Braulio Simancas

Braulio Simancas’s cooking is rooted in Canary Island identity, with place expressed through product, seasoning, texture, and restraint. His dishes draw on La Gomera, Tenerife, and memories of island kitchens, yet remain close to the archipelago without leaning on nostalgia. The result is a local register handled with discipline, where memory and technique work together rather than separately. Island cooking entered his work early at Tesina Hotel in La Gomera, where he worked close to the products, rhythms, and culinary memory of the islands. La Gomera became part of his kitchen vocabulary, especially in the treatment of inheritance, simplicity, and depth of flavor. A more defined Canary language took shape at Tasca El Silbo Gomero in Tenerife, which he founded and ran with an approach built on local identity, measured generosity, recognizable preparations, and careful refinement. That period established a style in which island memory and technical control were joined in the same plate. Fine-dining discipline later sharpened that island vocabulary at Las Aguas, Bahía del Duque Hotel, where he became head chef and led the gastronomy restaurant. The Canary thread remained, but it was worked through a more formal frame, with controlled textures, clearer presentation, and progression on the plate. These years added polish to an identity already tied to Canary places. In 2019, he returned to Tasca El Silbo Gomero as executive chef. The return brought the work back to its founding address with a longer technical memory behind it. Rather than repeat the past, it consolidated it, combining island roots with the discipline gained in a gastronomy restaurant. Today his cooking at Silbo Gomero in Tenerife and at El Silbo Gomero in San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, is defined by Canary Island roots, a modern, light, and delicate touch, and impeccable technique. Tradition forms the base, but the plate is kept light. Recovery of tradition, respect for Canary culinary heritage, and the exaltation of local island products shape the work. Familiar Canary registers are handled with craft rather than display, allowing the cuisine to remain local while being expressed in a contemporary way. Michelin has highlighted meat cooked in a traditional marinade, the escaldón of fish and Gomeran gofio, and frangollo with raisin jam and sweet wine as standout dishes. Each keeps a distinct part of the archipelago’s flavor memory in play, from savory preparation to gofio-based substance and a sweet register tied to familiar ingredients. Cheese is one of his clearest technical signatures. Since 2005, he has been associated with maturing and refining Canary Island cheeses, and the unique cheeses on the menu are personally matured by him. This work depends on observation, timing, and handling long before service begins. It links milk, island product, and the chef’s hand through maturation rather than last-minute presentation. Braulio Simancas’s recognition includes Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand for Silbo Gomero. He has also received Best Chef in the Canary Islands and Mejor Chef de Canarias.