Manolo Torres: The Inspiration Behind Marbella

One of the founders of Marbella is Manolo Torres. He helped come up with the name "Marbella". Our restaurant is named after the affluent seaside town of Marbella in Spain. Manolo Torres is from the Albariño of Spain and has retained strong ties to his homeland.

He spends a month or two every year in Spain. Manolo, who is called "Manny" by his friends, has a homegrown appreciation for the pleasures of fine wines and Spanish food. He notes, "I used to make wine when I was a kid with my father." His father stills grows grapes in Spain commercially.

You will surely get to meet Manny one night at Marbella. Manny is always offering suggestions on food and wine and will often sit down with you for a few minutes if invited. So that you can learn a bit about Senor Torres, we have included a little quote from him below.

"As a native of Spain, I had the pleasure of growing up around fine wines. As a child I remember fondly the times I spent with family picking the best grapes to be sent to vineyards all around Spain and Portugal. My father taught me the difference between the good grapes and the bad and how those differences transferred into excellent wines. I was lucky to learn the art of wine making and became an expert in the process in the many years of making wine for the family. As an adult, I have spent most of my professional career owning and managing fine restaurants where only the best wines were served. I have cultivated that knowledge; and my appreciation for wine; and I'm proud to introduce you to our fine wine list. I have shopped the world looking for the best wines to serve my customers. I hope you enjoy your choice."

Senor Torres is also the founder of Cleveland's famous "Warehouse District" restaurant named Mallorca. This name comes from the beautiful island of Mallorca in Spain. You will often see Manolo working or enjoying himself at Mallorca.

He splits his time between Marbella and Mallorca, although you will have a better chance of seeing him at Marbella. Because we recently opened (April 2003), Manny spends many hours in our restaurant to make sure the cuisine, wines and service is outstanding.

Manny, along with Jesus Demanuel have personally hand picked out every bottle of wine on our wine list. This was quite a task considering we offer over 300 different wines by the bottle. Senor Torres also works seamlessly with our Executive Chef, Marcelo Fadul to fine tune our menu selections.

The Marbella wine list has been handpicked by Manolo Torres. Some of his favorite wines come from the Rioja region of Spain. Next time you talk with Manny, ask him to suggest a fantastic Spanish wine to accompany your meal. He will be happy to oblige.

Are you planning a birthday or other special occasion?

Reservations are always a good idea. Are you planning a special evening? Dining at Marbella is a wonderful way to highlight an important occasion. Are you planning a birthday party? Celebrate it at Marbella and our entire staff will sing "Happy Birthday" in Spanish at your table. Planning a wedding engagement?

We can have a fresh flower bouquet adorning your table when you arrive. And when it is time for the proposal, our our entire staff will joyfully bring out the wedding ring in a glass of champagne served on a silver tray.

We have other celebratory traditions to suggest, as well. So give us a call to make a reservation and we can give you some ideas on how to make your evening unforgettable.

Dining at Marbella offers world class tableside service.

Led by Manolo Torres, the same management staff that brought our "sister" restaurant, Mallorca, the coveted "Best Service Award" from Cleveland Magazine for 2002 is at your service.

The attentive and friendly service at Marbella contributes to the refined, romantic ambience of our restaurant. Our knowledgeable and professional waiters and bus boys glide between laughing and whispering diners, available and informed but never obtrusive. Your wish is our command.

Senor Torres is proud to note that we Marbella offers the same outstanding service that our "sister" restaurant, Mallorca provides. Cleveland restaurant goers have continually voted the service at Mallorca to be the best in Cleveland. Numerous members of our staff have moved from Mallorca to Marbella in order to continue our fine tradition of exemplary tableside service.

Use our "Photo Viewer" to see pictures of Manolo Torres and our collection of paintings by Picasso and other Latin artists.

Everything you experience at Marbella oozes with Spanish influence. The sights, sounds, flavors and aromas transport you to the cities of Madrid, Barcelona, Marbella or the island of Mallorca. Our web site can only do so much. Granted you can listen to audio pronunciations of wine terms in the "Wines By The Glass" section, but we just didn't have the technology to bring the tastes and smells to your computer. Maybe someday.

However, we can bring you the visual effects. We have created a "Photo Viewer" that will guide you on a tour of our restaurant. These photos include captions for your added enjoyment. Look at paintings by Picasso and other talented artists.

Outstanding professional servers like Ceasar, David and Kelli make sure your dining experience at Marbella is one to remember, fondly. Managers like Jesus Demanuel (pictured below) don't miss a thing. Our entire staff is committed to creating an unforgettable dining experience for you at Marbella.

Outstanding fine dining service is our trademark. We treat you like the King or Queen of Spain when you join us for an afternoon or evening. When you and your friends visit us at Marbella you will be received like Royalty. And if you bring children, they will be treated as if they were Princes and Princesses.

The details that are synonymous with "fine dining" are apparent at Marbella. Your table linen is "crumbed" between courses, half full water glasses are refilled, loaves of bread are replenished magically, champagne glasses are topped off, ashtrays are emptied often, dropped napkins replaced without notice, and it seems like you never have to ask for anything. We can almost read your mind.

Camarones En Salsa De Ajo (Shrimp in a Garlic Sauce)

A dish that goes perfectly with a refreshing glass of Chardonnay is our Garlic Shrimp. It is served as an appetizer or entree. The garlic sauce is so delicious, you may find yourself dipping your bread into the dish to get every last drop.

The chopped garlic in the sauce really adds to the flavor of the shrimp. We pile on the shrimp and then lavishly drizzle our homemade garlic sauce over the top. It is very rare that our table attendants ever see a leftover shrimp when they clear this dish. By the way, the Spanish word for shrimp is "camarones", "salsa" means sauce and "ajo" means garlic.

Gift Certificates from Marbella make excellent presents. You can order them in any denomination you like. Choose from any number of methods for ordering. You can call us at 216-464-9939 and we can mail it to you or the recipient.

This web site also has a fax/mail order form you can print out. You can even order your gift certificate right through our web site.

So if you want to treat some friends or relatives to the excitement and adventure that is Marbella, get them a really special present.

Links to Spanish web sites:

Online Guide to Spain
Excellent overview of Spain with guides to geography, weather, travel, events, attractions, culture, money, history, etc.

Guides to Spanish Cuisine
A list links to Spanish web sites offering information on the wines, foods, cooking styles and restaurants in The Kingdom of Spain.

Ideal Spain
It calls itself the "Largest Internet Guide To Spain."

MallorcaCleveland.com
The Inspiration behind Marbella is our "sister" restaurant in the warehouse district of downtown Cleveland. Our Chef, Marcelo Fadul, splits his time between Marbella and Mallorca. Regulars at Mallorca will be delighted to see many of the same dishes on our menu. Manolo Torres is also the founder of Mallorca.