With lagoon aromas, Carrera Street became a river of people last night who attended the gala of the VI edition of the EL DÍA-Open Table Gastronomic Awards, held at the Leal –not even the trade winds wanted to miss the appointment–, one more example of the support and commitment that this newspaper maintains with a key sector for the economy, whose professionals have suffered like few others from the impact of the pandemic. Together with the men and women of the restaurant industry, and in good marriage, political authorities, representatives of the business world, as well as guests and friends who did not want to miss the festival of Tenerife gastronomywith the city of La Laguna converted into the capital of emotions.
The act opened with a musical appetizer, harmonizing arts, in the voice of the tenor Besay Pérezwho interpreted the theme Tenerife, by Braulio, encouraging a few dogs of wine, and as hosts of the ceremony, the couple of journalists from the Canarian Television -also lagoons-, formed by Yaiza Díaz and Roberto González, who served an evening very successful and fun, entertaining and also very enjoyable.
As in a restaurant, the menu was progressive. In the starters, the president of the Parliament of the Canary Islands, Gustavo Matos, praised the Open Table project, for what it represents for a sector that, in the face of difficulties, has meant “an example of resistance and heroism” and that in recent times has taken “an enormous leap in quality”, making the Canary Islands a benchmark at a national and international level. Next, the editor and journalist Gonzalo Castañeda, alma mater of these awards, gave a special recognition to Ezequiel Pérez, absent due to commitments in Madrid, and a great supporter of this project since its inception.
The first dishes on the menu went to the award for the best Canarian cuisine restaurant, to the taste of our own, an award that went to The Gomeran Whistle, the unique restaurant of the Gomeran chef Braulio Simancas, who gave him Eduardo Calero, managing partner of the firm Dormitorum. The recognition for the best Castilian cuisine restaurant went to a classic, Los Limoneros, whose owner collected from the hands of Jorge Hodgson, from JH Advisors, stating that it represented a “privilege” and that he was going to share it with the staff. And opening the fan, the award for best international cuisine restaurant went to to Zumaque, the Lucas Maes project (absent), delivered by the director of Open Table, Cesar Galindo, to two representatives.
Once the hors d’oeuvres were served, the gala was fueled with the award that recognized the important work carried out by the people who officiate in the room, those who put all the resources to make the service as efficient as possible. This award went to the couple who form Mª José Plasencia and Raquel Navarro, in El Rincón de Juan Carlos –who worked last night – and, on their behalf, it was the chef Juan Carlos Padrón who picked it up from the hands of Carlos Delgado, manager of Editorial Prensa Ibérica.
Another dish of good taste was knowing who was taking the title of revelation chef, who fell to the Peruvian Rosalía Díaz, from Qapaqalso absent, and represented by her husband, chef Erlantz Gorostiza, “happier than if they had given it to me,” she said. The director of EL DÍA, Joaquín Catalán, encouraged young restaurateurs to love “their profession, the second most beautiful after journalism” and also to keep “their feet on the ground, because this is a marathon.”
Hotel restaurants, fundamental as letters of introduction for those who visit the Island, also have their place in these awards. Laura Castro, Island Director of Tourism, presented the award tohe Aqua Royal Sun Resort, again at the hands of the great Lucas Maes, whose spokesman meant that this award “will help us to be better.”
And since good gastronomy is undoubtedly one of the best postcards of the Island that tourists can take with them on their return trip, the vice president of the Cabildo, Henry Arriaga, presented the award to the Popularity at Monkey Beach, whose representative demanded that the authorities pay more attention to them and simplify the bureaucracy, “because we suffer a lot.”
The excellence of a destination is intimately linked to its gastronomy and this precious award went to the lookout tower, whose owner took it from the hands of the insular councilor of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Xavier Grill. The owner of this restaurant, a peninsular who has been working in the South for 45 years, acknowledged that “ours has been very difficult” and encouraged people in the sector to “fight every day with soul, desire and joy”.
the star dishes
Undoubtedly, one of the star dishes of the gala was discovering who it had been, in the opinion of the popular jury that voted through the platform of THE DAY, to the best chef. The Mayor of San Cristobal de La Laguna He then went up on stage and, before announcing the winner’s name, addressed his voice to the stalls. “La Laguna is culture, history and heritage, as well as gastronomy”, emphasizing that the City Council “is always with the sector”, while highlighting local administrations as promoters of the hotel industry. And he cleared up the unknown: Juan Carlos Padrón. “This is a surprise,” said the chef. “We need these awards to continue the work.”
Before putting the icing on the cake, the tenor Besay Pérez once again delighted the audience with his delicate timbre, interpreting the aria Nessum Dorma (No one sleeps), from the opera Turandot, perhaps because they had to be wide awake; The highlight of the night arrived: knowing the award for best restaurant. The president of the Cabildo de Tenerife, Pedro Martín, He took the floor and, after showing his gratitude to Prensa Ibérica, highlighted how gastronomy is “a brand of identity” and showing these proposals to the visitor represents “a pride”. That is why it is essential to “make it visible” and make it known, he said.
