Rioja Tapas Fantasticas 2011, Southwark

I'm not really one for camping or festivals. I like a good solid roof over my head, and I like to be able to stand up and switch on the lights within my accommodation. The thought of trudging off to the shrubbery with a shovel send shudders down my spine. I do have wellies, but I bought them from Marc Jacobs so I'm not sure they count (not bad for £12 and where else can you find wellies in a last minute panic in Soho?). As for feasting off paper plates and cups, that's all well and good so long as the sun is shining and I'm not paying so much that its costing me an opportunity to eat wagyu beef laced with gold leaf and truffle at The Fat Duck*.

So I'm not often seen at food festivals. However, the sun was shining, and I still haven't booked that trip to Madrid I've been hankering for. So, it was that TPG and I ventured to the foot of Tower Bridge on Saturday for the FREE event, Rioja Tapas Fantasticas.

While taking in the views over the Thames and the Tower of London, we tasted white, rose and red riojas from a large number of wine makers (such as Marques de la Concordia, Marques del Atrio and Vina Salceda), while feasting on thick tortilla rolls (from restaurant Barcelona), a hearty rabbit paella with spinach and asparagus (from Number 22 Restaurant and Casa Catering) and creamy Iberico hams (carved to thin, melt in the mouth perfection by Tozino - a company with experience carving for the likes of Ferran Adria and the Spanish Royal Family).

Taste from the tapas stalls of some of London's Spanish restaurants, such as Barrica, Camino and Paellaria (serving huge pans of inky arroz negra) or try Picota Cheeries which are exclusively grown in the Spain's Jerte Valley and only available from mid June to end of July each year. Fellow blogger and the woman behind Catalan Cooking classes, Rachel McCormack, is also there with her Rachel's Bunuelos stand.

Entry is FREE, and you only pay £3 to purchase a tasting glass and 4 tokens to exchange each for a small (ok, teensy) sample of 4 wines of your choice. (Call me what you will, but the samples could be bigger.) After that, you pay £1 per sample, or you can buy by the glass at good prices - I had a lovely (and big glass of) spicy, vanilla-y Reserva for £3.50. Our food was mostly priced between £3.50 - £6. There are also wine workshops, cooking demonstrations (eg from Jose Pizarro) and Spanish bands.

Tapas Fantastica runs over one weekend in summer each year (look out for it in 2012) and is a low key, hassle free way to have a taste of Spain in London. And it won't cost you the tasting menu at Le Gavroche.

Thanks to Phipps PR for the press pass.

*  Ok, so I'm not sure The Fat Duck does this dish, but you get my drift.

Opera Tavern, Covent Garden

Mini Iberico pork and foie gras burgers. Yes, that's mini Iberico pork and foie gras burgers. Ooomph.

Opera Tavern opened in Covent Garden in February, joining it siblings (and Greedy Diva favourites), Salt Yard and Dehesa to provide a range of small plates inspired by Spanish tapas, with an Italian cicchetti twist. The biggest difference is the addition of the robata charcoal grill, where "pinchos morunos" are quickly sizzled up and skewered in all their smoky deliciousness.

A selection of skewered meats( pinchos morunos) from the robata charcoal grill

The restaurant is small (and rather noisy from the celebrations in the dining room upstairs on the night I visited with Gourmet Chick, MTV Boyfriend and A Girl Has to Eat) - perhaps not one to take your hard of hearing grandparents). Downstairs near the bar, where we're seated, feels like a typical Covent Garden pub turned simply into a place to eat ham and drink sherry with abandon.

Grilled Octopus & Chorizo

Although the pig's head terrine is catches my attention among the range of bar snacks (priced from £2.55 - £4.25), we move straight to the offerings of the charcoal grill for mini Iberico pork and foie gras burgers, juicy and medium rare, topped with oozey grilled manchego, aioli and onion jam on a mini brioche bun - phwoar. Incontrovertible proof that size is not everything.

Deep fried courgettes with goats cheese and honey

We try a selection of grilled pinchos morunos - there's marinated Iberico pork, Gresshingham duck with fig, and octopus with chorizo, green tomatoes, cucumber and pomegranate (ranging from £3.25 - £3.95). The deep fried courgettes with oozy goats cheese and honey are a favourite from Salt Yard and are just as good here.

Chargrilled Saltmarsh Lamb

Try the range of hams, charcuterie and cheeses, or move straight on to the tapas - FISH like crispy squid and sea purslane with chilli aioli (£6.75) or roasted monkfish with crab and chickpea sauce and crab fritter (£7.50), MEATS like chargrilled salt mash lamb with faro, peas, broad beans, wild garlic and goat's curd (£7.25) or chargrilled beef sirloin with bone marrow, Iberico pork fat chips, garlic and thyme aioli (£12.50), or VEGETABLE dishes such as grilled asparagus with crispy duck egg yolk, fresh pea and truffle dressing (£5.75) or salad of grilled baby fennel and trope onion with orange and black olive (£6.25).

Patatas bravas

We manage to work our way through a couple of bottles of wine, both lovely and reasonably priced.

