Mordida

To the Josper what belongs to the Josper

The Josper is Mordida's main argument, but it's worth explaining without turning it into a spec sheet. Its interest lies in what it does to the product: it marks, concentrates, smokes, caramelises, dries just enough when needed and leaves fat, juice and temperature at a point that's difficult to achieve with a conventional kitchen.

When used well, the Josper isn't only noticeable in the meat. It also shows up in a scallop, chicken wings, provolone, a piece of fish, a vegetable or even a dessert. That's one of the more interesting readings of Mordida: the grill doesn't stay locked inside the rib chop — it runs through the whole menu.

The house puts it plainly: "to the Josper what belongs to the Josper". The phrase sounds light, but it captures the project fairly well. It's not about forcing smoke into everything by default, but about understanding which products gain something when they pass over charcoal and which ones need different treatment.

A broad menu, but with a common thread

Mordida's menu is broad and sensibly organised: classics, salads, kitchen garden and fire, sea and embers, aged beef, Iberian pork, free-range chicken and desserts. That structure helps you read the restaurant. It's not just a steakhouse. Nor a grill dressed up as a gastropub. It's a table where fire serves as the organising logic for quite different proposals.

The classics section includes broken eggs, croquettes, Russian salad, torreznos, scallops, teriyaki Josper wings, braised black pudding, charcoal provolone and Idiazabal fritters that deserve attention in their own right — recognisable dishes built for sharing and getting settled without too much explanation.

That classics section carries more weight than it might seem. In a grill restaurant, not everything is decided by the large cuts. It's also measured in the first bites: how fat is handled, where the smoke appears, and whether fire adds without becoming the only voice at the table.

Idiazabal fritters: the bite worth not skipping

If there's one dish that captures Mordida's more welcoming side, it's the Idiazabal cheese fritters. They don't belong to the solemn world of the grill, nor do they need to. They work for something more direct: fat, cheese, temperature and a texture designed to disappear quickly.

Idiazabal has enough character to carry the bite without getting diluted. That's the trick. A cheese fritter can be a comfortable but flat thing, or it can have depth, smoke, salinity and persistence. At Mordida, this dish works as a near-essential starter because it sets the tone of the meal: recognisable pleasure, just enough technique, and no interest in complicating what already works.

No need to elevate it to cult status — but it's worth noting. On a first visit, skipping it would mean starting the meal with less information than necessary.

Meat, smoke and product

Mordida's most obvious section is the meat. Aged beef, sirloin, skirt steak, entrecôte, T-bone, rib chop, Iberian secreto, presa, spare ribs, free-range chicken. The menu speaks the language of those who want to eat with some conviction, without entering the heavy liturgy of the classic steakhouse.

Here fire works as a way of making the dish more direct. There's no need to cover a good cut with too many things. The charcoal should mark, not disguise. If the product is well chosen, the work involves respecting resting times, doneness and temperature. Everything else tends to be surplus.

Mordida seems to understand that beef on the grill doesn't need solemnity — but it does need care. There's a meaningful difference between serving a cut and cooking it with criterion. In an area where the plan might start at the beach and end at a long table, that mix of informality and product makes sense.

Sea and garden also pass through fire

One of Mordida's better decisions is not limiting the Josper to meat. The sea and embers section allows a broader reading: sea bass, salmon, mussels, octopus, salt cod, bluefin tuna. Fish on charcoal is a delicate matter. Controlled well, it gains depth, skin, fat and aroma. Forced, it loses clarity. That's where the hand of a grill kitchen is most clearly measured.

The same applies to vegetables. They benefit from fire when it's not used against them. A leek, an artichoke, mushrooms or an aubergine can take on more serious dimensions when the grill accompanies rather than overwhelms. In that part of the menu, Mordida has an interesting opportunity: to show that the Josper is not only power — it can also be precision.

That may be the best reading of the restaurant. Fire as a transversal tool. Not as a shout. Not as an excuse to make everything taste the same. As a way of building flavour.

Near the beach, but not coasting on it

Mordida's location near Muchavista could push the restaurant towards a comfortable logic: beach venue, broad menu, fast service, nothing more. But the proposal tries to go a step further. There's a terrace, a contemporary atmosphere and a menu designed for different audiences — and the Josper gives it a backbone that prevents everything from settling into a decent but generic coastal restaurant.

That doesn't mean it's a table of high gastronomic ambition. It doesn't need to be. Mordida works best as a well-built grill restaurant: useful for going with friends, ordering for the table, sharing classics, moving on to meat or fish and finishing with a dessert without changing the register too much.

It's a place to eat with appetite. For a relaxed dinner. For those who want a grill without ceremony and good product without solemnity. In that territory, the proposal holds up.

What to order and how to approach it

On a first visit, start with a classic that has some character: Idiazabal fritters, grilled scallops, Josper wings, provolone or torreznos. Then it's worth looking at the garden and fire section before going straight to the meat. Vegetables are a good test of whether a grill kitchen is well understood.

For the main, the natural path goes through the aged beef, entrecôte, skirt steak, T-bone or rib chop if you're hungry and have company. Octopus, salt cod or salmon also make sense if you want to see how the Josper handles things outside of meat.

This is not a restaurant for those seeking minimal cuisine, a tasting menu or a quiet experience. Mordida calls for a table, appetite, some smoke and the desire to share.

Final verdict

Mordida deserves attention because it has a clear idea and sustains it throughout the menu: fire, embers and Josper. It doesn't try to look like an ancient grill or a fine dining house. Its value lies elsewhere: using charcoal as the through-line to build a recognisable, flavoursome and quite versatile experience.

The menu is broad but not scattered. There are classics, vegetables, seafood, meats and desserts that all rotate around the same logic. When the Josper is well used, the restaurant gains character. When the grill accompanies without imposing, Mordida finds its best version.

It's a good address for eating near Muchavista if you're after product, fire and a table without too much ceremony. Not everything needs to be solemn to have criterion. Sometimes it's enough for the smoke to be exactly where it should be.