Eating in Valencia: the back story

About Eating in Valencia: the back story

By the ULTIMATE Valencia Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

Valencia is where paella comes from, and the city takes it seriously: the classic paella valenciana is made with chicken, rabbit and beans, cooked in a wide shallow pan and eaten at lunchtime. On the beach at Malvarrosa and Las Arenas, Casa Carmela (since 1922) and La Pepica (since 1898) still cook rice in the old way. At the other end of the scale, the 2026 MICHELIN Guide gives Two Stars to Ricard Camarena, in the Bombas Gens complex, and to Flores Raras, the former El Poblet, in the old town.

Paella and rice

Casa Carmela cooks its paella over wood, as it has for four generations; La Pepica has served rice on the seafront since 1898; Navarro, in the centre, since 1951. In El Palmar, by the Albufera lagoon where the rice is grown, Arrocería Maribel holds a Bib Gourmand.

The tasting menus

Ricard Camarena and Flores Raras hold Two MICHELIN Stars in the 2026 guide; Riff, La Salita, Lienzo, Fierro, Fraula and Kaido Sushi Bar hold one each. Flores Raras, formerly El Poblet, belongs to the Quique Dacosta group, whose three-star flagship is in Dénia.

Eat paella at lunch, never at dinner: that’s how Valencians do it.

The markets

The Mercado Central, under its Art Nouveau domes, is a working market; Central Bar, Ricard Camarena’s counter, is inside it. The Mercado de Colón in the Eixample is now a hall of cafés and restaurants.

When to eat

Lunch is the main meal, usually from about 2pm; dinner starts from about 9pm. Many restaurants close one or two days a week.

Our advice: book the starred tables ahead, and order paella for two or more.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Eating in Valencia: the back story before you go.