El Jardín del Califa, one of the main gastronomic destinations in the province of Cádiz, has just been included in the new edition of the Repsol Guide, the bible of foodies, in the category of recommended restaurant.
“We are delighted and very grateful for the recognition,” says Khadija Essaadi, manager and executive chef of El Jardín del Califa.
Recommended by the Repsol Guide, it is a place “where warmth is contagious and heartfelt cuisine is felt in dishes and tapas. That restaurant where the loyalty of the clientele and the sincere product presage a pleasant experience that is complemented by a simple but adequate wine offer”, says the Repsol Guide.
“I would like to congratulate Khadija and the whole team for the hard work and dedication. We are proud that El Jardín del Califa has been included in the national gastronomic guide”, says James Stuart, director of Califa Vejer. “We are very excited to receive this distinction, and I would like to express my special thanks to our customers for their loyalty”, says Regli Álvarez, director of Califa Vejer.
This is how the guide describes the restaurant on its website: “Located in the heart of Vejer de la Frontera, considered one of the most beautiful villages in Spain. El Jardín del Califa is an obligatory stop both to eat and to enjoy the tea shop. The buildings where it is located are historical buildings from the 15th and 16th centuries. The cuisine revolves around North African and Lebanese specialities. Tagine, kebabs, chicken pastilla, couscous are among the favourites on the menu. It has a garden, which gives its name to the establishment, half glazed and a room that is the interior of an old cistern built in the Islamic period of Vejer”.
A guide that rewards, among other aspects, the value of the gastronomy together with the restaurant’s wine. “Our wine cellar is made up of more than a hundred references and we take special care of local wines from Cadiz”, says Ramón Fenoll, Califa’s wine director.
Corredera 55, another of the group’s restaurants, renews its solete in the restaurant category in this new edition of the guide.
This news was announced yesterday after the Gala of the Soles Repsol Guide 2023, which was held in the Auditorium of the Diputación de Alicante. One of the most important gastronomic events of the year.
The Guía Repsol, previously known as Guía Campsa or Guía del Viajero, celebrates its 44th anniversary as a gastronomic reference for gourmets.
A gastronomy journey through the Middle East and North African
Captained by Khadija Essaadi as executive chef and manager, the restaurant is housed in a 16th century barn with different spaces: a lush garden in the style of The Thousand and One Nights; the Aljibe, the interior of a water well built in the Islamic period of Vejer; the Temple, or the Pergola, a glassed-in lounge open to the outside.
The restaurant’s menu is the result of some two decades of collaboration between Khadija Essaadi (executive chef and manager) and James Stuart (co-founder of Caliph). Khadija is an innovative and experienced chef from the Rabat area of Morocco, where James Stuart spent several years working as a mountain guide and living in the Middle East as a child. Combining her experience and understanding of Middle Eastern culture, they have created a wide variety of exotic dishes, made with the finest local ingredients.
The restaurant combines gastronomy and sustainability, using only free-range eggs and chicken, as well as organic beef. Ninety-five per cent of the vegetables are from gardens close to the province of Cádiz and at least 60 per cent, depending on the season, are organic.
