Two chefs from Orihuela restaurant Casa Corro have been awarded fifth place in a national culinary award scheme.
The Congress of Gastronomy is a national cookery competition aimed at honouring “great traditional cooks” from across Spain. This tribute ensures that Orihuela will once again stand out on the national restaurant scene. Chefs Teresa and Berná Araceli Gonzalez, are the two cooks and owners of the Casa Corro restaurant which was established more than 100 years ago. The couple were chosen as part of this traditional tribute to great cooks, which formed part of the twelfth Congress of the Best of Gastronomy, which since last year has been hosted at the Alicante IFA exhibition centre. The two local cooks shared this distinction with four other cooks from Navarra, La Rioja and Barcelona and were extremely proud of their achievement.
In first place was Tasen Jiménez from Tubal restaurantt in Tafalla, Navarra. Second place was awarded to Marisa Sánchez from restaurant Echaurren in Ezcaray, La Rioja. Third was Lolita Reixach from “Paquita and Hispania”, Arenys de Mar, Barcelona. Fourth place was scooped by Merce Navarroa from restaurant Roig Robi, Barcelona. Casa Corro husband and wife team Teresa and Berná Araceli Gonzalez were awarded the fifth accolade of the competition.
The Mayor of Orihuela, Monica Lorente, Gema Amor, Deputy Tourism and Rafael García Santos, Director of “The Best of Gastronomy”, visited Casa Corro this week to present the award and taste the traditional cuisine the restaurant is famed for all agreeing that the restaurant “..is a great success”.
Commenting on the competition Garcia Santos said: “The meat balls are exquisite, the best we have ever tasted. This is a well deserved award.”
Fine food
Orihuela Mayor Monica Lorente explained that the restaurant Casa Corro is more than one hundred years old, has has collected a number of awards over the years, such as the one received in 1982 from the Ministry of Tourism, which was a bronze plaque for Tourism Merit. Berna Gonzalez was also given a lifetime achievement award by the Chamber of Commerce in 2002 to celebrate his culinary career. Lorente went on to describe how the restaurant was a hub of the local community, its walls becoming a second home for many personalities and politicians. Many well-know figures have come to Casa Corro and learned to appreciate the joys of Spanish cuisine. These include: Felipe Gonzalez, Bernabe Tierno, Imperio Argentina, Miguel Bosé, Adolfo Suárez, Enrique Ponce Joaquin Cortes, Pepe Baldo, Eduardo Zaplana, Juanito Valderrama, Manuel Fraga, Alfonso de Borbón, Los Panchos, Bertin Obsborne and Norma Duval to name a few.
The restaurant specialises in local cuisine and Spanish classics, paella, roast kid, meat balls and freshly baked bread are all prepared daily for its customers. It was a glimpse of this simple but flavoursome food that impressed the judges of the cookery competition.
In addition to the award for Casa Corro, Orihuela also featured in the shows “Best of Food” section showcasing products from local farms, shops and orchards such as traditional sweets and produce.
