Spanish

A Gourmand’s Guide to Gredos

A Gourmand’s Guide to Gredos

Whisper it rather than shout it, and certainly don’t tell everyone, but something very exciting is happening in the Gredos region of Spain. Drive two hours northwest from Madrid, where diners lack no shortage of plush restaurants, to encounter a truly different experience. Three days in the region left your reviewer and his group of five dining comrades swooning for both more of its food and wine.

Asador 44: Smokin’, Cardiff-style

Asador 44: Smokin’, Cardiff-style

Just moments from Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, central train station and main shopping street, diners can imagine themselves transported to Spain. Parador 44 is a wonderfully conceived venture, set up by an enterprising couple of brothers. Visitors can sip sherry, eat top Basque-influenced nosh and then sleep upstairs in a handful of boutique hotel rooms. There is every reason to do all three.

Horma Ondo: From Blackpool to Bilbao

Horma Ondo: From Blackpool to Bilbao

A visit to Horma Ondo is an experience. Take in the views, enjoy the food and wine. This is the sort of place where one could comfortably spend a whole day. It’s located in the hills outside Bilbao and easy to miss if one does not know the way. Fortunately my host was a local to the area and successfully navigated the winding road up to the venue. Once there, we relaxed and enjoyed the restaurant to the full.

Ambiente: Warm vibes

Ambiente: Warm vibes

Countless column inches have been spent pondering the question of what gives a restaurant atmosphere. This reviewer’s two cents on the debate is simple: when you walk into a venue, you know almost instinctively whether or not the vibes are good. York’s Ambiente, a Andalucian-inspired tapas venue, hit all the right notes.

La Tasqueria : Eat your heart out

La Tasqueria : Eat your heart out

Offal lovers eat your heart out. Chef-patron Javi Estévez has been on a mission since 2015 to educate the world about the merits of animal innards. His motto is #SomosCasqueros. In English, #WeAreOfffalLovers. For his commitment to the cause, he has been awarded a Michelin star. While not necessarily for the squeamish, to enjoy one of Estévez’s tasting menus is an experience to behold.

Maresco: A Scottish-Spanish love affair

Maresco: A Scottish-Spanish love affair

Portmanteaus are wonderful things. Take two words, combine them and you’ve created a brand new one, perhaps even a concept too. This is exactly what Scot Stephen Lironi has done at Maresco, a new Spanish venue in the heart of Soho. The clue is in the name: ‘mar’ in recognition of the sea and ‘esco’, from escocia, as in a homage to Scotland. Beyond mere gimmickry, Maresco is a place with serious culinary intentions.

Barrica: Sublime sherry; tasty tapas

Barrica: Sublime sherry; tasty tapas

Barrica offers a masterclass in sherry and tapas pairing . Similar to Bar Pepito, both venues share an ethos of trying to create an eating-drinking space that would not feel out of place in Spain. Barrica is a light and spacious as Pepito is dark and cramped (in a good way). In Barrica, take in the chequerboard floor, marbled counter and swinging jamons…

Donostia: Welcome home

Donostia: Welcome home

Visitors to the Basque region of Spain will see large adverts at the airports welcoming them to “the home of Spanish food.” This is not a bold claim, given that the city of San Sebastián has more Michelin stars per square metre than any other in the world. London may be some 1300km away from Spain’s culinary capital, but diners need not travel that far to experience some of the best food from the region. Donostia (what the locals call San Sebastián) is a 40-cover venue located in Marylebone’s restaurant quarter and provides an exceptionally good introduction to Basque cooking

Barrafina: The trouble with tapas (yet again)

Barrafina: The trouble with tapas (yet again)

The Spaniards were well ahead of almost every other nation when it came to the concept of ‘sharing plates.’ The term tapas is indeed as ineluctably associated with the country as bull fighting or Sangria. Nowadays, bull fighting is, of course, considered distinctly cruel and unnecessary, and the same could arguably be said of the pairing of orange juice with red wine. Yet tapas lives on. And rightly so. Small dishes mean diners have the opportunity to sample a wide range of offerings and see the full extent of a chef’s talents. However, where are those talented chefs? Not in London. I have yet to sample tapas anywhere across the capital that comes close to what might be consistently available in even the most humble of Spanish establishments. Barrafina did little to change my impression

Lobos Soho: Feast, like the wolves (March 2017)

There is no shortage of competition for tapas joints in London and far too often they fall down on offering indifferent fare that is a far cry from even the most basic establishment in Spain. Against this background, Lobos – Spanish for wolves – is an excellent addition to the London scene.

Morada Brindisa: Spat-out (July 2016)

Eating out is generally considered to be a joyful experience. Doing so regularly, I clearly subscribe to such a view. I also recognise that popular restaurants – understandably – want to turn their tables, to draw in as many visitors as possible and also to make a fatter profit.

José Pizarro Broadgate: Different chef, similar problems (March 2016)

Broadgate Circle, just to the west of Liverpool Street station, has reinvented itself as a culinary hub. Gone is the late 80’s/ early 90’s feel of swanky City elitism (and the horrible concrete ice rink that used to be here) and in its stead, is a much more egalitarian crescent of on-trend restaurants, where diners can indulge in most cuisines from around the world.

Zorita’s Kitchen: The trouble with tapas (December 2014)

I love tapas; it is a wonderfully communal way of eating, where the food does not impinge of the conversation and diners can sample a range of dishes. Indeed the idea of sharing platters, long-favoured by the Spanish, has now become close to ubiquitous on the trendy London dining scene.