
Book ahead , the combination of Michelin Plate recognition (2024 and 2025) and a harbour-front location means tables do not sit empty for long. The cooking is contemporary Menorcan, meaning it uses local recipes as a foundation rather than serving traditional dishes unchanged. At €€€, expect to pay in line with Mahón's better restaurants. The outdoor terrace facing the Club Marítimo moorings is the setting to request. First-timers who arrive without a reservation risk missing out, particularly in summer.
Smart casual is the safe call for a €€€ harbour-front restaurant with Michelin recognition. No dress code is confirmed in available data, but the price point and setting suggest you would be underdressed in beachwear and overdressed in black tie. Think clean, relaxed, and appropriate for an outdoor terrace in a working port town. Menorca's dining culture is generally less formal than Madrid or Barcelona , see DiverXO in Madrid or Arzak in San Sebastián for contrast , so lean comfortable rather than formal.
Yes, at €€€ for a Michelin Plate restaurant with 4.4 across 1,418 reviews and a genuine harbour setting, the value holds. The rice dishes in particular represent good price-to-quality alignment: these are technically demanding preparations that restaurants frequently get wrong, and El Rais gets them right consistently enough to draw local repeat custom. Compare that to farm-to-table alternatives at a similar price point , Au Gré du Vent in Seneffe or Wein- und Tafelhaus in Trittenheim , and El Rais adds a location premium that is genuinely earned rather than just charged.
Yes, with a specific caveat: it works for a special occasion where the experience is about place and produce rather than ceremony and theatre. The harbour terrace, the Michelin recognition, and the quality of the rice dishes give you a meal worth marking , but this is not a tasting-menu-with-matched-wines occasion in the way that El Celler de Can Roca in Girona or Azurmendi in Larrabetzu might be. If the occasion calls for the full production, you may want to supplement with a different venue. If it calls for a genuinely good meal in a setting you will remember, El Rais is a strong answer.
No tasting menu is confirmed in available data, so this cannot be assessed with confidence. The menu as described centres on à la carte Menorcan dishes and rice preparations. If a tasting menu exists or has been introduced, verify directly with the restaurant before booking around it. What is confirmed is that the rice dishes are the kitchen's strongest offering, and building a meal around two or three of those is likely to be more satisfying than any fixed-format alternative at this price point.
El Romero is the closest direct comparison: also farm-to-table, also €€€, and worth considering if El Rais is fully booked. La Cocina de Cristine and Candela are both Mahón options worth checking depending on your format and group size. For the full picture of what is available in the city, see our full Mahón restaurants guide. If your interest is in how Menorcan cooking compares to the wider Spanish scene, Aponiente in El Puerto de Santa María and Martin Berasategui in Lasarte-Oria represent the leading of the country's restaurant range for reference.
Practically, yes. A €€€ restaurant with an outdoor terrace and a harbour view works well for a solo diner who wants to eat well and watch the port without requiring a group dynamic. The rice dishes are typically ordered per person or shared between two, so a solo diner will need to calibrate order size accordingly , arroz de senyoret is a full meal in itself. The 4.4 rating across a large review base suggests a room that runs smoothly rather than one where solo diners feel managed. Booking ahead still applies.
| Venue | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|
| El Rais | €€€ | — |
| El Romero | €€€ | — |
| La Cocina de Cristine | — | |
| Candela | — |
Key differences to consider before you reserve.
Go for the rice dishes. The arroz de senyoret and black rice are the most-cited draws, and the rice with Iberian pork pluma and Triguero asparagus signals a kitchen that takes the format seriously. These are the dishes locals and visitors return for, and they're the clearest expression of what owner-chefs Marco Antonio Collado and Oriol Castel are doing with Menorcan recipes.
Book ahead — the Michelin Plate recognition and harbour terrace location at Moll de Llevant, 314 mean tables fill reliably, not just in summer. The kitchen frames Menorcan recipes through a contemporary approach, so expect local ingredients handled with precision rather than a traditional rustic format. The outdoor terraces overlooking the Club Marítimo moorings are a draw in their own right, so request one when booking.
The harbour terrace setting and €€€ price point suggest neat, presentable clothing without requiring formal dress. A Michelin Plate restaurant on a working marina in Menorca leans relaxed-but-considered rather than jacket-required — think smart casual by instinct rather than by rule.
At €€€, yes, provided rice dishes are what you're after. A Michelin Plate in consecutive years (2024 and 2025) confirms the kitchen is operating at a consistent level, and the harbour terrace adds tangible value to the experience. If you're looking for a cheaper Menorcan meal, there are options in Mahón, but you'll trade both the cooking precision and the setting.
Yes — the combination of Michelin Plate recognition, a harbour-view terrace, and a focused menu built around technically demanding rice dishes gives the meal a clear occasion feel without being stiff. Book the outdoor terrace if available, and reserve well in advance since the restaurant is popular with locals and visitors alike.
The venue data doesn't confirm whether El Rais runs a tasting menu format, so this can't be answered with confidence. What is confirmed is that the rice dishes are the kitchen's strongest suit and the main reason to visit — base your booking decision on those rather than on the assumption of a set menu.
El Romero is a practical alternative if you want a different take on local produce in the area. La Cocina de Cristine suits diners looking for a more personal, chef-driven format. Candela is worth considering if you want a different price point or atmosphere. None of them carry the same consecutive Michelin Plate recognition as El Rais, which remains the clearest benchmark for contemporary Menorcan cooking in the city.
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