IN WITH THE NEW

It’s 15 years since La Sala launched in Marbella. With a new restaurant, bowling alley, sports bar and estate agency soon to be added, Jon Clarke discovers why the restaurant and lifestyle brand is still going stronger than ever

WITH no sea view and sitting on a roundabout overlooking the busy N-340 motorway, it has no right to be the most successful Marbella restaurant in a generation.

Yet, somehow, La Sala continues to be the place that every tourist aspires to come to for at least one night of their holiday.

Guaranteed to offer glitz and glamour, the sprinkling of stardust continues by the week, with celebrities from around the world continuing to flock in to enjoy the vibe.

Be they actors or soap stars, boxers or racing drivers, singers or royals, there is a magical ingredient that ensures they feel at home here or at one of its sister restaurants, including La Sala by the Sea, and soon to reopen, the Oak, next door.

From Tyson Fury to Frank Bruno, Harry Redknapp to Harry Kane and Bruce Forsyth to Ja Rule, the stars from today and yesteryear keep coming back.

Even Prince Albert of Monaco has been in for dinner, while celebrity chef Jamie Oliver made a point of joining the fun on a trip to Spain a couple of years ago.

With Amanda Holden, Boy George and

La Sala By Numbers

Julian Clary already scheduled to drop in this Spring, what exactly is the recipe for success ensuring that anyone who is anyone keeps scything a trail to its door?

“It’s all about not being complacent,” explains boss Ian Radford, who moved to Marbella from London at the age of 20.

“We are constantly evolving with the Marbella scene and are never sitting back,” he explains over a beer on the sunny terrace.

“We don’t stop trying to change things but, above all, we try to keep the prices as reasonable as we can.”

This is certainly a vital ingredient in a resort, where prices have rapidly zoomed up to the levels of all luxury destinations in the world.

Rising fast since the pandemic eased last year, the average cost of a good quality restaurant in Marbella these days is around 80 to 90 euros a head,

● The La Sala Group has 155,000 covers a year

● On a busy summer day it can serve 1500 people

● Over one million drinks are sold each year

● 300,000 food dishes are sold

● It employs over 200 staff

● Pre-bookings at La Sala by the Sea are over 10,000 this year

● A sunbed for four to six peo- ple costs around 300 euros for the day estimates Radford, a father-of-three, who was a squash and padel pro, before becoming a restaurateur.

“We could jump on the bandwagon and

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