Casa Pepe de la Judería

Casa Pepe de la Judería occupies a 17th-century former nobleman's townhouse on Calle Romero, sixty metres from the Mezquita-Cathedral and deep inside the UNESCO-protected Jewish Quarter. The restaurant is arranged around three Cordoban-style patios planted with orange trees, jasmine, and geraniums — the same style of flower-draped interior courtyard that the city celebrates with the annual May Patio Festival. In warm weather, every table in the restaurant opens onto one of these courtyards.

The menu is the full traditional Andalusian repertoire, executed to a standard that has earned the restaurant a Michelin Guide 'Plate' for the past decade. Salmorejo Cordobés — the house version, thicker than a gazpacho, garnished with Iberico ham and chopped egg, drizzled with oil — is the dish every first-time visitor should order. Rabo de toro (oxtail braised in Montilla wine for six hours) is the main that defines traditional Cordoban cooking. Flamenquín de lomo (pork loin rolled around cured ham, breaded and deep-fried) is the regional street-food classic elevated to dining-room presentation.

The wine list is anchored in Montilla-Moriles and Jerez, as Cordoban lists should be, with a handful of serious Ribera del Duero and Rioja reds for guests who prefer unfortified wines. The house recommendation — a fino from a small Córdoba-based bodega — is the pairing that most reveals the cooking.

The rooftop terrace, open from April to October, looks out over the tiled roofs of the Judería and (in summer dusk) catches the Mezquita's bell tower in silhouette. It is among the most romantic rooftop dining views in Andalucia, and the best birthday restaurant in Córdoba for a guest of honour who wants a little performance from the city itself.

For a birthday in Córdoba where the setting needs to carry the evening, Casa Pepe's rooftop at sunset is the unmatched option. The courtyards in flower, the 17th-century architecture, and the silhouette of the Mezquita make the dining room feel like an extension of the city itself. Ask for a rooftop table in the western corner and let the staff know about the candle.