Title: Bolero Festival
Location: Los Cristianos Port
Description: Let’s think big, an 80 square metre stage, live music and dance, and all free at the loading area of Los Cristianos port from 9pm. Should be a major event and great fun.
Start Time: 21.00
Date: 2013-05-11

Painter, sculptor, architect, and environmental crusader, Cesar Manrique is regarded as the father of modern Lanzarote but his influence touched all corners of the Canary Islands. As I learnt more about the man and his legacy at a new exhibition in Santa Cruz my mind wandered to the Parque Maritimo swimming complex a short walk across the Tenerife capital. The functional and stylish design was inspired by the great man and the park is adorned with samples of his work. I could have just as easily stretched my recall to the south of Tenerife and Plaza Cesar Manrique in Adeje and many points in between.

A huge video seascape greeted me as I entered the Caja Canarias Espacio Cultural, it was the beach of El Charco de San Gines near Naos port in Famara, Lanzarote. Born in the capital of Arrecife in 1919, Cesar spent much of his youth on the shore and later referred to how it stirred his imagination.

“Atlantic Ocean, my master, supreme and constant lesson of enthusiasm, passion, and freedom. My capacity of observation was tenacious in those summertimes.”

Observation was the key to Cesar’s work, he had a great love of his island and its people, early sketches, paintings, and photos showed locals working the vineyards, the salt pans, and the sea. The first of two floors reflected the rich colours and textures of a volcanic landscape that was born from eruptions between 1730 and 1736. Each alcove included a centre piece such as a model of the island, a video of the moving clouds, or a 3D frame of fishing nets. Where many would have seen destruction and burning, Cesar rejoiced in the creation of new shapes and rich colours left in the wake of fire and lava.

In the early 1960’s Cesar’s hunger for knowledge took him to New York and the Avant Garde movement, this phase of his work takes over on the second floor. Many of the paintings are abstract and surreal but his love of life and people still shines through. Travel added a new focus to Cesar’s life, he was determined to help Lanzarote develop sustainable tourism, years before it became a mantra for the industry. Returning home he worked closely with government to lay down basic laws and guidelines but first he made in depth studies of his island to assess traditional accommodation and to find out what new infrastructure was needed. Water supplies, communications, and even the airport featured in his plans to ensure the pieces all fitted together.

“My absolute worry was to defend the landscape and the environment, I believed habitat considered as a whole was an important factor since landscape and architecture can be perfectly integrated and adapted to the land.”

The exhibition includes sketches and plans for his building projects and there is even a recreation of one of his surreal designs, used here to link two of the display areas. Not everything Cesar created was purely functional, there is a sense of fun in much of his quirky landscape architecture. Each stage of his life and work is accompanied in the exhibition by background information and the published thoughts and teachings of Cesar Manrique in Spanish and English. The scope and diversity of the works here strike the right balance between the different mediums that Cesar worked in and give a great insight into the motivation of the man. On my visit there was a school party doing the rounds, it’s good to see his legacy carried on not only through his foundation but also in a new generation sharing his affinity with the diverse environments of the Canary Islands.

Cesar Manrique, La Conciencia del Paisaje; Espacio Cultural Caja Canarias, Plaza del Patriotismo, Santa Cruz; open Monday to Saturday 11am to 2pm and 5pm to 8pm

Entrance €3 (free for clients of Caja Canarias, €1 residents)

Title: Salsa Open Canarias
Location: La Cascada, Parque Maritimo, Santa Cruz
Description: A feast of salsa with 8 pairs competing for passage through to the international final in Puerto Rico in July. Plenty of guest musicians and dancers in the events hall inside the swimming pool complext next to the Auditorium. Starts at 10pm, tickets 12 euros from the box office.
Start Time: 22.00
Date: 2013-05-03

Title: Ladies Professional Golf Championship
Location: Golf Costa Adeje
Description: The best female golfers from the Ladies European Tour make their annual visit to Tenerife, this year the action is at Golf Costa Adeje from 19 to 21 September.
Start Date: 2013-09-19
End Date: 2013-09-21

Title: Alma de Bolero (Soul of Bolero)
Location: Auditorio Infanta Leonor, Los Cristianos
Description: Bolero performed with flair by Trio Los Panchos at the Auditorio in the centre of Los Cristianos from 9pm. Tickets just 10 euros from the Cultural Centre or the Auditorio Cafe.
Start Time: 21.00
Date: 2013-03-16

Title: Enviromental Day
Location: Playa Honda, Playa de Las Americas
Description: The local surf club are staging an enviromental awareness day from 10 am down at the beach,it includes a beach cleaning sweep and is open to all.
Start Time: 10.00
Date: 2013-03-17

Title: The Passion
Location: Calle Grande, Adeje
Description: Street theatre doesn’t get better or more emotional than this lavish re-enactment of the crucificion of Christ. A cast of hundreds, wonderful costumes and music, and key scenes playeed out as the story works down the main road in Adeje town. Starts at noon and is free with thousands lining the street. It’s very graphic and powerful so young children may find it upsetting.
Start Time: 12.00
Date: 2013-03-29

Fronted by its eponymous, landmark windmill, El Molino Blanco has been one of Costa Adeje’s favourite restaurants for many years but in recent times, its reputation for food hasn’t been keeping par with its popularity as a live music venue. Now under new management, we popped along to see if fresh hands at the helm were steering an improved gastronomic course.