Warm hazelnut cake with lemon thyme ice-cream

Of the lovely puddings, my favorite was the warm hazelnut cake with lemon thyme ice cream (£5.35), or you might like the tonka bean pannacotta with English strawberries and white chocolate almonds (£5.35).

As usual when 4 gluttons get together and start ordering small plates, the bill sneaks up on you, although I think we manage to get away at around £40 per head including wine and service.

For atmosphere and stylish surrounds, I prefer Salt Yard and Dehesa, but Opera Tavern is certainly a welcome addition to the restaurants of substance infiltrating the former tourist trap haven of Covent Garden.

Opera Tavern, 23 Catherine Street, Covent Garden, London WC2 (Tel: 020 7836 3680)




You can see my earlier review of Dehesa here. Another good addition to the Covent Garden area is da Polpo (sibling to Polpo, Polpetto and Spuntino) - I've visited da Polpo twice but have not reviewed as there's really not much to add to my reviews of its siblings. It's a place for fun food rather than anything gourmet, and as much as I like it, it lacks some of the buzz and charm of its Soho siblings (you can read my reviews of them at the above links). Nevertheless, it's much easier to get a table (walk ins only) at the Covent Garden newbie.

Tapas Brindisa Soho

Despite all the rave reviews it gets, I've only recently discovered for myself the joy that is Tapas Brindisa at Borough Market. If you haven't been, go - eat ham, drink sherry, enjoy the buzz. I was earlier put off the Brindisa restaurants by an altogether ho hum experience at related Tierra Brindisa in Soho, which I couldn't even be bothered writing about. But now, at the same site, the restaurant has re-opened full of Madrid-like abandon, as a walk in tapas restaurant - another Tapas Brindisa.

Being in the neighborhood and with my ear to ground, I was quick to take up the 50% off soft opening offer tonight with my friend, the intrepid Rachel. There's a no reservations policy, so the sherry bar at the front was already bustling with a crowd eager to hoe into bite sized Padron Peppers, creamy Iberico ham and smoky chunks of chorizo as every table and stool in front room and back was crammed with happy, hungry diners. The room in the back has an open kitchen and a fiery grill, so be warned it can heat up in there. Extra Cava required.

From the Picoteo snack menu, try toasted broad beans and marinated Cantabrian white anchovies, or gorgeous, shrivelled little pan fried Padron Peppers (the best I've tasted) with some pan de pincel (toasted thick bread lathered in herb and garlic olive oil). We didn't try the hand carved, acorn fed Iberico ham (usually a must for me), but if its anything like that at the London Bridge branch, don't go past it.

The gambas al ajillo are large, meaty prawns served with big slithers of garlic and chilli still almost sizzling in the clay pot. Cured ham and chicken croquetas are lush and creamy pockets of oozy fun in a crispy, crumbly case, while grilled smoked chorizo on toast is a generous portion served with rocket and piquillo pepper.

Try a silky potato tortilla or fantabulous deep fried monte enebro - goats cheese with orange blossom honey and crispy beetroot. Oh yeah. There's even Presa Iberica (top shoulder of Iberian pork), marinated lamb or lemon chicken skewers - all straight from the parrilla (an iron grill).

Take all of the above with a glass of Cava or sherry and have yourself a good time. Actually, we lucked out on our wine choices, but there's plenty to choose from. It might have only been the soft opening, but it's already running like a well oiled machine - they make it all look too easy.

Our bill came to £40 per head (or £20 per head during soft opening) with drinks and service.

Tapas Brindisa Soho, 46 Broadwick Street, Soho, London W1F 7AF, Phone: 020 7534 1690


Or, if it's closer to home, try the lively Tapas Brindisa at London Bridge, 18-20 Southwark Street, London SE 1 1TJ (Tel: 020 7357 8880)

Barrica: Tapas in Fitzrovia, London

It was a scene straight from "Revenge of the Nerds". A Rather Unusual Chinaman and I entered Barrica for an impromptu "I'm tipsy, starving and need to soak up those cocktails" emergency feed on Friday night. We walked in, stepped 2 paces and turned to each other with respective glasses fogged over. Just too cool.

However, we managed to de-mist and recover our composure sufficiently to obtain a barside table in amongst the bustling, Barcelona-like commotion.

Setting up Barrica in its Goodge St locale is one brave move, given the terrific Fino and Salt Yard restaurants can be found within 10 paces. However, Barrica is a slightly more relaxed option than its nearby contemporaries (it is more "tapas bar" than "restaurant"), and - for me - while the food may not be of the same quality, it is more evocative of walking into to your average Barcelona tapas joint on a teeming Friday night.

It boasts chef James Knight, formerly of the much lauded Moro in Exmouth Market, as its head chef as well as a really lovely selection of wines (including over 20 sherries - hooray to that!). It's not a place for a tranquil meal (bah, who wants it?!), or perhaps even ultra fine dining quality or creative fare, but we tried a thorougly enjoyable selection of tapas in a fun and boisterous atmosphere.

