La Factoria
 

This restaurant has been sitting quite unobtrusively on the seafront in the centre of Corralejo for as long as I can remember and has never really received the attention it deserves. It is run my Micele and Luca and ably assisted by the very charming Carmen. I used to come here a lot (before the delights of bar ownership robbed me of many free nights) and the food has always been consistently reliable and good quality. I have wiled away many an afternoon with bottles of rosé soaking up the sun and the stupendous views across the harbour. It has now been so long since I have frequented there and my two visits this week (purely for the purposes of my review) proved to me once more just what a wonderful little spot this is.

The menu has so much to offer it guarantees to please all palates. The fare is predominantly Italian with no less than 21 pizzas and six different pastas with varying sauces, namely, four cheeses, carbonara, sofia, boscaiola, tomato, Bolognese, amatriciana, putaneseca, Filantes, garlic (oil & pepper). The pizzas have the thinnest and crisipiest crust I know of in town and the Pizza Filipin with bacon, salmon and broccoli is my absolute favourite. My lunch partner, Sue (as well as my dining partner there last night) was completely gobsmacked by the diameter of the pizza the other day – it definitely catered for both of us – and I´m not one to share my food! They also serve a “white pizza” (no tomatoes) with toppings such as Rich (cheese, mushrooms, cream and Serrano ham), Potato (cheese, potatoes, cream and rosemary), Del Sol (cheese, crabmeat, mushrooms, corn and cream), Prawns (cheese, prawns, garlic and corn) and “Nuvola Rossa” (cheese potatoes, tuna and Serrano ham).

The restaurant is open early in the morning for breakfast – where you can catch the early sun over Lobos. You can choose from English, English light, hash brown, Continental and scrambled eggs. They also offer sandwich, burgers and bocadillos.

During previous visits for dinner I always used to order as a starter the octopus Galician style (where they serve either a full or half portion) or, as I favour now, the fried octopus (which takes away the rubbery consistency of the fish). The usual suspects are also available such as Canarian potatoes with mojo sauce, pimientos padron (the little green peppers fried with sea salt that catch you unawares when you get a hot one), tortilla, meatballs, an excellent scrambled eggs with either prawns and mushrooms or salmon and prawns and a starter special for two people which is a platter of an assortment of starters together. There are a number of meat and fish dishes with fresh fish of the day and chicken or fillet steak with a choice of sauces.

For the calorie watching amongst us (uhhhh?) they serve a number of innovative salads such as Factoria (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, paprika, beetroot, corn, carrots egg), Tropical (lettuce, orange, pineapple, corn, fruit of the season, yoghurt sauce), Italian (tomatoes, lettuce, mozzarella, green olives, oregano), Hot (cabbage, paprika, beetroot, cooked ham, tomatoes, hot chilli) and Russian (potatoes, green beans, carrots, olives, tuna, mayonnaise).
Last night we chose the garlic bread and scrambled eggs with mushrooms and prawns followed by the tortellini stuffed with spinach and ricotta with the boscaiola sauce (mushrooms and cream) and the grilled langostine kebab (five in all) which came with Canarian potatoes and a substantial side salad.

Sue reprimanded me for now taking the scenery for granted (which I have to admit I do) and was in raptures over our surroundings during our meal. Her input into this review is as follows: “To hear the sea lapping on the beach and watching the lights of the fishing boats in the distance as well as the flickering lights against the harbour of old town Corralejo is a memorable experience which complements the friendly hospitality, attentive but unobtrusive service and unpretentious food which hides a wealth of culinary surprise.” OK, Sue, if you move out here, you´ve got the job (Barbara Cartland here we come!). Our meal was rounded off with the obligatory drinks on the house – a nice glass each of Amaretto.

I have to briefly mention our neighbours during our meal who were a group of fairly well oiled British blokes on holiday (you know the types – shaven heads and bare chests) who were doing their best to wind up Carmen. They were actually very harmless and Carmen played along with them brilliantly responding to their quips with great flair and confidence. They didn´t seem to be taking in any solids and switched from pints of beer to sangria (on seeing other customers order some) but there had to be “more San than Gria”. They were, in fact, quite entertaining during our meal.