The Ugly Duckling: III

I dined once more at The Ugly Duckling, Corralejo, last night.

For those of you who are not familiar with the narrative, this lovely little restaurant is located fairly close to the harbour, at the corner of a narrow street.

Inside there are six tables, which means that advance booking is strongly recommended, if not essential.

I made three reservations with Henrik by email from the UK, about a fortnight before I arrived on the island of Fuerteventura.

Henrik, originally from Denmark, is one of the most courteous and affable restaurateurs whom I've ever had the pleasure to encounter.

Last night I arrived a few minutes before seven-thirty, and Henrik was speaking to a family of four, who had obviously turned up without booking.

He suggested a well-known restaurant across the street, and they followed his advice.

Henrik remarked to me that on one evening recently he had to turn away forty-three people.

I chose a small table in the middle of the restaurant and Henrik immediately poured me a refreshing flute of Cava.

I was familiar with the modest and simple menu.

There are about a half-dozen starters. I opted again for the yummy Green Salad, tossed in a tangy mustard dressing.

Fresh - likely home made - light brown bread slices arrived in a basket, with flavoured olive oil and olives.

I'm not terribly fond of olives, so I dipped the bread in the oil and had it with my salad instead.

Henrik advised me that they had run out of their apple & mango juice, so I instead had a flute of Kir Royal.

Last night I enjoyed my first steak of the holiday, a good-sized fillet of beef, well trimmed and medium as I'd requested.

I had it with roast potatoes, spinach, and bearnaise butter.

I actually managed to clean the plate, though admittedly the long-suffering nose-bag was struggling: to the extent that I had to omit pudding.

At the conclusion of the meal, Henrik proudly poured me a shot of his own sumptuous licorice liqueur.

The bill came to just under €26, so I evened it up to €30 and bade Henrik farewell.