Chinatown, Spanish Restaurant Guide

“It’s a great show to watch the chefs at work”, perched on a stool at the counter of the Hart Bros’ “incredibly busy and buzzy” bars – their hyper-successful homage to Barcelona’s Cal Pep. “The tapas is always first rate” with “succulent grilled seafood all prepared in front of your very eyes” a highlight. “Staff are friendly and efficient and take such pride in the dishes and their presentation”. (In April 2023, executive chef Angel Zapata Martin left the group after six years, leaving Antonio Gonzales Milla minding the central Barrafina locations, and Francisco Jose Torrico in charge of Coal Drops Yard and Borough).

“Living up to the naturally high expectations”; this prime site within the Café Royal, off Piccadilly Circus, wins praise – albeit on limited feedback this year – for the “meticulous patisserie” you would hope for from Albert Adrià (who, back in the day, was pastry chef at his brother Ferran’s world-famous destination restaurant: El Bulli, long RIP).

A “reliable Soho favourite”, where results from its blackboard menu are “always solidly good and can be excellent” – the same can be said of its handwritten ‘little black book’ of wines. “Small, relaxed and friendly”, it “can become pretty noisy, but that’s part of the fun”.

“An excellent location overlooking the River Thames makes the Richmond branch very special if you are able to bag one of its outside tables on a balmy summer evening”; and it’s a highpoint of this chain run by a firm of well-known Iberian food importers. On the plus-side, its branches are generally “buzzy”, with “tasty” and “authentically flavoured” tapas. On the minus-side, for all the “high quality ingredients”, dishes can end up “indifferent” and “pricey for the size of the portions”; and “service can be a little too uneven”.

“Just wonderful: fresh… lively… exciting and always interesting!” – that’s this year’s worst (!) report of many lauding Nieves Barragan and José Etura’s phenomenal slice of Spain, just off Regent Street. “A seat at the counter, if you can snag one (get there early, or be prepared to queue – it’s well worth it) transports one to Andalucia or Castile, and the assured food is as good as it is there”. Or “eat upstairs at the El Asador dining room” (which is bookable nowadays). “Seating can be a little cramped but it all adds to the atmosphere”. Top Menu Tip – “crisp piglet never disappoints”.

“It’s a great show to watch the chefs at work”, perched on a stool at the counter of the Hart Bros’ “incredibly busy and buzzy” bars – their hyper-successful homage to Barcelona’s Cal Pep. “The tapas is always first rate” with “succulent grilled seafood all prepared in front of your very eyes” a highlight. “Staff are friendly and efficient and take such pride in the dishes and their presentation”. (In April 2023, executive chef Angel Zapata Martin left the group after six years, leaving Antonio Gonzales Milla minding the central Barrafina locations, and Francisco Jose Torrico in charge of Coal Drops Yard and Borough).

“It’s a great show to watch the chefs at work”, perched on a stool at the counter of the Hart Bros’ “incredibly busy and buzzy” bars – their hyper-successful homage to Barcelona’s Cal Pep. “The tapas is always first rate” with “succulent grilled seafood all prepared in front of your very eyes” a highlight. “Staff are friendly and efficient and take such pride in the dishes and their presentation”. (In April 2023, executive chef Angel Zapata Martin left the group after six years, leaving Antonio Gonzales Milla minding the central Barrafina locations, and Francisco Jose Torrico in charge of Coal Drops Yard and Borough).

No-one, it seems, told star Spanish chef Quique Dacosta (whose Alicante restaurants hold three Michelin stars) that you don’t launch an ambitious foodie venue just off the shopping hell of Oxford Street. This impressive-looking four-year-old – complete with a large open kitchen – offers high quality grills, with the speciality being a selection of paella dishes. Feedback remains quite limited (not helped by its location) – neither huge criticism, nor huge praise is present.

Gwynedd meets Catalonia and beyond at Tomos (Brat) Parry’s hotly anticipated summer 2023 newcomer: potentially one of Soho’s brightest foodie sparks. A “wood grill and wine bar”, Tomos channels the native cuisine of his upbringing on Anglesey (with nearby Snowdonia) through the lens of his travels across Spain. Supplied by farmers and fisherman in Wales and Cornwall, whole roast bream will be a feature as will lamb chops, and Anglesey lobster – all emerging, as at Brat, from an open kitchen and with a good deal of counter seating.

With ‘croquetas at its core’, this small, December 2022 newcomer, south of Carnaby Street, promises to bring ‘Spanish bar culture with regional sensibilities to Soho’. Run by Brindisa, it’s a non-branded attempt at a funkier outlet for their Hispanic produce and wines. No survey feedback as yet, but in a March 2023 review, The Independent’s Lucy Thackray hailed a “cosy, convivial Spanish hangout” that’s “a potentially chemistry-crackling date place” – “the spelling may be gimmicky but the food is not”.

“Not a place for a quiet tête-à-tête: instead climb up to the bar and dig into a mixture of fine Scottish fish and seafood, prepared as Spanish-style tapas”. That’s the culinary mashup at Stephen Lironi’s new “Soho seafood heaven” – a “lively, albeit slightly cramped” space with “lovely and engaging service and a fun atmosphere” (“as long as you are sitting upstairs” – downstairs is “a bit small and dingy”). On the downside, it can seem a bit “hyped” – “they need to smarten up if they are going to charge such high prices when you are perched on a bar stool”.

“Talk about high ceilings and light” – this “really lovely addition to the RA” is “worth a trip just for the beautiful dining room”. According to supporters, “it’s a clear exception to the rule that restaurants in art galleries never live up to their surroundings, with imaginative tapas in good-sized portions and at very reasonable prices for the area”. That said, its ratings have slipped since it first opened and there are one or two critics who say “we’ve always been fans of José, but the RA offering isn’t as good as the other JPs”.

2022 Review: Joining José Pizarro at the RA is this less-formal tapas bar from the star Spaniard. The RA’s food operations in recent years have always conformed to the low expectations of gallery catering generally, but our hunch is that José didn’t get the memo telling him that no great shakes are expected, and that actually it may be rather good...

Madrid-born Arian and Alberto Zandi added this new Mayfair venture to their portfolio (alongside Zuaya and Como Garden) in November 2021. On the plus side, results from the Spanish menu can be excellent. On the downside, the bill here can mount and feedback is sufficiently up-and-down to preclude a fully wholehearted endorsement.