Dinner
You are seated at a table assigned in booking order and eat first. Drinks and extra dishes can be ordered before the show, and the booking page lists the menu options. Say early if you have allergies or a diet to follow.
Why the Albaicín
An evening up the hill
A quarter that kept its streets
The Albaicín climbs the hill opposite the Alhambra. Wikipedia says it largely kept the medieval street plan it had under the Nasrids, and that Calle Panaderos, the street where the tablao stands, was its commercial centre in that period. You are not entering a themed room. You are walking up into a working neighbourhood.
What a carmen is
A carmen is a freestanding Granada house, usually whitewashed, with a small orchard or garden. The word comes from the Arabic for a vineyard. The venue says its tablao works inside one, with a patio, a fountain and a garden, which is why dinner here feels like an evening at a house and not at a restaurant hall.
Why flamenco suits the hour
UNESCO put flamenco on its intangible heritage list in 2010 and calls Andalusia its heartland. It joins song, dance and guitar, and a tablao shows all three at close range. A single hour is enough to hear the voice, watch the footwork and follow the guitar, and dinner first lets the room settle before the lights change.
How the night runs
Two acts: the table, then the stage
The ticket is built as a dinner followed by a show, so the evening has two clear halves.
The show
The artists perform for about an hour, with a singer, a guitar and dancers, and the room asks for quiet. Spanish and English are both used for the welcome and announcements. A guest who arrives late is admitted at the next musical break, so the performance is not interrupted.
The set list, in plain words
Six palos you may hear
Every flamenco form has a name, a palo, and Wikipedia counts more than fifty of them. These six turn up in most serious guides to the art, so they help you follow what the singer and guitarist are doing.
- 01 Soleá
The deep, slow one
Soleá runs on a twelve-beat cycle and has a solemn weight. Wikipedia adds that soleares are also known as cante jondo, which means deep song, and that most are traditionally held to be of Romani origin. Listen for how the singer stretches a line while the guitar holds the count underneath.
- 02 Siguiriya
The deepest song
Siguiriya also uses twelve beats, with the strong ones falling in different places from soleá. The composer Manuel de Falla treated it as the song type of cante jondo and is reported to have called it the song kept in its pure form. It is spare and serious, and a quiet room matters most here.
- 03 Granaína
The one named for the city
Granaína is a slow variant of the Granada fandango, sung with little fixed rhythm. Wikipedia credits the singer Antonio Chacón, 1869 to 1929, with freeing it from rhythm and making it popular. Singers often finish with a media granaína, a similar tune pitched higher.
- 04 Fandango
A folk dance that became a palo
Fandangos began as dances, hugely popular across Spain and Latin America in the 18th century, and later became a flamenco form. Regular fandangos are in three or six beats, and freer versions followed. Granaína is one of their descendants.
- 05 Tangos
The festive one
Tangos sit on a four-beat cycle and are the main palo of their family. Wikipedia sets them against the solemn cante jondo as songs that are fast and festive. Expect the clapping to quicken and the mood in the room to lift.
- 06 Farruca
The northern import
Farruca also runs on four beats. Wikipedia says the folk songs behind it probably came from Asturias and Catalonia and took on flamenco character once they reached Andalusia. It is a reminder that the art absorbed tunes from beyond the south.
The artists choose the programme, and the venue says it changes from week to week. Think of it as a field guide to listening, not a programme.
What the ticket covers
What the ticket covers
Short facts to read before you book.
- Dinner and the show
- The GetYourGuide ticket is for a dinner and a flamenco show in the same evening. The booking page puts the full evening at around two and a half hours.
- The show itself
- Guitar, song and dance. The venue says the show lasts one hour and that the programme changes from week to week.
- Your table
- Tables go out in strict booking order. The venue also describes lower tables in the centre and higher tables along the sides.
- Drinks and extras
- Drinks and dishes from the menu can be ordered before the show. Check the inclusions on your booking page before assuming a drink is part of the ticket.
- Language
- The performance is mostly visual. Spanish and English are both used for the welcome and announcements.
- House rules
- Silence during the show. No flash, and no video recording. No pets, apart from assistance dogs.
- Ages and dress
- All ages are welcome, though the room may suit children from about eight. Casual clothes are fine, and semi-formal is suggested for the evening.
The hill, the garden and the stage
The hill, the garden and the stage
These photographs show the Albaicín, a Granada carmen wall and garden, the street the tablao stands on and a flamenco performance. None of them shows the inside of the venue itself.