Tucked away in a beautiful, mature garden with outside terrace, a covered dining room festooned with traditional Canarian agricultural implements and a stage and dance floor, El Molino Blanco is a taste of rustic Tenerife in the heart of Costa Adeje, with an ample side order of entertainment. For the thousands of people who come back year after year, this isn’t just a restaurant, it’s a dining night out.

After dark, soft lighting illuminates El Molino Blanco’s leafy courtyard setting to create a romantic ambience in which to enjoy live music and dancing along with the restaurant’s burgeoning culinary delights. But we opted for an indulgent lunchtime treat at celebrity table 32 housed in its rustic arbour in the garden.

The Main attraction, The Menu at El Molino Blanco

Featuring traditional Canarian and Spanish dishes such as paella, garlic chicken, garlic prawns and carne fiesta (marinated pork) alongside a handful of fish options and a mouthwatering choice of steaks, lamb and pork, the menu doesn’t challenge palates into uncharted territory, choosing instead to give traditional favourites like steaks and strogonoff a cooked-to-perfection makeover. Apart from vegetarian paella and some of the starter dishes, there’s little on the menu for veggies in the family but the restaurant assures us that, within reason, the kitchen is happy to cook meat-free requests.

After our usual dithering over choices that would test the patience of any waiter, the smiling Pedro took our order. To start we chose prawns in garlic, garlic bread with tomato and, flying in the face of our instincts, prawn cocktail, a dish that would never normally make it onto our menu choices. For mains, I ordered Sea Bass with Green Sauce and King Prawns while Jack opted for Breast of Duck with Fruits of the Forest Compote.

It’s fair to say the prices on El Molino Blanco’s menu are not for the faint hearted but when the opening dishes arrived it was clear to see that the new management aren’t scrimping on portion size or on the quality of ingredients. Happily, the beautifully presented prawn cocktail was a long way from the tired, swimming in thousand-island dressing specimens of the ’80s, offering instead a delicately flavoured mêlée of meaty prawns threaded with thin slivers of lettuce, dressed in a light mayonnaise sauce, topped with succulent king prawns and set on a pineapple ring surrounded by fresh mango, kiwi and orange. The prawns in garlic were big, fat and juicy in their sizzling saucer of olive oil flavoured with thin slices of garlic and the bread was a warm garlic ciabatta topped with sweet, diced tomatoes.

Our taste buds now on full alert and the culinary bar set high, the main courses proved to be equally generously sized and creatively presented. My sea bass was cooked to melting perfection with firm flesh that was moist, lightly flavoured in paprika and drizzled in a pesto sauce. Jack’s duck was lean, tender and infused with a rich, gamy flavour which reached new heights with the fruits of the forest compote. Both dishes were served on a bed of  boiled potatoes and fresh spring vegetables cooked to optimum, al dente texture. Although we both struggled to clean our plates, we battled on, refusing to leave a single tasty morsel.

There was no question of us still having room for more which is why it was such a surprise when I heard myself agreeing to a ‘small selection” of desserts in the form of a tasty assortment of tiramisu, crêpes Molino, lemon cream cake and crème caramel. It was however no surprise that the dessert defeated us and we waved a white flag over the paltry remains.

El Molino Blanco Summary
If you’ve tried El Molino Blanco and been disappointed by the food, now’s the time to give it another look. The new management have raised the standard of dining to a level that’s more in keeping with the restaurant’s glory days. As a venue for parties, weddings or just a great night out, it now has the culinary muscle to match its reputation for excellent entertainment and will have guests spilling out into the Adeje night air vowing to return before their holiday’s over.

Tenerife Magazine’s five star rating for El Molino Blanco
Décor – 4 stars. A fabulous garden and enclosed courtyard setting with mature trees and plants in the heart of Costa Adeje with a traditional, Canarian rustic feel which raises to sexy when the sun goes down and all the little lights come on.
Menu – 4 stars. A nice combo of traditional Canarian – a rare thing in Costa Adeje – and family favourites with a strong emphasis on quality over quantity of choice. New menus in the pipeline promise better descriptors and some exciting new additions.
Food – 4 stars. Ingredients are fresh, top notch quality, cooked with competence and presented with flair. Meat lovers will struggle to choose between prime cuts of beef, pork and lamb while fish and seafood addicts can look forward to some first rate culinary catches.
Service – 4 stars. We were served by as many different waiting staff as we had courses and each one was smiling and professional. There’s an unhurried atmosphere and no wait between courses but we have yet to test them on a busy Saturday night.

Where, when and how
Avenida de Austria, 5, San Eugenio Alta (alongside Aqualand), Costa Adeje; +34 922 79 62 82; open daily 1pm to midnight.
Prices
Tapas average €3.80; starters average €12 – €14; main courses average €20. Our selection of desserts was €18. Lunchtime dining (table must be vacated by 5pm) is discounted by 20% and early evening ((table must be vacated by 7pm) by 15%. Our bill for three courses and drinks came to €103.87 discounted to €83.11.

Title: Tchaickovsky Pasion
Location: Auditorio Infanta Leonor, Los Cristianos
Link out: Click here
Description: The best in classical music and dance from top company Ballets de Tenerife. Starts at 8.30pm and tickets are only 10 euros from Los Cristianos Cultural Centre or the Auditorio Cafeteria.
Start Time: 20.30
Date: 2013-03-17

Title: Los Gigantes Carnaval Sardine Funeral
Location: Los Gigantes Church Plaza
Description: The last big act of defiance from the carnaval as the giant sardine is paraded through the village and burnt amid a shower of fireworks.
Date: 2013-02-25