San Javier was the host of the grand finale of the 2026 edition of the Best Marinera of the Region of Murcia competition, which was held from September 18 to October 18. For one incredible month, more than 180 local bars and restaurants went head to head to create their best iteration of this iconic tapa, and the winning establishment was crowned in the lively coastal town.

More than 180 restaurants take part in the competition

The marinera is an iconic tapa from the Region of Murcia, particularly associated with the capital and with the Costa Calida hub city of Cartagena. It consists of a base of a crunchy, elongated-ring breadstick called a rosquilla, topped with a generous scoop of Russian salad made with boiled potatoes, tuna, hard-boiled eggs, carrots, peas or pickled vegetables, and mayonnaise, and crowned with a rich, salt-cured anchovy in brine. This delicious seafood snack goes hand in hand with the region’s reputation, and this 2026 edition of the competition inspired residents and visitors to go out, try new restaurants, and enjoy this delicious snack.

The jury’s assessment took into account aspects including product quality, technical execution, flavour, presentation, creativity and respect for the essence of the marinera.

Traditional and reinvented marineras take top prizes

Following the jury’s verdict and a tough competition, Con Sentido de Mari and its chef Mari Carmen Martínez Sánchez, from Cehegín, have won the award for Best Traditional Marinera 2026, while La Flota and its creators Rocío Fuentes and Antonio Fuentes, from Cartagena in La Palma, have obtained the recognition for Best Reinvented Marinera 2026. Both restaurants will receive a prize of 1,000€ each.

Special mentions celebrate Murcia’s culinary talent

The grand finale of the competition also recognised other delicious versions of the tapa through honourable mentions, awarded to La Posada del Pez in Murcia City and its chef Julián Valmayor, and the Best Mahou Reserva Pairing Award, given to Kiosco Ben Arabí, also in Murcia, and its chefs Consuelo Cánovas and Cristina Gil.

The competition brought together culinary professionals, representatives of the food industry in Murcia, and members of the hospitality sector at the Almansa Park Auditorium, celebrating the Region of Murcia’s strong culinary identity and the towns that create these outstanding tapas and meals. In particular, San Javier’s selection as the host for this event brought gastronomy and culture even closer to the town.

During the event, the mayor of San Javier, José Miguel Luengo Gallego, was appointed the Godfather of the Marinera 2026.

San Javier hosts celebration of regional gastronomy

The marinera is not only a tasty snack to try for those living in or visiting the Region of Murcia; it is a testament to the tradition, quality, and creativity that make up the landscape of Murcian gastronomy. Once more, restaurants in the Region of Murcia have showcased their prowess when it comes to keeping tradition alive, bite after tasty bite.

If you do your weekly supermarket shop, you’ll know that getting everything into the trolley is only half the job. There is still the queue, unloading all those groceries at the till waiting for them to be scanned and then packing everything up again. Alcampo is offering shoppers another way to do it, allowing them to scan their own shopping with their mobile phones as they walk around the store. The service, called AutoScan, lets customers scan each product before putting it into their trolley or basket.

Instead of waiting until they reach the checkout, they can build their shopping basket on their phone as they move through the aisles.  When they have finished, the contents can be transferred to the till without scanning every item again. AutoScan is integrated into the existing Club Alcampo app and was developed with shopreme, a company specialising in digital self-checkout technology. Customers do not need to download a separate app, but they must be Club Alcampo members.

AutoScan is being introduced across Alcampo stores

The service was first introduced in July this year, with an initial rollout covering around 40 stores in Madrid, Cataluña and Castilla-La Mancha. Alcampo plans to extend AutoScan progressively across its Spanish network before the end of 2026. 

It has not announced a confirmed date for when every branch will have the service, so customers should check whether it is available at their local supermarket. Traditional tills remain available for customers who would rather shop as they always have. AutoScan is an additional option, not a replacement for the existing checkout arrangements.

How to scan your shopping with your phone

To use AutoScan, shoppers need the Club Alcampo app on their mobile and must be inside a participating store. They can start a shopping session by scanning the code displayed in the supermarket or using the geolocation function available in the app. The phone’s camera is then used to read the barcode on each product. Shoppers scan an item before placing it in the trolley or basket, and it is added to their digital shopping list. They can continue doing this throughout the shop, rather than having to remember everything they have picked up.

Once they have finished, they select the payment option in the app. A QR code is generated, which transfers the digital basket to the checkout. There is an important detail for anyone expecting a completely phone-based payment system: AutoScan does not mean customers necessarily pay directly through the app. Payment is still completed at a checkout. 

In stores with Alcampo’s Cajamiga self-service tills, shoppers can use one of those machines. Where that facility is not available, they need to go to an assisted checkout. The difference is that the products have already been scanned during the shop. Customers do not have to unload the trolley and put every item through the checkout scanner again before paying.

Staff will still be available to help

Alcampo says employees will be on hand to explain how the service works and help customers who have difficulty using it. Store staff have received specific training to support shoppers using AutoScan and deal with problems during the process.

The range of products available through the service may vary according to the store, its format and the merchandise it stocks. That means the experience may not be identical in every branch, even where AutoScan is available. Customers who do not want to use the app can continue to shop and pay through the existing checkout facilities.

Alcampo’s move towards mobile shopping

The partnership with shopreme brings mobile scanning into Alcampo’s existing app and links the digital basket with the supermarket’s checkout systems. Shopreme says its technology is used in more than 2,000 stores across 12 countries.

