Reconnecting with nature, with the essence, is the invitation that Baobab Suites makes to its clients, people who know how to enjoy life, from the simplest to the most elitist, but who appreciate above all naturalness, authenticity and the greatness of the little things. And this philosophy is transferred not only to the leisure experiences offered by the hotel, but also to the architecture, to the care and protection of the natural environment in which it is located and, of course, to the food.

The concept of Kar Bon, the new gastronomic space of Baobab Suites, which has just opened its doors, is centred on this reconnection with its origins. For this reason, the ember and the fire are its signs of identity, elements that refer to tradition and to the connection to the tradition and a connection with the past, a primitive spirit perhaps, but also linked to tasty, healthy and natural food.

“For us, here in the Canary Islands, the ember is something very festive. We make a fire when we get together as a family, or when you get together with a group of friends, or when you go to the mountains. And we wanted to make our gastronomy known from that point of view”, explains Juan Carlos Clemente, the person who conceives and plans the gastronomic line of Baobab Suites.

Kar Bon plays with the words carbón, but written with a k to give it a more transgressive character, as Clemente explains, and bon (good). The union of both terms refers to a rich, charcoal-grilled cuisine, where heat and fire are very present in the preparation of the dishes, including desserts. 

Located in the same place where Fuel used to be, but with a renovated aesthetic and space, it aims to offer its customers, mainly the general public, but also guests of the hotel complex, a grilled culinary experience whose concept represents a style of market cuisine, which uses zero-kilometre products – its suppliers are small local producers – and whose intention is to raise awareness of Canarian gastronomy. 

Chef Máximo Concepción is at the helm of the kitchen. The son and grandson of chefs, Concepción has grown up “sinking his roots in respect for the trade, but also in creativity”, he explains. Getting to where he is now has not been easy, but he recognises that “every obstacle has been a learning experience, a stepping stone to know that the path is a daily one and that you can’t rest on the laurels of recognition or awards”. For the chef of Kar Bon, “the kitchen is the home, the fire lit, the table set, the cauldrons on the stove, the family or friendly gathering, the after-dinner conversation and the hospitality”, concepts that fit in perfectly with the concept of the new Baobab Suites restaurant.

The chef discovered his vocation early on and turned it into a way of life where he cultivates “with pick and shovel this profession of good food”. His mother, he explains, has been his great inspiration and the one who helped him to enter “this small country of kitchens and vapours”. There is in him, he assures us, an innate will to overcome problems and crossroads. And although the dishes, their preparation and presentation have become more complicated over the course of his career, he does not forget where he comes from, “from the flavours of popular, everyday cooking”. Cooking is, for him, “taking care of others”. The meeting around a table is a human and everyday experience beyond all sophistication, a space where family and friendship bonds are fostered.

“Cooking is a team”, he says, and Máximo Concepción encourages this. “When you learn that the quality of the experience of sharing table and tablecloth depends not only on the craft but also on putting your heart into every detail, the ship will not drift. Will, courage, challenges and values help to sail any of the seas”.

“When we tried to give shape to this project, we understood that we had to give a different offer to our public staying at the hotel, and we thought of a natural concept,” explains Juan Carlos Clemente. “And natural, for me, is cooking in a primitive way -because fire is- that allows you to make very healthy, very natural food nowadays”.

“The experience in the sector, the events experienced, the feedback from our clients at the Hotel Baobab Suites, the destination and the high gastronomic level of the area have led us to design a restaurant with distinction, character, excellence, synergy and authenticity”, say Baobab Suites about their new gastronomic space. Kar Bon, they clarify, is born with the intention and purpose of offering a menu that includes novel and primary elements. “We don’t want to make a fancy cuisine, but it will be much more than a simple cuisine”, Clemente assures.

This local gastronomic character, rather than dishes and recipes, is centred on Canarian produce but prepared in a different way. As an island surrounded by the sea, fish plays an important role, from the simplest fish, such as mackerel and sardines, to the wide range of tuna. But there will also be vegetables, which offer nuances and particularities that are very different from those of the mainland because of the volcanic soil in which they are grown. “We are spinning small nuances of what is the popular recipe book, but updated”, Clemente explains. “There are traditional recipes, such as mojo, which we then version in different formats, such as boiled mojo; or different products that we are able to update so that people can eat them in a slightly different context.

 The fact that espeto is one of the stars of Kar Bon’s menu has a lot to do with the fact that this restaurant is located next to the sand. “If I wanted an informal meal and I thought of sand, the first thing that came to my mind was espetos”, explains the ideologist of the hotel’s gastronomic line. This way of preparing and eating fish and other foods so typical of Andalusia and the Mediterranean is “very respectful of the product”, something that fits perfectly with the concept of natural cuisine on which the gastronomic proposal of the new Baobab Suites restaurant revolves.

And, of course, Canarian wine will also have a prominent place among the wines on offer at the hotel complex’s wine bar. The wine list, according to Baobab Suites, is faithful to the hotel’s philosophy and an extension of its manifesto and values. “Our commitment is to local wines and an easy-to-drink cut of wine,” they say. “Of a portfolio of some 80 or 100 references that the menu will have, 40 or 50% will be local or Canarian wine, which is also a great unknown for tourists,” confirms Juan Carlos Clemente.

Kar Bon stands out from its competitors for being a corner of authenticity from which the diner is invited to be part of an experience that defies the conventional of the grill. And it does so by enhancing the natural flavours of fresh, local produce with the intention of making the customer fall in love and want to come back to eat well and always try something different and original, authentic. “Kar Bon has that comfort that doesn’t intimidate you, doesn’t make you uncomfortable”, Clemente points out. The photographs that adorn the walls contribute to this sensation. Island, which is the name of this series of black and white photos by the artist Will Corvara, shows the Canary Islands in their maritime context, from a perspective of identity and cultural integration. The exhibition can be visited until the end of March.This is one of the travelling exhibitions that will take place at the hotel, as part of Baobab Suites’ commitment to art.

“We want an establishment where everyone feels comfortable. And comfortable, for me, means, obviously, that there is a fair and measured service, that there is privacy. There is plenty of fresh air, there is sunshine, there are great views to one side or the other… I get that comfort from the space, and that is why we also link it to the nature of the product: we wanted the charcoal to be the protagonist”. Because, as they say at Baobab Suites, “gastronomy makes a destination, and we are part of the destination”.