A 1912 grand café on Plaza de la Candelaria serving Cádiz picatostes and full restaurant plates

Why Café Royalty is worth a stop

Café Royalty stands on Plaza de la Candelaria in the old town of Cádiz, dating from 1912 and billed by the house as the only preserved historic grand café in Andalucía. Most places on the square trade on quick tapas or modern tasting menus, such as the three-table room at Mare a few doors away; Royalty trades on its room. Under coffered ceilings (techos artesonados) and early-20th-century décor, old-school waiters work a floor of marble tables that functions as a morning breakfast room and an all-day restaurant and bistro.

Because the square lies in the old town between the harbourside avenues and the market streets, it draws a mix of morning newspaper readers, families out for a sweet breakfast, and evening diners who prefer white-tablecloth service to standing at a crowded counter. You come here as much for the woodwork, the high ceilings and the unhurried pace of the floor staff as for what is on the plate.

The morning order: picatostes and pan con tomate

Morning is when the room feels closest to its 1912 roots. The classic local order here is picatostes, deep-fried slices of bread dusted with sugar and made to a traditional Cádiz recipe. Unlike the thin churros sold at street kiosks outside the market, picatostes are thick, substantial slices that hold their heat and go well with black coffee or tea.

If you want a break from the city's usual morning toast, order a plate of picatostes alongside fresh mint tea brewed with whole mint leaves or a straightforward pan con tomate, then take your time at one of the marble tables before walking over to the Mercado Central de Abastos.

Lunch and dinner: what is on the restaurant menu

For lunch and dinner, the kitchen shifts from traditional café fare to a menu that Directo al Paladar notes has adapted heavily to an international crowd, adding tatakis, sashimi and oysters alongside local produce from the bay and the province. If you want plain tortillitas de camarones at standing-bar prices, go to a tavern; if you want a sit-down meal in a grand historic dining room, the house suggestions menu lists clear prices:

• Tataki de atún (€26): made with local atún de almadraba.
• Pescado fresco de la Bahía a la plancha (€26): grilled fresh fish from the Bay of Cádiz served with arroz con muergo (razor clam rice), asparagus and Parmesan crisps.
• Solomillo de Retinto a la plancha (€32): grilled Retinto beef tenderloin with rosemary potatoes, Padrón peppers and a Palo Cortado and mustard reduction.
• Trío de ostras (€24): three oysters served natural, with ponzu sauce and with Bloody Mary.
• Surtido de croquetas (€21): an assortment of avocado and salmon, Torta del Casar cheese, and spinach and ham croquettes.
• Foie-gras de pato mi-cuit (€23): duck foie gras served with two jams.

The divide between the morning café and the main dining room is worth keeping in mind when you budget. Morning coffee and picatostes cost little more than a standard sit-down breakfast in the centre, whereas main courses in the restaurant sit firmly in the €21 to €32 bracket before wine or dessert.

Practical details and opening hours

Café Royalty is at Plaza de la Candelaria s/n in the historic centre (telephone 956 07 80 65). Reported opening hours run continuously from 11:00 to 23:00 Monday to Friday, and from 09:00 to 23:00 on Saturday and Sunday, making the weekend the earlier window if you are coming specifically for breakfast picatostes before sightseeing. Because the kitchen and café operate through the afternoon without the usual Spanish mid-afternoon shutdown, it is also a practical fallback when you want a late lunch outside standard 14:00 to 16:00 dining hours.