Cà Maréin is the latest hospitality opening from UK-based Fortune Family Group, the company behind Michelin-starred Lita in London’s Marylebone. Led by Chef Patron Emanuele Pollini, the new venue combines a 200-seat restaurant with a private beach, creating a space that moves easily from morning coffee and time by the sea to long lunches, aperitivo and dinner.
Set directly on the waterfront, the restaurant opens onto two terraces that connect with the promenade and lead down towards the beach and its sun loungers. A further glazed terrace can remain open during warmer weather, allowing the sea breeze through, before becoming a more sheltered dining space in the evening or when conditions change.
Rather than concentrating everything around one central bar, several bars are positioned throughout the restaurant, giving different parts of the space their own character and pace.
The food follows much the same philosophy. Pollini’s menus are rooted in Italian coastal cooking, but guided by the produce and landscape of southern Spain.
Born in Cesena in Emilia-Romagna, Pollini began his career working along Italy’s Adriatic coast, where what appeared on the menu was often dictated by the sea, the weather and the season. That early connection to coastal cooking continues at Cà Maréin, where Spanish and local ingredients are viewed through an Italian lens.
Seafood takes a leading role, with the day’s catch displayed at the restaurant’s fish counter. Depending on the fish, it might be served raw with a simple dressing, cooked over charcoal or prepared using recipes from Italy’s coastal regions. Meat, vegetables, handmade pasta and pizza complete the menu, with ingredients changing naturally through the seasons, from spring produce and changing catches to mushrooms and truffles later in the year.
Among the antipasti are Sea Bass Carpaccio with Oro di Cabras bottarga, as well as familiar Italian dishes such as Vitello Tonnato and Fritto Misto. The primi section includes Homemade Lasagna with Red Scorpionfish and Potato Gnocchi with Red Prawns, Datterini Tomatoes, Prawn Bisque and Basil. Larger dishes range from Blackspot Sea Bream all’Acqua Pazza, prepared in the southern Italian style, to Chargrilled Sea Bass with Salmoriglio.
Spanish ingredients are worked into the menu without losing its Italian character. Galician beef, for example, is paired with green pepper sauce in a take on Filetto al Pepe Verde, while Cecina de Buey appears on pizza with Fior di Latte di Agerola and Parmigiano Reggiano.
The drinks list has been put together with long days by the sea in mind. Italian aperitivo staples including the Americano and Negroni sit alongside cocktails using seasonal fruit, herbs and spice.
The Melon Spritz combines gin, Martini Bianco, St-Germain, melon and lemongrass, while the Tonka Sbagliato mixes vermouth, Aperol, Campari and Prosecco with cherry and tonka bean. The Padrón Margarita takes a slightly different direction, pairing tequila and mezcal with mango, grapefruit and jalapeño.
Wine leans strongly towards Italy and Spain, while also making room for French bottles and a sizeable selection of Champagnes. Wines by the glass range from Galician Albariño and Andalusian whites to Barolo, Burgundy and Provence rosé, with sherry, sweet wines, grappa and Italian digestivi available later in the meal.
The restaurant’s interiors take their cues from both sides of the Mediterranean. The design brings together warm sand-coloured stone, timber, woven rattan and neutral fabrics, chosen to sit comfortably against the light and landscape outside. Black detailing and geometric mosaic patterns add contrast, while metal furniture and textured fabrics keep the overall mood informal enough for its beachfront setting.
Handcrafted details and woven surfaces continue throughout the restaurant, while draped linen across ceilings and pergolas filters the stronger midday sun. There is also a more private option tucked away behind Cà Maréin’s wine library. An eight- to ten-seat dining room offers a quieter setting for smaller groups while remaining connected to the atmosphere of the main restaurant.
The overall idea is less about choosing between Italian and Andalusian influences than allowing the two to meet naturally. Italian technique and culinary traditions remain central, but the ingredients, sea air and easy rhythm of Marbella have been given room to shape the experience. For Cà Maréin, that means a restaurant designed not simply around dinner, but around the way a day on the Mediterranean often unfolds: slowly, with good food somewhere at the centre of it.
To find out more about Cà Maréin and book, visit the links below:
Cà Maréin
Urbanización Coral Beach
N-340, Km. 176
29602 Marbella
Málaga, Spain
Web: camarein-marbella.com
Tel: +34 628 01 35 62
Online Booking: sevenrooms.com
Instagram: @camarein_marbella