Music and people spill out of the crowded Castro’s Cafeteria on Hackins Hey.

The tiny cafeteria is wedged between two of Liverpool’s most loved pubs, the Denbigh Castle and Ye Hole in Ye Wall. Castro’s is owned by Borja Castro-Cabrera and is a nod to the traditional cafeterias found in his native Tenerife.

It’s a blend of food, music, drinks, and company, with Borja taking centre stage at the counter that lines the packed room. Castro’s brings a slice of sunny island life to the heart of Liverpool.

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Borja told the ECHO: “I was working in (Liverpool restaurant) Amalia for six years and was done with hospitality. The owners of the Denbigh Castle who are good mates of mine called and said there was shop available but I was looking for an office job.

“I came with my girlfriend to see the place and said I would take it. I wanted to make a Spanish cafeteria and since moving here I have missed the traditional cafeterias we have at home. You can find these kinds of places across Spain with tapas, a butty, or a rum and coke if you want.”

Borja had never “cooked in his life” before opening Castro’s last year. The 42-year-old said he would regularly Facetime his nan and auntie for cooking tips and recipes.

Borja said: “We are getting better every week and I learn as I go… I had made a few pizzas at Amalia’s during covid but that was it. Everything is made here fresh, we have so little storage space.

“Mechada is very popular in Tenerife and I got that from a recipe from my auntie, which my cousin wrote down and sent to me. Then for everything else, it is a lot of phone calls with my grandma… Mechada is one of our best sellers now.

“It helps that people can see what we do and a lot of local people have never had this kind of food before.”

Castro’s is brightly coloured, with splashes of blue, green, and, red all over the walls. Chairs and tables line the narrow passageway that leads to the bathroom.

For Borja and his girlfriend Natasha, they wanted to create somewhere that would bring people together. Strangers rubbing shoulders at the counter are forced to talk as they wait for food.

He said: “We did not want to have many tables, it is a way to push people together to get the English people to interact with the Spanish people…. The weekend is madness, we have good music and good vibes.

“People are in a good mood and everyone mixes together, I have seen Spanish couples and English couples who keep drinking together when we put the shutters down and carry on drinking in the pub next door. That is brilliant.”

The popularity of Castro’s has boomed in recent months, with Borja growing in his role as chef. For someone with no prior cooking experience, he has made a name for himself with his simple and delicious fare. Borja said as long you as put passion into food, that is what counts.

Borja, who has lived in Liverpool for seven years said: “I love cooking now and I am proud of what I do, I make things the way I would like to eat them I think that is the secret. At the end of the we are not making Michelin star dishes but when you put a little bit of passion in, even if you have never cooked before, people can tell I care.”

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