You’re the Tapas!
Upon arriving at BARcelona Tapas Restaurant last night, I really had no idea what the concept entailed. I was soon to discover a friendly, fun, delicious dining experience. Tapas is dining on small, appetizer sized plates passed around the table. Yes, it requires you trust your fellow diners and not have many hang ups about sharing. If you can do this, however, the rewards are worth it. I recommend going with a group of six or more. We each ordered two (or even three) things that sounded good and passed them all around.
Standing out especially was a combination of a jumbo shrimp, sausage, bread and a sort of Spanish bar-b-que sauce. While a single shrimp may not seem like a very good portion, it’s indicative of the size of a plate brought to the table. The prawn was the largest I’d ever seen and all six of us got at least one good sized bit (to the person who ordered went the leftovers). When you order a skewer beef, you get a single skewer of beef. Delicious beef. The lamb dish was three small chops (only slightly overcooked). We would have liked a little more sauce with the cod cakes and I thought the duck was a touch overcooked as well. And yet, every dish was a bit of a discovery.
Shared desserts yielded one of the best Creme Brulee ever tasted, a remarkably well balanced chocolate brownie and an amazing Three Milk Cake with Caramel sauce. All quite simple in concept and way above average on the tongue.
The service was good, especially the host/front of house manager who checked in with us often. The eager waiter was a good sport with our naive approach and ribbing. We even got a visit from the Executive Chef (visiting from their flagship restaurant in St. Louis) who brought us two extra plates of off-the-menu items. Late in the meal we joked with the manager that we would like to become secret shoppers for the place and he revealed he thought we already were (we weren’t). Perhaps that garnered the extra attention, but maybe we were having such a great time we attracted good things!
We didn’t keep track of everything we ordered, so I was concerned the tab might be running away from us. In the end, the price was on par with an upscale, but not unreasonable, establishment.
On the corner of Ohio and Delaware streets downtown. Open seven days a week. Reservations recommended. www.barcelonatapas.com
Comments
Glad to see ya had a “positive” experience after the two previous posts! Thanks for your continued service as “The Ignored Critic”. Enjoy it.
Just went this weekend! The girls were, as might be expected, a bit skeptical. But caramel churros will melt the heart of even the most ardent “new” food hater, and everyone left happy. We’ll have to share a sitter and go some time! Have you tried Brugge Brasserie yet? Can’t remember if I’ve asked…I ask everyone these days…
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