For Alcampo, the service adds another digital option without requiring customers to use a separate application or a supermarket-issued scanner. The retailer expects to have AutoScan in all its Spanish stores before the end of 2026. Until then, customers will need to check whether their local branch has introduced the service before setting off with their shopping list.

Residents across Malaga Province have been hit by electricity cuts, with faults affecting up to eight municipalities and more than 1,100 customers caught up in a separate overnight outage in Campanillas.

The latest problems were reported on Sunday, November 1, with interruptions affecting parts of Malaga city, Alhaurin de la Torre, Alhaurin el Grande, Marbella, Velez-Malaga, Nerja, Benamargosa and Benamocarra, with the interruptions attributed to faults on the local electricity distribution network.

The worst individual incident was reported in Santa Rosalía-Maqueda, in the Campanillas district of Malaga, where residents lost their electricity at approximately 9pm on Saturday, October 31.

According to the distribution network’s recorded data, 1,141 homes were initially affected. The initial restoration estimate provided by Endesa was 11am on Sunday, but residents were still reporting problems after that deadline. The other interruptions were recorded in separate locations, rather than being part of one province-wide blackout.

Where are the latest power cuts?

According to electricity distributor e-distribución, a subsidiary of Endesa, the reported faults covered several neighbourhoods and streets.

In Malaga city, affected locations included the historic centre, Camino Suárez, Calle Tomás de Cózar, near Plaza de La Merced, Calle Dos Aceras, Calle Hilera and the area around Calle Venegas.

Other reported locations included:

• Alhaurin de la Torre: Calle de Las Eras.
• Alhaurin el Grande: Parts of the San Anton neighbourhood, near Calle Molinos de Arriba.
• Marbella: Costabella, including Calle Costa del Sol.
• Velez-Malaga: Around Calle Aloe Vera and Rio Seco.
• Nerja: Avenida Castilla Pérez.
• Benamargosa and Benamocarra: Further interruptions were reported in both municipalities.

The faults were described as separate incidents affecting local sections of the distribution network. Not every resident in the eight municipalities was without electricity.

Residents can check the official e-distribución breakdown map for updates and estimated restoration times. The company’s free breakdown telephone number is 900 878 212.

Possible transformer fire behind overnight outage

The prolonged interruption in Santa Rosalía-Maqueda is being investigated separately. Local reports suggest that the incident may have involved a fire at an electrical transformer, with residents describing smoke and what they believed was an explosion near electrical equipment.

However, the precise circumstances have not been officially confirmed. The interruption began at approximately 9pm on Saturday, with e-distribución’s recorded start time given as 9.14pm. More than 1,100 customers were listed as affected.

The original restoration estimate of 11am on Sunday was not met, leaving residents concerned about how long repairs might take.

The incident is particularly concerning because residents had already complained about repeated electricity interruptions in the area. In May, there were almost daily power cuts in Santa Rosalía-Maqueda, usually lasting around four minutes and occurring around lunchtime.

Endesa subsequently installed additional protection equipment at the Campanillas substation in an attempt to resolve those earlier problems.

Why are electricity problems becoming a concern in Malaga?

The latest interruptions come against a background of growing concern about the capacity of Malaga’s electricity infrastructure. The province has experienced rapid residential, commercial and tourism development, but the expansion of its electricity distribution network has struggled to keep pace.

In October, Malaga Mayor Francisco de la Torre warned that insufficient electricity capacity was holding back major residential and industrial developments. Around 13,500 planned homes in Malaga city were reported to be affected by a lack of available electricity capacity.

The president of Malaga’s provincial government, Francisco Salado, also warned that the shortage was affecting investment and economic development, with approximately 25,000 homes across the province reportedly facing electricity supply constraints.

The problem is not necessarily a shortage of electricity being generated. Rather, there are concerns about the capacity of the transmission and distribution infrastructure to transport and deliver enough power where it is needed.

The issue is part of a wider national problem. EWN previously examined how electricity grid saturation is affecting Spain’s energy transition, with limited network capacity delaying new connections for businesses and renewable energy projects.

Overloaded transformers have already caused blackouts

There have also been examples of electricity interruptions directly linked to overloaded local networks. In July, approximately 300 residents in the Las Cañadas area of Mijas and neighbouring Fuengirola lost electricity following an overload in the low-voltage network.

Endesa attributed the incident to rising temperatures and increased electricity consumption. Malaga had recorded a then-record electricity demand of 1,490 megawatts on the Thursday before the interruption.

The company subsequently planned a new transformer centre to increase capacity and improve reliability in the neighbourhood. The incident provoked residents to protest on the streets.

New electricity infrastructure will take years

The wider capacity problem is unlikely to disappear any time soon. Plans announced for the province include two new electrical substations and the expansion of an existing one in Cartama.

The projects are intended to provide additional capacity for Malaga city, Antequera and the growing Guadalhorce Valley, including the Malaga TechPark.

The Spanish Government’s proposed electricity network plan to 2030 includes a new Malaga Centro substation, another in Antequera and an expansion of the Cartama facility.

The projects will take time to complete, however, and some infrastructure improvements could be several years away. For residents currently experiencing interruptions, that offers little immediate reassurance.

The latest incidents have again raised questions about whether electricity networks are receiving sufficient investment to cope with Malaga’s expanding population, housing developments and growing demand for power.