Rafa Nadal, Enrique Iglesias and Pau Gasol open restaurant in Miami Beach

The Tatel Restaurant in the Ritz-Carlton Hotel specialises in traditional Spanish cuisine and culture – a relatively unknown concept in much of the USA, where it is assumed Spanish and Mexican food are similar.

The trio, along with their business partners Abel Matutes Prats and Manuel Campos Guallar, own another branch of the Tatel in Madrid, which has been open for two years.

Their next plan is to open Tatel restaurants in Los Angeles, Ibiza and México DF.

“Having seen the Tatel grow and triumph in Madrid, nothing could make me happier than bringing it to my home city of Miami,” says Iglesias, son of legendary crooner Julio, and who has lived in the Florida metropolis for several years.

Rafa, one of the Miami Open tennis tournament's biggest stars, says he 'always has a great time' in the city and that Miami is 'the closest to Spanish culture' he has found outside of Spain.

Basketball star Pau Gasol – who, along with his brother Marc, have put Spain on the map on the NBA circuit – was unable to attend the official opening of the restaurant on the famous Collins Avenue, since his practice and match schedule with the San Antonio Spurs did not leave him time to get away.

But he sent a message to the people of Miami to say he felt 'excited and honoured' that his Spanish eatery brand had landed in the USA, a country he calls 'his second home'.

“One of my greatest passions is being an ambassador for Spanish culture,” he said.

Among the red-carpet guests at the opening ceremony in Miami Beach was Spanish businessman Nicolás Colate Vallejo-Nágera, ex-husband of Mexican pop legend Paulina Rubio; Spanish DJ and record producer Willy López; Mexican tycoon Juan Carlos Valladares Junior – fiancé of former Miss Universe Ximena Navarrete – and the Spanish Consul in Miami, Cándido Creis and his wife.

The Tatel Miami has been designed by the prestigious Gronda Studio, owned by the acclaimed architect and interior designer Diego Gronda, and includes modern copies of the great masters of Spanish art in its décor scheme.

The photo shows Rafa Nadal (left) and Enrique Iglesias (right) opening their new branch of Tatel in the Florida city.