La Puntilla is the area at the far north eastern end of Playa de Canteras. See also the previous post on places to eat around Playa de Canteras for the rest of the beach area. My map here.
The best place to go for tapas in Isleta is the old market, the Mercado del Puerto de la Luz at 76 Calle Albareda mercadodelpuerto.net, which has been renovated and turned over completely to tapas bars.
This first one was my favourite but the others were good too.
Skandi Tapas (Elementary B+), inside the market, is run by a lovely Swedish lady. She’s a former SAS airhostess so she knows a thing or two about hospitality. We had a tapa of Caballa Ahumada (smoked mackerel) with crispbread…
…and three different tapas of Salmon; smoked…
…marinaded (gravelaks) and in rolls with Polar Bread, a northern Swedish flatbread (recipe here) and served with a traditional mild mustard sauce.
All these scored an A with me but then I’m biased as I’m half Norwegian. It was really nice to have something different from the usual Spanish tapas. With three glasses of wine each the bill came to a reasonable €32.
At Cachuk (Elementary B+) there’s an Italian vibe with dishes like Mejillones Relleno alla Livornese.
My friend Tina and I also had the oysters…
… and a nice glass of Ribera del Duero.
At El Camaron (Elementary B) on the outside of the market we had some good grilled prawns and razor clams (B+). With two glasses of Albarino the bill came to €18.80.
Whereas La Barra del Puerto (Elementary B+), next door to El Camaron did some good octopus with a green mojo, made with coriander, recipe here.
As for restaurants…
La Marinera (Intermediate B+), Calle Alonso Ojeda, Plaza de la Puntilla
This is a big, famous restaurant on a promontory at the end of the strip in Puntilla.
It’s right next to the sea and has great views over the water.
The food is good, the service less so.
The Canaries have a good rep for cheese I had a media of local Queso, both fresh and semi-cured, to begin (B+).
For the main; grilled Sama a common local fish you’ll see on many menus. Opinion seems to be divided as to whether it should be translated as Red Sea Bream or Pink Dentex but either way it’s a new one on me.
To finish, a stunning sweet called Polvetos de Uruguay which I raved about in the previous post (A). As I mentioned earlier, you’ll see it on the menu at a lot of restaurants here so it’s easy to find.
With the dessert, a shot of best quality Ron Miel, Canarian honey rum, by Aldea. The was my first experience of this nectar and I fell for it straight away (B+).
With a jarra (large beer) the bill came to just under €28, not too bad.
I would recommend coming here for the views and the food is good but you get the distinct impression that the grumpy waiters don’t like tourists. When I requested the Canarian classic grill dish called Casa Carmelo (as recommended at this restaurant by Culture Trip) I was told in a very patronising way that it had never been on the menu but when I finally found it (it’s a big menu) and proved him wrong, the waiter stopped serving me! I didn’t let his lack of professionalism bother me though and I still enjoyed myself here.
By the way, if you want to try Casa Carmelo, whatever it is, it’s served at a restaurant of the same name just a few doors away at 2 Paseo las Canteras, www.restaurantegrillcasacarmelo.com. Sadly I never got the time to go and give it a try.
Amigo Camilo (Intermediate C+), 1 La Caleta
A waterside restaurant in Puntilla that looks lovely from the outside but with plastic furniture and poor service once you get in.
The high parapet makes it hard to see the lovely view.
The exception was the friendly manager who took me to see their fresh fish display and helped me choose one.
I had a very nice grilled Sama again (see notes above) and media raciones (half portions) of Ensalada Mixta and the quintessential local dish Papas Arrugadas, new potatoes served with mojo (see above).
To drink, a Canarian volcanic wine, a dry Malvasia from Lanzarote, called Bermejo for €16 which was really nice(B+), as was every other local white I tasted.
To finish another glass of Ron Miel but an inferior version this time by Artemi called Indias (C).
The total bill came in at just over €42.
La Oliva (Intermediate B), 17 Prudencio Morales
Recommended by a blogger who reckoned they do the best Calamares Fritos locally.
With a G&T each the bill came to €23.50 which was a bit pricey but the Calamares were good (B+).
Ginger (Intermediate B+), 2 Paseo las Canteras
This was my friend Tina’s local as it’s very good for G&Ts (B+). Look at the size of those glasses!
A walk through the neighbourhood of Ciudad Alta to the old town next!