Estepona hospitality group La Murga is planning to open ten new restaurants in the Costa del Sol before the end of next year. "Our aim ... is to create a range of high-quality themed concepts," sources said.
Led by entrepreneur Antonio de Juan, La Murga has started the venture with the acquisition of El Carnicero 1993, an iconic restaurant in the Cancelada area. It will shortly be opening Casa Naval, on the site formerly occupied by La Rada, both in Estepona.
In addition to these two projects, the company is already working on the forthcoming opening of an Italian restaurant (Rocambolesco), a Basque tavern (Paca La Vasca), an Argentinean restaurant, an Asian restaurant and a 'taco-masake' (Mexican-Japanese) restaurant. All these projects will launch within a maximum of five months. La Murga has stated that quality will be the top priority at all these venues, which will source their produce from local and zero-kilometre suppliers.
Antonio de Juan says the group's name is no coincidence. He was born in the Canary Islands, where 'murgas' (festive groups associated with music, performance and celebration) are hugely popular.
"For me, food is all about that: getting together, celebrating and having fun around a table," the entrepreneur said.
Grupo La Murga forms part of littleBIG Hospitality Group, a hospitality holding company that De Juan also founded and chairs.
El Carnicero 1993 was one of the first restaurants the group acquired, and it holds a special place in De Juan's heart. He remembers working there when he first arrived in Malaga. The restaurant belonged to Belgian business owner Philippe Libioulle, who welcomed him to Estepona and helped him settle in the Costa del Sol around 20 years ago.
For that reason, De Juan felt that Estepona was also the right place to take his first steps as a restaurateur.
El Carnicero opened in 1993 with a simple aim: to bring people together around an open fire, quality ingredients and a shared table. That philosophy remains unchanged today. The restaurant covers around 600 square metres, has a spacious, welcoming terrace and employs 35 people. Its specialities include grilled dishes and premium-quality meat.
The second venue, Casa Naval, will occupy the former La Rada site. That much-loved restaurant formed part of Estepona’s dining scene for 38 years. Casa Naval will open in December, with a greater emphasis on seafood. It will cover around 700 square metres and employ between 40 and 50 people.
De Juan described Casa Naval as a place that combines a traditional bar with full table service. A 15-metre-long bar will offer a wide selection of tapas, fish and shellfish, while a separate dining area will provide a more relaxed setting for enjoying wild fish and premium-quality meat.
"We want to bring back the traditional bar, which is gradually disappearing," the owner said.
The group has yet to finalise the details of its other restaurants, but it is already developing the concepts and searching for suitable premises. As mentioned, its main goal is to open all of them in Estepona, a town De Juan believes is growing rapidly and getting many things right.
"We don't want to have the same restaurant ten times over. We want ten good restaurants, each with its own identity and a clear reason to exist," he stated.
Hospitality holding company
Antonio de Juan began his career as an entrepreneur a decade ago when he founded TalentChef, a creative consultancy that develops food and beverage concepts for luxury hotels. The company's rapid growth led to the creation of littleBIG Hospitality Group last year, a hospitality holding company that now comprises seven businesses.
Alongside TalentChef and La Murga, the group includes Tailors, which develops comprehensive hotel concepts; Guinda, an interior design brand; Alia, an architecture brand specialising in hospitality projects; Libo, which focuses on the stewardship and management of property assets; and La Chismosa, a communications agency serving the luxury sector.
Together, the companies employ more than 300 people and have offices in Estepona, Madrid, Mexico City and Cancún. The group plans to expand into Brazil, Miami and the Middle East in the near future. It operates in more than 20 countries and has helped launch more than 50 hotel brands.