Long Beach Club Lanzarote — Restaurant in Tías

We chose this place to celebrate my birthday last night with 9 close friends. We were really excited about it given the location and great reviews. Unfortunately, experience did not match expectations. We observed similar behaviour to the other low reviews.

In general, I wouldn't call it simply bad service, just chaotic and slightly passive aggressive. The food was really quite incredible, and drinks also nice, not to mention the beautiful location. I think they just don’t deal well with big groups.

Our “memorable” time there was a comedy of errors and strange behaviour. An auspicious beginning as we were seated at a table for 9 but with only 6 chairs. Even after asking for 9 chairs, they just brought one back.

Right from the start there was confusion. There is a team of about 8-10 serving the tables. A hostess, 2 lead servers in blazers, a manager and several runners. Each staff however comes at their own speed and style to take the order. Some came with handheld ordering devices, others nothing. What results is usually missed orders and we know from experience in the town already this can lead to random charges on your bill, in addition to not getting what you ordered.

The main waiters seemed to chastise us for ordering in a certain way, so we tried to adjust to their needs. But what we ended up with were several mistakes and micro aggressions. The different servers would come and ask a single person what they wanted but then immediately run away with 2-3 of my friends having hands clearly raised. Or just drop off a drink to one person and then run off, while another comes to ask if we want something. In the end, it was just chaos where sometimes we had lots of attention but nothing to order, while others no attention or some strange results.

After a number of these situations, we tried to give some feedback and find a solution to make the process smoother. We understand with large groups and busy evenings it can be tough, but we clearly were not always getting what we ordered and the servers clearly did not like each person ordering separately.

After speaking with the manager, and then being passed over to the lead waiters again, it was clear that the whole team was taking offence to this feedback. We were not sure if a language barrier, but the staff all got testy and animated, trying to push the blame off of themselves.

After the feedback it just got worse and worse with little things. One waitress lifted a tray of ice for oysters and the bottom was completely unsealed. Melted ice was everywhere, and they dripped it all over my partner while removing it, not even taking notice. The male waiters also seemed to intentionally reach over my head from behind to collect plates, instead of reaching between the guests. I don't know if this is just some lack of experience serving or some way to put me in my place for my feedback.

We are 9 very seasoned travelers, representing 6 nations and at least as many languages. We discussed each situation, trying to figure out what could be the cause. Was it a language barrier? Were they too busy? We’re pretty easy going and flexible.. but we could not really understand why such weird behaviour.

I think they were a bit shocked at the end to find out it was my birthday, as my partner ordered a cheeky cake. At the end we got the standard birthday cake and singing and aperitif shots -- a nice touch -- but I was over it.

We had originally wanted to stay and dance on the open terrace but I'd been insulted enough to want to spend any more time or money here. We paid quickly, all in one bill to avoid any problems, and went to Cafe Ola for some final drinks to close the evening out on a high note.

Thanks but no thanks for a somewhat amusing and uninteresting birthday dinner experience. Hope the team was just having a bad day...

Second Visit This place has fantastic views. Definitely worth going in just to sit relax and have a little something to eat. The decor is quite clever as well, using bamboo Cortinas to great effect giving a beach hut feel to the place. Having visited before, a long while back I can say that it's still the relaxing atmosphere as it ever was. Definitely worthy of a bite to eat here. The staff are nice and friendly. Though some of them don't speak the greatest of english. Not saying that it's bad English, just that there may be a little bit of communication back and forth at times. I wouldn't say it's difficult but just no that you may have to repeat yourself. Wifey went for the guacamole on toast. And though it looks very plain on the menu, it's anything but. When that dish came out and I tried it, I was surprised at how fantastic this dish was. So creamy and delicious. However the star dish here is the wagyu cheese burger in a brioche bun. I have to say that this is the best burger hands down that I have ever tried anywhere that I care to remember. Accompanied with bacon and cheese, with a delicious long beach sauce. I had my burger medium, which came out a little bit rarer than I thought, still I loved it, however wifey did not like the sight of all that red meat. Another note worthy side dish are the Catalonia potatoes. Small finger food, that's actually good for you, and absolutely worthy of ordering even if filling. So worth it just to taste more of that mojo sauce. The rojo and verde maybe a little bit oily but so dunkable delicious.

First Visit This place is in a perfect spot. Fantastic sea views and worth booking at 5:30 for sunset. I really enjoyed my meal. I decided to go big and go for the Lobster. The Wifey went for the Wagyu Burger. The combination of the fried egg on potato's is always a winner. The lobster and hollandaise sauce was tasty. I was impressed... However Wifey pointed out that the dish was 55 euro and missing the claws. After think about it, it is a little expensive not to have the claws included. The tail meat was a little over cooked and stuck to the shell. It wasn't chewy and I enjoyed it. So the wifey asked about opinions on how it's cooked, and the consensus is that it was steamed. A high heat that cooks it quickly and tends to over cook it. After thinking about this, I cannot argue, and am somewhat disappointed. The Wagyu Cheeseburger was an absolute winner. While Wifey wanted it her way, no cheese and extra fried onions. I have to say it was one of the best burgers to try on the strip. I would go here again, and at the time the Lobster was a solid 5. But after thinking about it, I knocked one star off because serving without the claws makes the whole...

We stumbled across it as a "cold drink out the sun for a bit" and loved it so much we've been back twice more. Another visit planned before the holiday is over. The beach front is full of cafes and bars, most are rough and ready and catering for Brits. LBC is a bit different, no fry ups or TVs and it has a lovely relaxed beach vibe.

It's a level lower than the promenade so your only view is the beach and sea, absolutely magnificent. You can sit in the sun or under the shade of the main building, both get a lovely breeze coming through. Good speaker system playing chilled music adds to the vibe.

Staff are friendly and very slick, no request is too much hassle. Handled our party of 8 easily. Food was very tasty, the Mrs loved the octopus (€20), squid went down well (€18), sirloin was perfect (€24) and the wagyu burger (€21) was excellent. It's more expensive than promenade prices but the quality and experience make it worthwhile.

Drinks were also excellent. Beer is a simple one but done perfectly. The glass was frozen and the beer sublime. Cocktails were fresh and punchy without suffering from over-alcohol.

It's not kiddy friendly, but not kiddy unfriendly. There are some menu options for kids where portions are decent and prices reasonable. However there's no activities for them and no real space for running about. There is WiFi so bring a tablet for them instead so you can enjoy the view.

Looking forward to...