I started with a glass of the easy drinking, smooth Tinto Fino ordered from our friendly, Spanish speaking waiter - I got the sense that all of the staff were Spanish.

The finely sliced Jamon Iberico Cebo (£6.50) was not the highest grade jamon on the menu (the pigs are fed on just a cereal feed diet, no acorns - so the taste is less nutty, with less marbling, than higher grades), but it was lovely and creamy. It was a fairly decent serving size for the price and quality.

Other dishes included the bright green and juicy Pimiento del Padron (peppers) and some absolutely delicious mushrooms with jamon and Fino sherry sauce were a highlight. This serving was also quite generous in size, compared to some of the other dishes at our table and those surrounding us.

The breaded pig's trotter with tomato and capers (below) was scrumptious and was wolfed down accordingly.

My very poor photography does not show the black pudding sausages for the delights that they were. Yes, they were ugly little runts but the taste was all fatty goodness. We both loved the flavour and somehow managed to share them between us without coming to blows.

The lowlight was probably the charcoal grilled aubergine, pepper and onions which were not bad, but not particularly great, and oilier than expected.

Service was friendly and helpful. And delivered with a Spanish accent to boot.

In all, I think the traditional and lively ambience here has the edge over the food. This is good, unpretentious, wine-accompanying fare, done Spanish style. For the prices (although only £20 per head for us), you should of course expect very reasonable quality food, which we obtained on the night. And it's certainly a fun place for a drink and a nibble or a widespread graze.

I knew I loved Barrica the moment I walked in (once the glasses had de-fogged) and it did not disappoint. I'll be back.

62 Goodge Street, Fitzrovia, London, W1T 4NE

Dehesa, Soho (London)

 

Here's a hypothetical for you. You're booking dinner for a group which includes a steadfast Spaniard who respectfully considers that most Spanish restaurants in London are rubbish. So what type of establishment do you not go to?

Yuh. So, naturally, I booked us into Dehesa. No pressure.

And, of course, then I discovered that I wasn't even pronouncing it properly - it's De-esa, not De-Heesa. Not a flying start.

My companions on Tuesday were my lovable Peanut Gallery, the fun-loving Chris NC (again), Chris' fabulous wife Maggie, the lovely Yinglei from Beijing and our die hard Spaniard (and litmus test for all things authentically Spanish), Oscar.

Fortunately, De-esa is always pretty good. Its fare is a flashy combination of Spanish and Italian influences, with a modern London spin, so eating there is never going to mentally transport you straight to Madrid.

Some of its offerings are more authentically Spanish than others. I have it on good authority from my faithful Spaniard that the pork belly was true to the test. Delicious and crispy in all the right places, and set in a clay dish with flavoursome, rosemary scented cannellini beans, this was one of the favourite dishes of the night (£6.25).

The Jamon Iberica de Bellota "5J" Cinco Jotas (£12.80) also passed the litmus test. And more. Eating it in polite company was quite problematic - rich, creamy and mouth watering, it almost necessitated a minute's silence to worship each mouthful lovingly in all its glory. I could quite happily have limited the meal to a plate of each of the jamon, some bread, cheese and wine. Glorious.

The Spanish selection charcuterie was fine, but not in the same league - a nice selection of mild chorizo, salami, iberico pork with oregano and paprika edged loin ($8.60).

De-esa also offers up some of the Salt Yard essentials, such as our much loved courgette flowers with goats cheese and honey. But at only 2 per plate, they are hard to share without a surgeon's knife and a steady hand, and at £7.25 per plate it's pricey to order more.

We also sampled the classic tortilla - our Spaniard noted (head shaking, despairing tone) that the potatoes were not correctly sliced (£4). Our other dishes included some lovely chorizo (£4), the beetroot carpaccio with goats cheese, pinenuts and merlot dressing (£4.50), spiced butternut squash with chilli, ricotta and marcona almonds (great almonds, weirdly spiced squash - £4.75), patatas (always good - £3.50), braised shoulder of lamb with gnocchi, wild mushroom and speck (lovely! better than it looks above - £6.50), seared scallops with sweetcorn puree, truffle and peashoots (£9) and prawns with borlotti bean stew (I somehow missed this one, but it was Maggie's favourite dish which is good enough for me - £6.50).

Our puddings were chocolate cake with frangelico ice-cream matched with a glass of Pedro Ximenez, and calasparra rice pudding with stewed figs and cinnamon ice-cream knocked back with a sweet, golden Gerwurztraminer Passito.

The wines were among the winners of the evening. We shared a lovely full Rioja to start, followed by a bottle or two of red from Ribera del Duero (always delectable).

Runner up in the Time Out Best New Restaurant Awards 2008, my only real criticism of Dehesa is the prices. Ok, we drank a bit and ate a lot. However, at £45 a head, I would expect all dishes to be the quality of the Iberico, or at least somewhat more ample in size.

So, it's a really fun place to eat, drink and be merry, and the food is generally delicious. But watch your purse strings, and don't promise Madrid to your Spanish amigos. Salud!

Dehesa, 25 Ganton Street, Soho, London, W1F 9BP