From the breezy dunes of Normandy to the dreamy lagoons of the Algarve, our writers choose their favourite places to eat and drink by the sea

On Menorca’s north-east coast, Es Grau is a low-key village with a crescent of dark sand in a fan-shaped bay, behind which is the s’Albufera des Grau nature reserve. Tamarindos is actually two places: as you reach the Mediterranean, look left to see the bar, with shady tables under the trees; look right for the restaurant, with a terrace on stilts over the duck-egg-blue water.

At the bar, I go for the grilled brioche stuffed with sobrasada sausage, punchy Mahón cheese and local honey with a glass of local merluzo white wine. In the restaurant, my favourite is the paella with Menorcan red prawns, but the artichoke and seaweed version is good, too. Later on, you’ll find me back under the trees with a pomada – Xoriguer gin mixed with lemonade and crushed ice.

Paella from €26 per person

Annie Bennett