We love nothing better than a fresh fish lunch eaten at a restaurant situated over looking the sea somewhere along the coast in Lanzarote. Most of the time we leave which fish of the day up to the waiter and we’ve yet to be disappointed.
The Spanish name of the fish often bears no resemblance to the English equivalent so we’ve shortlisted a few of the more common ones found on menu’s in Lanzarote to help you decide what to order.
Bacalao – cod
Bocinegro – common sea bream
Bonito – skipjack tuna
Boquerones – anchovies
Calamares – squid
Cantarero – scorpion fish
Cherne – stone bass
Dorada – sea bream
Gambas – shrimps
Gueldes – whitebait
Langostinos – prawns
Lapas – limpets
Lenguado – sole
Lubina – sea bass
Medregal – amberjack
Mejillones – mussels
Merluza – hake
Mero – grouper
Morena – moray eel
Pez Espada – swordfish
Pulpo – octopus
Sama – red sea bream
Vieja – parrot fish
Here’s some more of our suggestions of where to enjoy fresh fish of the day.
One of the strangest fish we’ve eaten in Lanzarote is called cantarero. We were enjoying Sunday lunch in the small coastal village of Arrieta in the North, Restaurante El Charcon sits on the harbour overlooking the doll’s house. We told the waiter we’d like fresh fish of the day but served fried and he suggested cantarero, simply prepared with the sides scored and deep fried it was delicious. Later when we looked up the name we found out we’d just eaten a plate of scorpion fish! Not the most handsome of the species but definitely very tasty.
I was offered cantarero a week or two afterwards at a the Restaurante Playa Quemada situated in the South of the island on a black beach. The waiter could only translate it as a local fish when I questioned if this too was a scorpion fish, this time it was served open and grilled with slices of toasted garlic on top, it was lovely but not quite as nice as the deep fried version I’d eaten previously.
El Golfo is a popular destination for fresh fish lunches, there are a plethora of restaurants to choose from in this seaside village nestled between Timanfaya and Playa Blanca. Waiters will call to you in the street to try and tempt you into their restaurant to eat the fresh catch of the day.
There’s lots of fish in the typical Canarian tapas dishes such as Ropavieja con pescado which is a fish and chickpea stew.
The Cazuela “El Cortijo” is a delicious sizzling skillet full of octopus, prawns, mushrooms and garlic, we enjoyed this dish at the Restaurante El Cortijo in Haría.
The beauty of an island the size of Lanzarote is that the sea isn’t very far away and we have some fabulous restaurants to dine out at during your holiday. We hope that you are a little adventurous and enjoy exploring the island and the range of cuisine on offer.
¡buen provecho!
More reading: Tapas in Lanzarote, what should you order?
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