El Cancho

Eating

El Cancho is completely self-catering and, while the kitchens aren't sophisticated, we wanted for nothing the entire week.

Each kitchen has a decent-sized fridge-freezer, a 2-hob portable gas cooker, all the necessary cooking implements and crockery, as well as an abundance of Tupperware and an icebox for picnicking. The herb boxes on the terrace are full of chives, parsley, basil and pungent rocket, while white asparagus grows on the surrounding hillsides if you’re lucky enough to find it.

We cooked virtually everything on the fantastic gas BBQ on the terrace - from pork and sausages over the flames, to chilli prawns and asparagus on the hot plate. Our fondest memories are of dinners outside under the stars, sitting on huge floor cushions at a table adorned with candles. There’s also a table seating 6 inside if the weather’s bad.

The food market in Tarifa’s Old Town is wonderful for fish, meat and vegetables, and there’s a very good supermarket (Eroski) in the New Town. There’s also a lively bar and restaurant scene both in Tarifa town and along the main road (the owners will give you a comprehensive list of recommendations). We loved Enca Curro, a tiny famous tapas bar, and Karpanta, which has an international menu specialising in tuna. Both are in the Old Town.