Cafe Saves Historic La Orotava Building After Six-Year Battle

In the historic town center of La Orotava, 530 heritage buildings are currently empty. These properties are often too expensive to maintain, there isn't enough financial help available, and administrative hurdles make it difficult to find new uses for them.

One such building is a large house at 24 Tomás Zerolo street, built in 1782. It's protected by local plans, including a special plan from 2012 that hasn't been updated. This house was also destined to remain empty until its owner, Rafael Machado, stepped in. For six years, he fought to open a cafeteria there. This business has saved the building from further decay, though it has caused him many problems, a large investment, and countless bureaucratic obstacles. He spent six years on the project, not just on construction, but also waiting over two years for a municipal license and, "most frustratingly," another year just to get electricity connected.

Initially, Rafael wanted to open a rural hotel. However, he abandoned this idea because it would have required removing load-bearing walls, which isn't allowed for a protected building.

He eventually decided on a cafeteria called TZ24, named after its street and number. It opened only two months ago and is slowly finding its feet. For now, it only operates in the mornings because the income doesn't allow for longer hours, but he hopes to extend them soon.

Rafael's aim was to give the house a new lease on life, and also to use many items he had stored away. For example, old doors, perhaps from other buildings and bought by his parents, were sanded and coated with epoxy resin to look like glass. This idea came from "Pedro," a handyman who works with him. Pedro carefully lined the edges of these doors and decorated them with 1950s magazine covers, 45-rpm record sleeves, and botanical prints of Tenerife's plants. Each is unique. One table displays covers from "Triunfo," which Rafael describes as "the progressive magazine of the time, and the one all young people read." Another table features Playboy covers, popular after the end of the Franco dictatorship.

Despite the challenges, Rafael believes such projects are vital to preserve La Orotava's large old houses, especially since younger generations aren't interested in living in them. He points out that "besides being uncomfortable, many have problems like leaks, hot water takes a long time to arrive, and the cold is felt excessively."

He jokes that "they are houses clearly repairable to the complete ruin of the owner." The only grant he received to fix the property was 20,000 euros from the Cabildo de Tenerife. This money was used to repair worm-eaten columns damaged by water, which he replaced gradually. His grandmother bought the house in the early 20th century, before World War I, but it had been occupied before that. The previous owners maintained it and changed its exterior to a modernist facade from its original stone.

The house still has its original flooring. A striking feature in the garden is a large mural painted by Sabotaje al Montaje. Rafael's only instruction was that he wanted local flora, and the artist added their own style.

The garden also features fragrant citronella plants and a special corner dedicated to La Orotava's carpenters. It displays discarded items from a storeroom, such as a bookcase capital, a bed headboard, and tools, all arranged in a frame on the wall. Rafael wants to highlight their craft, noting that in the 1950s there were 45 carpentry licenses in the municipality, but now only 6 remain.

Inside, there are more hidden treasures: old trunks, book collections, and paintings featuring photos of the island's natural pools, giving customers ideas for places to visit. These works, by architect Claudia Rodríguez de Azero, have "surreal touches."

Rafael Machado's story with TZ24 is essentially a personal triumph against a wider public issue. Every restored table, every salvaged carpentry detail, and every repaired column represents a solitary effort beyond just making money. The high cost of preserving heritage cannot be shouldered by all property owners to save the remaining empty listed buildings.

TZ24, perhaps unintentionally, serves as a reminder to authorities to simplify procedures and finally approve funding for this crucial cultural preservation work.