Spanish Capital of Gastronomy 2027 goes to Santa Cruz de Tenerife
The first island city to win the title takes over from Jerez in January with 137 activities, a bid dossier written as a cookbook and no published budget.
Santa Cruz de Tenerife will be the Spanish Capital of Gastronomy 2027, the first city in the Canary Islands and the first island city to hold the title, and takes over in January from Jerez de la Frontera.
The title is awarded by the Federación Española de Hostelería, which operates as Hostelería de España, and the Federación Española de Periodistas y Escritores de Turismo (FEPET). The jury, co-chaired by Mariano Palacín for the Capital Española de la Gastronomía and José Luis Álvarez Almeida for Hostelería de España, met on 8 September and chose between three candidacies. The organisers have not named the other two. Revista Hostelería, which returned to the decision on 2 October, reported that the vote was unanimous.
The jury also included the Secretaría de Estado de Turismo, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the Instituto de Calidad Turística, the Mesa del Turismo, Euro-Toques and Saborea España. Its stated reasons were the work of recent years and the way the city ties gastronomy to local produce, markets, restaurants, retail, training and tourism promotion.
A year of 137 events is the easy part; the market stalls have to outlast it.
What the Spanish Capital of Gastronomy 2027 plans
The bid ran under the slogan "Santa Cruz de Tenerife, cruce de sabores", a crossroads of flavours, and its dossier was written as a cookbook titled "Recetas para cocinar la Capital Española de la Gastronomía 2027", with chapters on strategy, identity, larder, values, programme and legacy. The programme lists 137 activities over the twelve months of 2027, aimed at bars and restaurants, markets, hotels, shops, training and public space.
The larder is spelled out: papas arrugadas, mojos, gofio escaldado (toasted cereal flour stirred into broth), Atlantic fish, goat and sheep cheeses, tropical fruit and wines from Tenerife's appellations, among them Tacoronte-Acentejo, Valle de la Orotava, Ycoden-Daute-Isora and Valle de Güímar. Revista Hostelería mentions tastings at the Mercado de Nuestra Señora de África, the municipal market.
No budget has been published. The town hall's statement, quoted by Diario de Avisos, says the programme will depend on administrative procedures, available resources and the contracts required. Mayor José Manuel Bermúdez described Santa Cruz to RTVC as capital, port, market, Carnaval, neighbourhoods and hospitality.
From Jerez to an Atlantic port
Jerez de la Frontera holds the title in 2026 after beating Antequera for it. Santa Cruz presented its bid on 20 May at GastroCanarias, the Salón Gastronómico de Canarias, building on Degusta Santa Cruz, a product club the council has developed in recent years to link restaurants, producers and markets. The city counts about 3.4 million tourists, day visitors and cruise passengers a year.
Spain's other 2027 food and drink title went inland: Montilla was named Spanish Wine City 2027, ahead of Jerez. Santa Cruz is a working port and administrative capital with neighbourhood bars and municipal markets, not a resort. Whether the Spanish Capital of Gastronomy 2027 leaves a mark will be measured in 2028, when the 137 events are over and the market stalls are still there.
