ANDALUCÍA - CÁDIZ - BARBATE - RESTAURANTE EL CAMPERO

RESTAURANTE EL CAMPERO Michelin Plate IIO

This rather scruffy fishing village of Barbate along the southern coast of Spain near Cádiz, has been fishing bluefin tuna using the same methods for well over 3,000 years. This traditional tuna fishing method, known as almadraba, is famous throughout Spain for catching the country’s most popular tuna.

The almadraba season is in May and June. Small fishing boats attached to giant round nets float in an ever-widening circle in the narrow Gibraltar strait between Africa and Europe. As the circle widens, the nets become taught, drawing the tuna closer and closer to the surface. When silvery fins start flashing across the surface expert fisherman spear these giant fish, hauling them aboard.

Restaurante El Campero

This surprising restaurant is a white shiny haunt for celebrities, politicians and chefs from all over Spain, which would not look out of place in Mayfair instead of this rather rundown fishing town. It is best known for its fantastic, locally caught, bluefin tuna which they serve in almost 30 different ways.

The best cuts are morillo and ventresco, which cost around €60 kg. You can also eat the heart and eggs, which they say, are a delicacy, which comes in, at around €325 kg!.

There is a smart formal restaurant

and you can also eat at the bar,

or on the stalls or tables scattered around.

On a fine summer's lunchtime or evening, you can sit on the outside terrace.

Prices were very inexpensive, but have slightly increased lately, even so, the stunning tapas include:

There is also a small lunchtime menu.

On this occasion we had dinner during the Covid-19 restrictions and had.

House salad.

Pinchitos Morunos de Atún

Mini Burguer de Atún (mini tuna bergers)

Surtido de crudo (tartar cola blanca, tataki, lomo picante, sashimi descargado y sashimi ventresca). An assortment of raw (whitetail tartare, tataki, spicy loin, white loin sashimi and belly sashimi).

Parrillada de atún (ventresca, tarantelo, parpatana y corazón) Tuna grill (belly, sirloin, fatty part of the jaw and heart).

We had a bottle of Rosalía de Castro Albariño 2018.

When we came in 2018 we had the following

Croquetas Caseras de Bacalao o Jamón (salt cod & ham croquetas.

Mini Burger de Atún (tuna burger, in smart McDonalds style boxes.

Langostino en tempura con ali-oli de tomate (the lightest, crispiest tempura, you can have)

Won Ton Crocate de Atún Rojo con Salsa Teriyaki.

Brochetita de atún Rojo en Tempura.

Atún Lomo Picante (spicy tuna).

Sashimi de Ventres.

They never buy the bluefin tuna at less than 30 kilos in weight and normally around 10 years old. They are very careful from whom they buy the fish. The tuna is kept frozen at minus 60 degrees, so can be used, all year round.

This is because the almadraba, the ancient way of fishing for bluefin tuna, is limited only to May and June, when the fish migrate to the Mediterranean through the narrow Gibraltar strait between Spain and Morocco. Barbate is perfectly situated to take advantage of the annual migration.

For dessert try Tocino de Cielo (Flan)