Choosing a flamenco night
Three ways to spend a flamenco night in Granada
| The night | What it is | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|
| Dinner and show in a garden house (this ticket) | A dinner, then about an hour of guitar, song and dance in a tablao in the Albaicín. | A whole evening out, with the meal and the show in one booking |
| Show without dinner | The venue also sells entry to the show on its own. A show-only ticket is a separate booking. | Anyone who has eaten already or will eat elsewhere |
| A small cave room | An hour of flamenco in a cave on the hillside, with the artists very close. The two cave tickets further down show this format. | A shorter, closer night in place of a long dinner |
Check dates and options on the dinner-and-show booking page ↗
Pick your night
Three evenings of flamenco in Granada
The first card is the dinner-and-show ticket this page is about. The other two are cave-room flamenco evenings in the same city, for a different kind of night. Choose a date to see open sessions.
Dinner and flamenco at Jardines de Zoraya
A dinner and then a one-hour show of guitar, song and dance, in a tablao in the Albaicín. Tables are assigned in booking order.
Flamenco in a small hillside cave
A one-hour show in a small cave room on the hill opposite. A lighter, shorter evening with no dinner course built around it.
Dinner and flamenco in a cave room
A different format: about an hour in a cave room where dinner is served while the artists perform.
Other things to do in Granada
Planning the evening
Before you go
01
Where it is
The tablao is at Calle Panaderos 32, in the Albaicín, 18010 Granada, minutes from the San Nicolás viewpoint. The quarter is a hill of narrow lanes, so allow time for the climb and wear shoes that cope with cobbles.
02
Arriving
The start time is on your confirmation, and it changes with the date. A guest who turns up late is admitted at the next musical break, so aim to be seated before the show begins.
03
Food and allergies
Tell the venue in advance about any allergy or diet. The booking page lists menu options for different dietary needs, and drinks or dishes can be added before the show.
04
Your seat
Seats go in booking order. If you want to sit close to the stage, book early and ask the venue about the table types when you confirm.
05
During the show
Stay quiet while the artists perform. Do not use flash, and do not record video. Phones are best kept in a pocket for the hour.
06
Before dinner
The San Nicolás viewpoint is a short walk away and faces the Alhambra. Visitors go there for the view across the valley, so you can fit a short look before you sit down.
Guides to Jardines de Zoraya, the Albaicín and flamenco
Guides to Jardines de Zoraya, the Albaicín and flamenco
- 01 Tickets, dinner and the table
Jardines de Zoraya dinner show
What the Jardines de Zoraya dinner-and-flamenco ticket covers, how the evening runs, how seating works and who should pick a different night. Read the guide → - 02 The practical guide
Flamenco and dinner in Granada
How to plan a flamenco show with dinner in Granada's Albaicín: the hill, the viewpoint, what you will hear, the room's rules and how to dress. Read the guide → - 03 The quarter around the room
The Albaicín before the show
A short history of the Albaicín, Granada's hill quarter: its first settlers, the Zirid citadel, Nasrid streets, the old mosque and the cisterns. Read the guide → - 04 The kind of room it is
From café cantante to tablao
What a tablao is, where the word comes from, how it replaced the café cantante and what to expect from a dinner and show in one. Read the guide → - 05 The dinner half of the night
Dinner, drinks and allergies
How the dinner half of a Granada dinner-and-flamenco evening works: menu choices, drinks, allergies, diets and what to settle before you sit down. Read the guide → - 06 For the first-timer
Your first flamenco night
What to expect at your first flamenco show: song, dance and guitar, how the artists work together, the rhythm and how to behave in the room. Read the guide →
FAQ
Questions before you book
How long is the evening?
Around two and a half hours from start to finish. The venue puts the show itself at one hour, with dinner before it. Your confirmation gives the start time for your session.
Is dinner part of the ticket?
Yes. This ticket is for dinner and the flamenco show together. The booking page lists the menu options, including choices for dietary needs, so pick one when you book or confirm.
Are drinks included?
Do not assume so. Drinks and dishes from the menu can be ordered before the show, and the booking page shows exactly what your option includes.
Can I choose where I sit?
Not directly. Tables go out in strict booking order, so an earlier booking tends to mean a table nearer the stage.
Is the show in English?
The performance is mostly visual, and announcements and introductions are in Spanish and English.
Is it suitable for children?
Children of every age may come, though about eight and up is the age the evening may suit. The room asks for quiet during the show.
What should I wear?
Casual clothes are accepted. Semi-formal is the suggestion for the evening.
Is this a cave show?
No. The venue describes a tablao in a traditional Granada house with a patio and garden. Cave rooms are a separate format, shown further down this page.
Dinner first, then an hour of flamenco, in a garden house high in the Albaicín.
Book dinner and flamenco ↗Fares vary by date and by seats left. Pick a night and the fare appears in your own currency.