Restaurant in Marbella, Spain
One menu, Michelin star, book ahead.
Nintai is Marbella's Michelin-starred Japanese tasting menu restaurant, built around a sushi bar where you watch the itamae work through the seasonal ENSō menu. With a 4.7 Google rating, one of Spain's strongest sake lists, and private dining rooms alongside the counter, it is the clearest choice for a serious special occasion dinner in the city. Book well in advance — availability is tight.
Yes — and it is one of the clearest answers in the city. Nintai holds a Michelin star (2024), runs a single tasting menu format, and sits at the €€€€ price point. If you are planning a celebration dinner, a serious date night, or a business meal where the food needs to match the conversation, this is the booking to make. The format removes all guesswork: one menu, seasonal ingredients, a sushi bar where you watch the itamae work in front of you. Book at least several weeks in advance. This is hard to get.
Nintai is the Japanese project of sommelier Marcos Granda, who visited Japan in late 2019 and built this restaurant around the country's approach to ingredient respect and seasonal precision. The room is built around pure lines, large windows, and a sushi bar with ten to twelve seats where guests can watch the cooking happen live. Several private dining spaces sit alongside the main room. The ENSō tasting menu is the only option — no à la carte , and its contents shift with season and market availability.
Two courses documented by Michelin reviewers are worth knowing before you book. The Mushimono showcases steaming technique; the Otsukuri is built around raw textures. Large cuts of tuna are sliced in front of guests at the bar. The dessert course is reportedly a surprise given the Japanese context, which suggests Granda is not running a rigid traditionalist programme but one that uses Japanese technique as a framework rather than a rule set. The sake menu is one of the strongest in Spain, which matters if you are thinking about what to drink alongside a tasting menu at this price level.
The sensory environment is designed around serenity. Large windows, clean geometry, and a format that slows you down. For a special occasion, that is a deliberate choice on the venue's part , this is not the place for a loud group dinner, but it is exactly right for two people who want the meal to hold their full attention. The room is quiet enough to talk, the counter experience is immersive enough to hold focus. If the occasion calls for a meal that feels considered rather than celebratory in a noisy way, Nintai is the right call.
Nintai has several private dining spaces alongside the main sushi bar. If you are organising a group celebration, a corporate dinner, or want full privacy for a significant occasion, this is worth requesting directly when booking. The private room experience at a single-menu restaurant like this is cleaner than at most multi-format venues: the kitchen is not splitting attention across different table orders, so the pacing of a private dinner should match the bar experience closely. That is not always the case at tasting menu restaurants that try to operate private rooms alongside an à la carte main room. For groups who want the Nintai format without the sushi bar setting, the private spaces are the answer. Contact the venue directly to confirm availability and minimum covers.
Marbella has a real concentration of quality at the leading end, and Nintai is not the only Michelin-starred option in the city. For Japanese specifically, TA-KUMI is the direct peer comparison: also Japanese, also serious, and worth comparing on format and price before you book. Nobu Marbella operates in a completely different register , larger, more accessible, better for groups who want Japanese-inflected food without a tasting menu commitment.
For non-Japanese fine dining at the same price tier, Skina is the main alternative: seasonal Andalusian, also €€€€, also Michelin-starred, and more rooted in local produce. If you are undecided between Japanese and Andalusian for a special occasion, the choice is essentially about whether you want the cuisine to reflect where you are (Skina) or to transport you somewhere else entirely (Nintai). Both deliver at a high level. Messina and BACK are worth knowing as creative alternatives if availability at Nintai or Skina is closed out. For a broader view of what the city offers across price points, see our full Marbella restaurants guide.
In Spain's wider fine dining picture, Nintai sits in a smaller category: Japanese cuisine executed at Michelin level outside of Madrid or Barcelona. That is a short list. For context on what Japanese fine dining looks like at the source, Myojaku and Azabu Kadowaki in Tokyo represent the benchmark the format is drawing from. Spain's Michelin-starred creative dining in other cuisines , from El Celler de Can Roca in Girona to DiverXO in Madrid to Aponiente in El Puerto de Santa María , gives a sense of the competitive tier Nintai is operating in nationally. Also worth knowing: Arzak in San Sebastián, Azurmendi in Larrabetzu, and Cocina Hermanos Torres in Barcelona if you are building a broader Spanish fine dining trip.
| Detail | Nintai | TA-KUMI | Skina |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cuisine | Japanese (tasting menu) | Japanese | Seasonal Andalusian |
| Price tier | €€€€ | €€€€ | €€€€ |
| Michelin star | Yes (2024) | Check Pearl | Yes |
| Menu format | Single tasting menu only | Multiple options | Tasting menu |
| Sushi bar seating | 10–12 seats | Yes | No |
| Private dining | Yes (multiple rooms) | Check venue | Limited |
| Booking difficulty | Hard | Moderate | Hard |
| Open Sundays | No | Check venue | Check venue |
Nintai opens Monday through Saturday from 8 PM to midnight. It is closed on Sundays. Given the late opening and no-lunch service, this is purely a dinner destination. Book as far ahead as possible , demand at a single Michelin-starred tasting menu restaurant in a resort city is high, and the counter seating is limited. If your dates are fixed and near-term, check availability immediately.
For hotels, bars, and other planning context around your trip, see our Marbella hotels guide, our Marbella bars guide, our Marbella wineries guide, and our Marbella experiences guide.
Yes. The sushi bar seats ten to twelve guests and is the format the restaurant is built around , you watch the itamae cook, slice, and plate in front of you. If you are dining as a couple or solo, requesting counter seats gives you the most direct experience of what Nintai does. The bar is not a casual drop-in option, though: you still need a reservation, and availability is limited. Book ahead and specify the counter when you do.