After tearing the envelope, again the name of The Corner of Juan Carlos. The chef, overwhelmed by so many awards and visibly moved, gave the gala a masterful touch, calling his mother, Ina, to the stage, “without her the restaurant would not have been possible”, accompanied by his two nieces, Aitana and Angelina, ” that represent the future.
And the curtain fell. Until next year.
The awards in each of the categories
Chef
Juan Carlos Padron
- Humility and simplicity are two basic ingredients in any area of life. If virtues such as talent and perseverance are added to this, the result of such pairing cannot be other than success. Chef Juan Carlos Padrón, who claims to have been born in a kitchen, represents the present and future of Canarian gastronomy, an outstanding figure who has known how to bring the island’s culinary tradition to a boil until it sits on the most exclusive tables.
Restaurant
Juan Carlos’s Corner
- From its original settlement in Los Gigantes to its current location, since 2020, at the Royal Hideaway Corales Resort hotel, the brothers Juan Carlos and Jonathan Padrón, together with their team, have opted to maintain a cuisine of flavor, curdled with meaning and based on product values. In his proposal there are no disguises, no skirmishes or shortcuts. With a Michelin star and three Repsol Suns, El Rincón de Juan Carlos is a benchmark.
Canarian cuisine restaurant
The Gomeran Whistle
- Back in 2002, this small restaurant was born in Los Majuelos, a working-class neighborhood on the outskirts of La Laguna, run by a young man willing to take on the world. Shaking up the funds of popular cuisine, Braulio Simancas was mashing up all that culture of flavors and mixtures that are defined from the identity to give shape to a personal project. After his experience in the kitchen of the Bahía del Duque, he returns to his usual home, to Canarian cuisine.
Castilian restaurant
the lemon trees
- It is one of those establishments that has marked an era. For more than thirty years its name has been associated with that of a classy place, which is often visited by personalities from the political and business classes. Its owner, Mariano Ramos, has maintained the values of traditional cuisine and respect for the trade, even in acute times of crisis, with excellent produce and exquisite room service that give it a singular air of distinction.
international restaurant
Sumac
- “If you can imagine a fusion izakaya, with masterful nuances (the red curry ceviche is a delight), it is this place that has the unmistakable mark of Lucas Maes,” says the Repsol Guide about this place, located at the intersection of the streets Puerto Viejo and La Verdad, in the old area of Puerto de la Cruz. The chef is committed to a modern and comfortable space, with a generous bar, and creative and surprising cuisine with suggestive Asian touches.
room manager
Mª José Plasencia and Raquel Navarro
- They form a perfect tandem that, moreover, perfectly complements the work of their partners, the Padrón brothers. It is not about simple companions, but about professionals in constant training and evolution who have known how to match their task to the needs that the height and quality of a restaurant like El Rincón de Juan Carlos have been demanding, claiming the importance of performance in the living room.
revelation chef
Rosalia Diaz
- His is a very Lima cause. This Peruvian chef was trained in her native country by the renowned Gastón Acurio, at Astrid y Gastón de Lima, and she entered Spain through the front door, that of Lasarte by Martin Berasategui. She has lived on the Island for about fifteen years, where she has worked in restaurants and luxury hotels, until in April 2019 she decided to shape her own project, Qapaq, powerful and noble, giving shine and flavor to Los Christians.
hotel restaurant
Aqua Royal Sun Resort
- The magnificent views of the ocean and the atmosphere generated by a space with attention to detail would not taste the same without the company of delicious cuisine. In this hotel restaurant, the Royal Sun Resort -located on Los Geranios street in the center of Los Gigantes-, everything is special. It is one of its essential places to enjoy a gastronomic experience, with the proposal of three menus offered by Lucas Maes: short, tasting and long.
Popularity Award
Monkey Beach
- “From Tenerife to Monkey, from Monkey to heaven”, reads the slogan of this emblematic place, which is located just above Troya beach, in Las Américas, and in which up to four different spaces are offered for all kinds of plans : aperitifs, lunches, dinners, sunsets, cocktails… With the company of spectacular views of the sea, a gastronomic proposal with local products as the protagonist and the best music, paradise is close.
Excellence price
The lookout tower
- This restaurant, nestled in Costa Adeje, between the Bahia del Duque and El Mirador hotels, is a veritable balcony over the Atlantic. Run by the Sides family, its extensive menu offers visitors an exquisite variety of both national and international dishes, achieving a perfect blend of flavours, textures and presentation, and thus demonstrating the deep-rooted commitment that this space maintains with a kitchen of identity .
