"We're very tired of the subject": El Ventorro hides that he is El Ventorro

ValenciaLeft on the floor in a corner of the entrance. Perhaps waiting for better times. This is the bright sign of the El Ventorro restaurant.of Valencia after the owner of the establishment, businessman Alfredo Romero, took it down in an attempt to appease the influx of curious people who stop in front of the restaurant every day to photograph it. "It's a historic place," explains Vicente, a resident of the municipality of Alginet who has taken advantage of his visit to the city to visit the restaurant and share an anecdote with his family and friends. The gossip of this former employee of the Ford factory in Almussafes has been shared by many citizens since October 29th, when the president of the Generalitat Valenciana, Carlos Mazón, had lunch at the restaurant with journalist Maribel Vilaplana, a meal that, according to the latest, was canceled due to the DANA.

The removal of the sign has coincided with the success of attendance at The sixth demonstration called to demand Mazón's resignation, a march that on each occasion has passed just a few meters from the centrally located restaurant. Many citizens have taken advantage of this circumstance to leave stickers demanding the indictment of the conservative politician.

Paco and Ramón, two of the citizens who arrived at the restaurant this spring morning, seem more curious than indignant protesters. The former is a resident of the Creu Coberta neighborhood of Valencia, and the latter, from the town of Algemesí. Both are in the center running errands and explain that they have looked for the location of the establishment and have come specifically for it. Although it may seem so after the extensive news coverage of the sad meal and its location, not everyone is clear about where El Ventorro is. This is the case with Blanca, who explains that she thought the restaurant was in Chiva, one of the towns hardest hit by the catastrophe.

While conversations with the citizens who stop in front of the establishment take place, the workers look on. "We're very tired of the issue. We should pay more attention to the state of municipalities like Paiporta," one of them complains. When asked how the spread of the restaurant's name has impacted them, he summarizes, "badly." The employee's opinion coincides with that given to ARA a few months ago by the owner, Alfredo Romero, who explained that they are trying to "survive" the controversy. This isn't surprising, considering that one of El Ventorro's attractions is—or was—its tranquility. Located near the Palace of the Generalitat and the Valencian Parliament, and in the heart of the financial district, it has now lost the privacy that some of its customers seek.

At 1:30 p.m., the first three diners of the day arrive: two women and a man looking for a place to eat. The next group fits more closely with the establishment's stereotype: three men in suits and ties. A few seconds later, one of them goes outside to talk on his phone. This isn't surprising, given the restaurant's notoriously poor reception. Definitely a bad place to have lunch during a disaster if someone is responsible for leading an emergency response, or at least for being informed.