This was picked for an evening of chat with a friend from work, the thought being that a mix of shared tapas would be a great thing to have with a glass or two of wine.
The first thing to notice on approaching the Opera Tavern were the protesters outside the door. They were objecting the presence of fois gras on the menu, something I failed to notice at all but on later review they serve do serve pork and fois gras burger as part of their bar menu. In this case, we were eating in the main dining room upstairs and not sure it was on our menu.
I failed to notice something else as well, walking in and managing to knock the booking computer off its little shelf. Luckily it survived, enabling us to be easily checked in and led to table.
We started off with a plate of padron peppers and another of mixed charcuterie. The peppers where well grilled with just the right amount of salt; the meat had a good mix of sausages and ham. We were also served with great bread and brilliant peppery olive oil.
I’m not very good at taking photos when dining with someone, so that is the only one from the evening. But we ate more, lots more! We had the confit of pork belly with rosemary and canelloni beans. The pork was very moreish, especially the thin crispy slice of crackling and the beans made a pleasant contrast with the hint of heb coming through. The lamb was good, so were the cod croquettes. My favourite was the grilled prawns, served with garlic, something that is so hard to get just right and these were served just right – nearly as good as the ones I had in Spain a few weeks ago.
We had a great night, with good wine and the food cooked well. It still suffered from one of the downfalls of tapas places, which is how t easily share the dishes when you have to chop all the bits up evening. I always think they should serve single bites of things, making it easier to share.
The prices are good but like all tapas, can add up. But i think if you were popped in downstairs to the bar, for the Spanish tradition of a glass and a small nibble, both the portions and prices work well.
