Arizona Restaurant, Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria (2012)…

This restaurant is apparently owned by the same person who owns the bar next door, so we weren’t sure where to sit when we went in, but the British waiter was friendly and quickly showed us to a table even though he worked in the bar, not the restaurant.

The tables had proper table cloths and were nicely laid out.

Bread rolls with a pot of herb butter were brought over, which we didn’t ask for but it didn’t matter as they were very nice.

For the main meal I had the vegetable pizza, which was lovely and thin with a delicious topping, while my partner had the mixed grill which hung from a skewer (with chips and a side salad). We had drinks (beer and mineral water) but didn’t have dessert.

After we’d eaten the waiter gave us some shots and cherry-flavoured lollipops (that’s a first!)

At around 25 euros we thought that it was good value and tasty, the restaurant was nice and clean, the staff were polite and we would happily recommend the Arizona to anyone else.

Taj Palace, Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria (2012)…

We had high hopes for this Indian Restaurant as it looked really nice from the outside, with coloured lights, plenty of outdoor seating and an extensive menu, however, unfortunately it was a bit of a let-down.

We ordered a beer and a mineral water – these were fine.

We had 5 poppadoms and were given 4 dishes of dips (1 lime, 1 something sweeter and 2 with chopped vegetables). These were nice, the poppadoms were warm and crispy, but it would’ve been better to have been given 4 different sauces/dips.

My partner had 2 onion bhajis as a starter, which he said were great, however, things rapidly went downhill after that.

My main was a mild vegetable curry and mushroom rice, while my partner asked for chicken korma and plain pilau rice with 2 naan breads. There didn’t seem to be much vegetable curry, and it wasn’t exactly piping hot on arrival and it consisted of more onion than anything else. There was a large bowl of mushroom rice, which tasted ok but nothing special. My partner’s chicken was very chewy and they’d given him rice with small chunks of vegetables and peas…and he hates peas. After 10 minutes a waiter asked if everything was ok and we mentioned about the peas, so he apologised and said he’d bring some plain rice asap. (I know we should’ve said something sooner but by the time we realised the rice was wrong the waiter had disappeared). A few minutes later he arrived with a large dish of plain pilau rice, which was lovely but by this time my partner had finished his korma (as it was getting cold and there wasn’t a huge amount of it to begin with) and could only manage a few spoonfuls of the plain rice. His 2 naan breads were a bit flat but apparently tasted alright. He was sitting back letting his food get down and hadn’t quite finished when the waiter came and took the plates away. He should’ve said something at the time but to be honest, after the rice saga he didn’t want to appear to be making more fuss, so he watched while the rest of his naan and curry was taken away. He finished his second beer and we then asked for the bill.

It was just under 40 euros, which would’ve been good value if the meal had been better quality. If they’d cooked the food better and had dished it up hotter, and given us more curry and less rice, and got the order right in the first place, we would have stayed for dessert and more drinks. Unfortunately, we didn’t want to stay and they lost our custom.

As is often the case when you’ve had a less than perfect meal, we spent both the rest of the evening with indigestion, although I guess it could’ve been worse.

El Cenador Grill, Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria (2012)…

On arrival we were shown to the tables for two, overlooking the small shopping mall and restaurant area. I ordered a mineral water while my partner had a beer. A small dish of 4 Canarian potatoes (cooked in their skins) was brought out, which tasted nice.

We skipped starters and went straight for mains. I had vegetable pizza while my partner ordered steak, chips and salad. Two small opened bottles of wine (1 red and 1 white) were brought to us but we didn’t want them so they were eventually taken away (they hadn’t given us any wine glasses in any case although I guess we could’ve asked for some). Two pots of sauce were then brought to the table (1 garlic and 1 Canarian sauce).

My pizza was quite nice but too filling to finish. The base was very crunchy in places and a bit doughy in other places but it wasn’t an issue. I dipped my crusts into the garlic sauce, which tasted really nice (quite strong).

My partner’s steak was slightly under-cooked and his chips weren’t the best he’d ever had (although they were ok), but the salad was fresh and the pepper sauce was excellent, and overall he did enjoy his meal.

Several different waiters served our table, which was a little confusing but not a problem, although a waitress did take away my cutlery after I’d used it on the Canarian potatoes and I had to ask another waiter for a knife and fork, then ask another, then someone else brought me fresh cutlery!

Each waiter has a device strapped to their wrist (looks like a watch) and every table has a little wooden block with 3 buttons. You press one for service, one for the bill and 1 for something else (I forget what). This seemed like a very good idea although I suspect the staff don’t think so when customers allow their children to touch the ‘toy’ on the table.

All in all it was worth the 26 euros we paid for the meal.

Toro Bravo, Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria (2012)…

We found all of the members of staff to be friendly and helpful. The beer was ice-cold, the food was delicious and the price was very reasonable.

I had the vegetable pizza, which had a thin crust and cheese that wasn’t overpowering or greasy, topped with a selection of vegetables in small chunks (including broccoli, carrots, onions, peppers, courgettes). It made a welcome change from the usual mushroom and tomato you usually get on vegetable pizzas.

My partner had the steak with pepper sauce, chips and vegetables. He was more than happy with the quality of the meat and how it was cooked.

We were too full for desserts but did have tequila and brandies to round the evening off.

We were there for a couple of hours and the entire time we were entertained by a solo performer singing a wide selection of popular songs, while a few people danced.

This is a lovely restaurant and we would thoroughly recommend it to anyone else looking for an enjoyable and relaxing evening with lovely food and good service.

La Cantina, Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria (2012)…

Judging by the glass cabinets nearby filled with a variety of slabs of meat we thought that this restaurant would be ideal for a steak meal, but unfortunately looks can be deceiving.

To say the eating area was ‘snug’ was probably an understatement, but they obviously wanted to maximise the limited space available to them. Several waiters were rushing around, so it was a little confusing who was actually serving us.

We ordered 1 beer and 1 mineral water.

Prices seemed a little steep so we skipped starters and went straight for mains. I ordered a home-made pasta dish with spinach, ricotta and parmesan while my partner ordered the t-bone steak (the special) with salad and chips and peppercorn sauce. He’d asked for a fillet but as the waiter said the t-bone was the same price for tonight he changed his mind (big mistake).

My pasta arrived on a huge plate, which made the small portion seem tiny for the 9 euros 50 cents we paid for it, but it was really tasty and quite filling.

Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said for the steak meal. The meat was chewy and there were only about 4 edible mouthfuls on it, the skinny chips were cold and although it initially looked nice the salad was actually dry (as if it had been sitting around too long). There were various unwanted garnishes / adornments on the plate, possibly to distract from the poor quality meat. At almost 17 euros this was hugely disappointing (and annoying). I would have said something but my partner didn’t want to make a scene, so we ended up paying almost 40 euros and leaving. The waiter brought us some shots with the bill but I only took one sip as it was quite revolting. My partner was not in the mood to even attempt it, especially after the waiter walked off with the credit card still in the machine and then tried to laugh it off.

This was our worst restaurant experience during our 7 days in Puerto Rico and I’d discourage anyone else from wasting their money eating there.