(between Ninth and
Tenth Avenues)
Great wine and dessert place; food not so impressive.
Hopes were high as the décor is very cozy and comfortable.
The front is a bar (which I can imagine gets hopping at night) and in the back
is a pleasant dining area.
Went for lunch, and ordered the lomo bocadillo, which is a
house-cured pork loin sandwich with melted cheese and piquillo pepper.
I was so disappointed as the sandwich tasted too dry.
However, the rest of the meal made up for my sad a sandwich.
We started with an order of huevos rellenos (organic deviled
eggs with tahini) as an appetizer. It was very good.
My friend ordered the camerón de cádiz salad, which was
flash-fried cádiz shrimp, poached egg, baby arugula with sherry vinaigrette.
She thought it was delicious.
For dessert we ordered the pa amb xocolat, which was
described as a paté of chocolate, sea salt, and olive oil. I would describe it
as a high-end Nutella and it was chocolate decadence. We could smell it as it
was being baked, so we promptly ordered it.
It was a stick of chocolate paired with lightly toasted
homemade bread.
When you’re about halfway finished, olive oil would ooze out
of the chocolate bar and onto the plate. Who would think the pairing of olive
oil and chocolate would work, but it does! And the sea salt added a nice
finishing touch.
As I mentioned earlier, besides for the dessert, drinks were
the other highlight to this tapas bar.
We started off with cocktails. I ordered their signature
cocktail, the horchata (frozen tiger nut (?!?) milk and Brandy de Jerez). It
was like drinking an ice cream soda, and I could have continued drinking it
throughout my entire meal (which would have been dangerous!).
My friend ordered the Pomade (frozen basil gin lemonade from
Mallorca). It would be the perfect drink for a hot and humid summer afternoon.
For our meal, my friend went with the Enanzo rose. I was
surprised at the red coloring. I’m so used to seeing a pink rose, so the ruby red
color definitely made an impression.
I went with a white Listan Blanco. It was rich and nutty.
However, when dessert arrived, I knew that I wanted to pair
it with a red wine. Our server (who was super friendly throughout out entire
meal) was extremely helpful. He recommended the Carchelo, which was a blend of
monastrell, tempranillo, syrah, and cabernet sauvignon. He even offered a
sample tasting before I committed to a glass. It was the perfect pairing with
the chocolate dessert and it had a smooth, velvety, long finish.
What I didn’t realize was that it wasn’t traditionally offered
by the glass! So that was definitely a treat!
Pros:
The service.
The drinks.
Cons:
Wish they offered a lunch special.
Final Thoughts
Will return, but only for the drinks and dessert!
