All those books about why French women are
so slim showed us that variety in daily meals is
vital – it keeps you interested, stops you gorging
on stodge and keeps your body in good shape.
So instead of turning your back on food this
New Year, why don’t you resolve to make the very
most of Lanzarote food – to discover new flavours,
find new restaurants and learn to enjoy much,
much more of what the island has to offer.
Food is serious business, and your resolution
should also be taken seriously. You´ll need to find out
restaurants, or local sociedades and comedores
(small cafés). You can’t really claim to be an islander
until you’ve sampled a full Canarian puchero, for
example, or a bowl of maize soup or ropa vieja.
There’s no obligation to enjoy the food – but do
at least try it. Octopus, for example, is well worth
getting over any initial revulsion towards. Other
dishes, such as the local gofio, may be a taste
you won’t acquire at all – but as long as you’ve
tried, you can.
Keep this up and by the end of the year
you can now find more varied international
cuisines here than you can at any time in history.
That variety looks like it can only increase in the
future, as the island opens its doors to new
countries, new markets and new flavours. already
you can find Italian, Indian, Chinese, Korean, Thai,
Nepali, Greek, Colombian, Japanese, Lebanese
and many other international cuisines on the island,
and there are many more waiting to be discovered.
This multicultural mix has led to its own style of
cooking – known as fusion – in which elements
a little bit more about what’s on offer on Lanzarote,
and you’ll need to get out there and taste it, too.
Local produce is the obvious place to start, and
you’ll find heaps of it at local weekend markets, in
grocery shops or at your local supermarket. Check
the cheese counter for delicious goat’s milk
products from this island and the other Canaries;
learn some of the local names and take a chance
on something new at the fish counter, or try a kaki
or a cherimoya from the fruit counter.
Alternately, you can find great Canarian cuisne
just about anywhere on the island, either in
you’ll effortlessly be able to recommend local
specialities to friends as well as lead them to
establishments that they, nor you, would never
have otherwise enjoyed.
from the cuisines of different nations have been
blended into something absolutely exciting and
modern. Once again, you’ll find plenty of
examples all around the island.
Adventurousness in eating almost always pays off
for itself – for every disappointment you’ll generally
find half a dozen wonderful dishes, ingredients or
meals, among them some that you will never forget.
And here on Lanzarote, remember that you’ll be
eating in some of the most welcoming, beautiful
places in Europe – an island that has made its
name and it reputation from hospitality. Enjoy!
n Broaden
your horizons
This resolution is not just about local food.
Lanzarote has never been an island, food-wise –
for centuries it has absorbed and adapted
influences from Europe, Africa and America – and
R e s ta ur a n t – W i n e sh op
Gr e at at m o sp h er e w i t h
sp e c ta c ul a r se a v i e w s
Centro Comercial La Mulata 4, Playa Blanca (next to H. Natura Palace) www.sebastyans.com
Reservations: 928 349 679
The Gazette | January 2015 | 63