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Gives a keynote talk on gastronomic sustainability at the II Sustainable Gastronomy and Hospitality Congress of Oviedo
Example of global sustainability and rigorous proximity, Victor Lugo, businessman, restorer, farmer (250.000 m2 of vegetable farms, fruit trees, herbs…), grocer (The Berrazales) and coffee maker (La Laja Estate, the northernmost coffee plantation in the world), whose restaurant, Romantic House (Michelin Recommended, Recommended Repsol), follows a relentless policy of total sustainability, from organic crops, faithfully following the seasons and using their own products in the restaurant, to the management of the restaurant itself (recycled decoration, waste management, rainwater use, etc.) He gave a master class today at the II Sustainable Gastronomy and Hospitality Congress that has been taking place since yesterday in Oviedo.
With the “circular sustainability” of the restaurant and the farms as a philosophy, Víctor Lugo has explained the real-time transmission of his way of understanding the intimate relationship between his farms and his restaurant on all fronts, from the binomial “from the land to the table” to its holistic vision, which includes artistic and historical furniture recovered from the Pérez Galdós theater, tableware manufactured by local artists, waste management, the absence of plastics, rainwater recycling, the continuous training of employees and their imminent plans to install solar energy and a charging point for electric vehicles, all of it destined, concluded “to radically reduce our carbon footprint”.
“This inalienable concept of sustainability without leaks,” he said in his talk- has made our restaurant able to show in all its naturalness and grandeur, station to station, the great products of the Agaete Valley, of land and sea, with all its quality and power and viewed from a contemporary and creative culinary point of view, in the hands of our chef, Aridani Alonso, and our sommelier, Carlos Pena, “which has just launched a line of unique artisan liquors based on the herbs and fruits of our farms”.
Romantic House, extraordinary example of sustainability
Casa Romántica supplies itself with everything its farms produce, three separated by different productions. in summer, mangos, avocados and passion fruit. Plus onions, tomatoes, pumpkins, papas, corn, grenades, lemons, bananas… Also, They have their own winery and it is the only restaurant that has your own coffeeIt is highlighted as an attraction on tasting menus throughout the year..
They also have agreements with other farmers in the area that provide them with what they have on their farms., as well as an agreement with the Agaete Fishermen's Guild for the fish, always selecting the first to arrive at port. Another agreement is with the cheese DO of Gran Canaria. At last, and 50 percent of the wine list is Canarian.
Besides, has demanding protocols waste management. They make compost with the waste, and recycle all glass and cardboard and demand that supply companies sustainability certificates and absence of plastic.
Its water use system for consumption is through water filtered by themselves, so they don't waste bottles or plastic.
All the restaurant furniture is recycled, the lamps that arrived from hotels in the south of the island and from the Perez Galdós theater, authentic works of art created by Néstor Álamo.
All the dishes and paintings that decorate the space are made by artists from Gran Canaria.
Casa Romantica collects the rainwater for irrigation of their farms, It also has a storage area for its wines in a cave for its natural conservation..
It has a circuit that highlights all the products from the island of Gran Canaria, giving specific training to its staff and to all the people who visit the restaurant and the farms.
Romantic House organizes training visits (monthly) for their staff to the different companies that supply them with products such as oil, salt or sprouts.
At the moment, is designing a plan for placement of solar panels and charging stations for electric cars.
The philosophy of Casa Romantica is the defense of the Canarian product through a sustainable project, contributing as much as possible to reduce the carbon footprint
