{"id":2278,"date":"2011-11-14T17:09:08","date_gmt":"2011-11-14T17:09:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/wp\/?p=2278"},"modified":"2026-02-08T11:45:02","modified_gmt":"2026-02-08T11:45:02","slug":"vigo-michelin-stars-and-seafood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/vigo-michelin-stars-and-seafood\/","title":{"rendered":"Vigo \u2013 Michelin Stars and Seafood – travel review"},"content":{"rendered":"

You will appreciate from these articles that I consider Vigo in Galicia something of an undiscovered culinary gem. The fresh produce and seafood are outstanding but you will likely be staying in a hotel where cooking facilities are strictly for the professionals, so you will want to find the best and the most interesting of restaurants to try all those aforementioned delicacies.<\/span><\/p>\n

Vigo and the surrounding towns offer both locals and visitors an array of gastronomic opportunities. One can eat well here for a fraction of the price of similar in the UK. The cost is lower but the quality isn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

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The El Mosquito Restaurant<\/h4>\n

\"Vigo The El Mosquito Restaurant in Vigo is iconic and considered by many to be the best traditional restaurant in the town. With those considerations in mind one might expect a huge flashy chandelier-hung carbon copy of every other \u201ciconic\u201d restaurant in Europe. No, thank goodness, dear reader, El Mosquito is the \u201creal thing\u201d and it truly is celebrated for good reason.<\/span><\/p>\n

El Mosquito first opened in the 1930s. The founder of the restaurant was Ms. Carmen Roel Rilo, who passed away in 1986. It wasn\u2019t trying to attract swep-up diners in those days, but was said initially to be a \u2018Tavern for sailors\u2019, serving Spanish Ribeiro wine and small plates of fried fish (Ribeiro is a surname common in Galicia, Portugal and Brazil; it is also a wine-making region of Southeast central Galicia). There would have been plenty of sailors in those days and I guess they would have been satisfied with that rather short menu. I am sure those few items offered were fresh and tasty, but the discerning diners of the 21st century have higher expectations and the 21st century El Mosquito gives them just what they expect, and probably more. Ms. Rilo transformed, with the help of her family, this humble establishment into a worthy recipient of accolades.<\/p>\n

\"Vigo The restaurant is found near the harbour in the old quarter of Vigo, a picturesque neighbourhood which reminds the visitor that Vigo was around a long time before holiday cruise ships or international airports were even thought of. El Mosquito looks small from the outside but walk down a short corridor past a seafood counter and you are into a charming restaurant of 60 or so covers \u2013 low ceilings and walls hung with photos of international celebrities who evidently discovered this culinary treasure before you did.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no surprise that fish and seafood in all their guises are the staple at El Mosquito, although the menu offers something for every taste. Start with a slice or two of Empanada (a flat pie with a variety of fillings) along with a glass of white Albari\u00f1o. Octopus is cooked to delicate perfection and a crusty bread roll warm from the oven might complete the epicurean prelude to your main event.<\/p>\n

\"galicia The restaurant has a considerable menu of fishy delights but don\u2019t dismiss some of the lesser known dishes like \u201ccod throats\u201d. OK, let\u2019s be honest, the description isn\u2019t a winner but the reality is \u2013 tender and sweet nuggets with a choice of preparation styles. Sole and hake and other substantial fish are here, and those cooked in Galician fashion are simple and flavourful: a steak of white and moist fish with simply boiled potatoes and a garnish of peas, and the paprika oil adds vivid colour.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s unlikely you will make it through to dessert here …but try. Lots of traditional local favourites to linger over. Sample the cakes with a cup of coffee or a liqueur to finish your evening. You won\u2019t be in a hurry to leave this restaurant and you will promise yourself a return …as have done many others before you.<\/p>\n

El Mosquito Restaurant
\nPlaza da Pedra, 4 – 36202 Vigo, Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain
\nPhone\/Fax: (+34) 986 433 570
\nemail: info@elmosquitovigo.com
\nVisit El Mosquito here<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Travel review by Chrissie Walker \u00a9 2018<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Read more articles about Spain here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You will appreciate from these articles that I consider Vigo in Galicia something of an undiscovered culinary gem. The fresh produce and seafood are outstanding but you will likely be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":24362,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,37,7,10],"tags":[56,178,47,528],"class_list":["post-2278","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-european","category-european-travel","category-restaurants","category-travel","tag-fish","tag-restaurant","tag-spain","tag-vigo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2278","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2278"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2278\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26656,"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2278\/revisions\/26656"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24362"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2278"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2278"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mostlyfood.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2278"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}