No specific dietary policy is published. Given that Nintai runs a single tasting menu with seasonal, market-driven ingredients, restrictions are leading discussed directly with the restaurant at the time of booking rather than assumed. Japanese tasting menus at this level can sometimes accommodate specific needs with advance notice, but a format this tightly constructed leaves less flexibility than à la carte. Contact the venue before booking to confirm what is possible.
Yes, more than most €€€€ restaurants. The sushi bar format is designed for solo guests or pairs who want to watch the cooking up close. At this price point in Marbella, solo dining can feel awkward at a full table-service restaurant , the counter removes that friction. For a solo diner who wants a serious meal without the performance of a private table for one, Nintai's bar seats are the right format. The serenity-focused room design also works in your favour: this is not a social scene venue.
At €€€€ with a Michelin star and a 4.7 Google rating across 212 reviews, the value case is solid for the format. You are paying for a tasting menu experience built around a single kitchen philosophy, one of Spain's stronger sake programmes, and counter access to the itamae. If you want à la carte Japanese or a more flexible format, the price is harder to justify , look at Nobu Marbella instead. If you want a tasting menu at this level and Japanese cuisine is the draw, Nintai earns its price tier.
The ENSō menu is the only option, so the question is really whether the format suits you. Michelin's 2024 star and the documented courses , Mushimono for technique, Otsukuri for raw textures, the tuna sliced tableside , confirm that the kitchen is operating at a level that justifies a full tasting menu commitment. The sake pairing option strengthens the value case further if you drink. The one condition: if tasting menus in general feel like too much food or too slow a pace for your preference, this is not the place to try the format for the first time. Go to Skina for a comparable commitment in a different cuisine if you want to compare before deciding.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nintai | Japanese | Another culinary project courtesy of renowned sommelier Marcos Granda, who returned from Japan at the end of 2019 astonished by its culture and the country’s respect for the finest ingredients – a revelation which led to the development of this new project. Nintai features a design based around pure lines, large windows, several private dining spaces and a large sushi bar with 10 seats, where guests can watch him work, create and improvise his 'itamae' style of cooking (which literally translates as 'in front of the chopping board'). Here, everything induces a feeling of serenity – the perfect state of mind in which to savour the single ENSō tasting menu (two courses we particularly enjoyed were the Mushimono, showcasing the skill of steaming, and Otsukuri, based around raw textures) where the ingredients used are dependent on the seasons and market availability. Other highlights include the large cuts of tuna that are sliced in front of guests. Given that this is a Japanese restaurant, the desserts come as something of a surprise, plus Nintai also offers one of the best sake menus in Spain.; Another culinary project courtesy of renowned sommelier Marcos Granda, who returned from Japan at the end of 2019 astonished by its culture and the country’s respect for the finest ingredients – a revelation which led to the development of this new project. Nintai features a design based around pure lines, large windows, several private dining spaces and a large sushi bar with 12 seats, where guests can watch him work, create and improvise his “itamae” style of cooking (which literally translates as “in front of the chopping board”). Here, everything induces a feeling of serenity – the perfect state of mind in which to savour the single ENSō tasting menu (two courses we particularly enjoyed were the Mushimono, showcasing the skill of steaming, and Otsukuri, based around raw textures) where the ingredients used are dependent on the seasons and market availability. Other highlights include the large cuts of tuna that are sliced in front of guests. Given that this is a Japanese restaurant, the desserts come as something of a surprise, plus Nintai also offers one of the best sake menus in Spain.; Michelin 1 Star (2024) | Hard | — |
| Skina | Seasonal Andalusian, Modern Cuisine | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
| Areia | Farm to table | Unknown | — | |
| Kava | Modern Spanish, Modern Cuisine | Unknown | — | |
| La Milla Marbella | Spanish, Seafood | Unknown | — | |
| Leña Marbella | Asador | Unknown | — |
How Nintai stacks up against the competition.
Yes — Nintai has a sushi bar with 10 to 12 seats where you watch Marcos Granda work directly in front of you, itamae-style. For solo diners or couples who want to see the preparation up close, the counter is the better seat in the house. Private dining spaces are available if you prefer separation from the main room.
Nintai runs a single tasting menu, the ENSō, where ingredients shift with season and market availability. That format gives the kitchen some flexibility, but there is no à la carte fallback if a course cannot be adapted. check the venue's official channels before booking if you have serious allergies or strict dietary requirements — a fixed omakase-style menu leaves less room to manoeuvre than a conventional restaurant.
It is one of the stronger solo options in Marbella's fine dining tier. The sushi bar seats up to 12, puts you directly in front of the chef, and the single-menu format removes any awkwardness of ordering alone. At €€€€ pricing, it is a serious spend for one, but the counter experience justifies it if Japanese tasting menus are your format.
At €€€€ and with a Michelin star earned in 2024, Nintai sits at the justified end of Marbella's top tier. The ENSō tasting menu, one of the stronger sake selections in Spain, and a sushi bar where the chef works in front of you give you a full package rather than just a meal with a credential attached. If the format fits — single menu, Japanese, counter-or-private-room only — the price holds up. If you want flexibility or a shorter evening, consider Leña Marbella instead.
The ENSō is the only format Nintai offers, so the real question is whether a structured Japanese tasting menu suits you. The menu rotates with seasons and market availability, includes steaming courses (Mushimono) and raw textures (Otsukuri), and finishes with desserts that reportedly break from typical Japanese expectations. With a 2024 Michelin star and Marcos Granda's sake programme behind it, the menu earns its place — but if you want to choose your own courses, this is not the right room.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
