Malaga airport to Marbella, dinner on the way?

There seems to be many small towns on the way, fuengirola, benalmadena, any of these worth a quick stop?

No! These are areas that cater for the mass "Brits Abroad" crowd, the ones that typically prefer their all day breakfasts in English bars whilst watching English football and drinking English beer (there are also German equivalents). There was an entire TV series produced a few years ago that followed the local police around dealing with drunk British tourists and it served to remind me never to stay there. Granted, in November most of them won't be there so I'm not sure how much of an impact this will have on local restaurants being open.

Be mindful of your timings. By the time you land, taxiing to the terminal, immigration etc, you could be significantly later than 8pm. Car rental might also be an issue, who are you renting from? My last pick up from Hertz there in April had me queuing for over an hour. It might be quieter at that time of night but it's worth bearing in mind. The cheaper agencies often have the longest queues.

We've stayed at the nearby Marriott resort but I was underwhelmed by the food we sampled in the surrounding restaurants but as with everything it's all subjective. Judging by some of the reviews I read there are plenty of people who don't share my view.

My advice would be to head straight to your hotel and take a taxi to the old town in Marbella (you don't state where you're flying from so jetlag might be an issue and whilst I wouldn't advocate driving at all after a trans Atlantic flight you've already decided to do so however trying to navigate Marbella's old town at night, in an unfamiliar car, in an unfamiliar country after a long flight is not a good idea hence the suggestion about a taxi.) If you head for Plaza de los Naranjos it's the main square in the town and has a number of restaurants in and around it. Many will close at 11.30, some earlier so things might be tight depending on when they take their last orders.

How long are you at Ona Alanda? If you're there for a few days I highly recommend the short drive to the village of Benahavis, it has some of the best restaurants in the area and well worth a visit. http://www.andalucia.com/province/malaga/benahavis/home.htm
If you decide to drive there I'd recommend parking just outside the old centre, steep inclines on cobbled streets are a bit hair raising particularly when you have to stop halfway up to let other cars pass you in the opposite direction.

Thank you that was very helpful! Based on what you've said, I've found some restaurant within walking distance from the hotel, so we will be doing that instead.

We will be stopping in Marbella the next morning before going to Ronda, few more towns and then seville.

Our rental car will be from sixt. And btw we will coming after two days in Barcelona. Any comments on sixt? We've used them before in London and that was fine. They claimed some small scratches on the car back then, but our credit card insurance covered everything.

I've always found Sixt to be very good, I almost exclusively used them up until a few years ago when they suddenly and inexplicably inflated their rates. They've gone from a mid range firm to one of the most expensive but with no obvious change in their operations. I've never had a bad car, in fact I've had some excellent upgrades, never had any issues. I've had two damages (someone clipped my car in an underground car park whilst another scratch was from someone leaving their trolley to career around a supermarket car park), both were dealt with efficiently and with no penalty incurred.

Marbella, Elviria and the coastal parts of the Costa Del Sol are not the most attractive parts of Spain. It's very built up and geared primarily towards sun, sea and sand holidaymakers. Marbella old town is well worth a visit but the better parts of the area are located in the locations away from the coast.

Enjoy your trip.