El Equilibrista 33′ has won the ¡Qué Bueno! Gran Canaria Me Gusta for excellence in commitment to local produce, promoted by the Cabildo de Gran Canaria in this new edition of the Gran Canaria Me Gusta Fair and organised by Infecar and Qué Bueno Canarias.
The president of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, Antonio Morales, who presented the award to Luisa Florido, sister of Carmelo Florido, chef and owner of ‘El Equilibrista 33’, pointed out that the Cabildo de Gran Canaria “promotes these awards because we believe that the effort to promote local produce deserves recognition”.
For his part, Raúl García Brink, technical coordinator of Economic Development, Energy Sovereignty, Climate and Knowledge, as president of the jury, praised the work of Carmelo Florido for having “modernised the gastronomic tradition of Gran Canaria, found his own culinary language that delves into his gastronomic legacy and for his extensive use of local produce in all areas of the restaurant, both in the kitchen and in the dining room”.
Florido, who was unable to be present at the award ceremony as he was travelling, wanted to send a message of thanks to all those present for having considered his restaurant as one of the emblems of the island’s local produce.
His sister, Luisa Florido, accepted the award on his behalf, and expressed her gratitude for “this distinction awarded to my brother and his creation ‘El Equilibrista 33’. He is a person who has formed himself, always maintaining his principles and values”.
Likewise, the twelve finalist restaurants have collected a plaque commemorating their link with local produce. They are: La Trastienda de Chago (Gáldar), La Tunera (Telde), Casa Romántica (Agaete), Nelson (Agüimes), Casa Enrique (Mogán), Biocrepería Risco Caído (Artenara) and El Padrino, Muxgo, El Equilibrista33, Cuernocabra, Tabaiba and El Bento Japonés, in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Through this initiative, the Cabildo de Gran Canaria aims, on the one hand, to promote the island’s gastronomy, understood as a set of proposals based on the authenticity of local produce and its traditional and modern preparations; as well as encouraging the consumption of local produce, reducing CO2 emissions by reducing food transport, promoting the consumption of meat and fish from sustainable livestock and fishing, as well as applying environmental measures in the establishments.
In addition to this, the social objectives also include encouraging direct purchases from small producers, giving a fair value to local produce, mentioning the origin and/or producer on menus and contributing to a sustainable local economy.
In this way, the Cabildo de Gran Canaria remains firm in its commitment to promote establishments that add value to the island’s gastronomy, integrating local produce into their menus, promoting its consumption and contributing to the revitalisation of the economy of the island of Gran Canaria.
